Feb 25, 2022

Seven Tips for More Effective Small Business Hiring

Hiring the right people is one of the most vital things that a small business owner can do for their company. Each new hire has a tremendous impact on the company and influences the company culture in a big way. One of the challenges that small businesses face while hiring is that the employees tend to wear multiple hats and may have less time to dedicate to attracting quality candidates.

In the small business world, news travels fast, so do ensure that you make wise hiring and rejection decisions. When you’re starting to hire, make sure that you make the candidates feel valued and respected even if you don’t end up hiring them. Be graceful in your rejections and try to send a personal email thanking the candidate for their time, rather than an automated one.

Here are seven best practices you can implement to make your hiring process more effective

1. Make use of your referral programs

The best way to hire a great candidate is by making use of your existing employees. When a candidate comes referred by a trusted employee or colleague, it gives you an extra layer of faith and confidence that the candidate will be able to perform well in their role. You could also attend local business events like the ones hosted by the Chamber of Commerce, to interact with your network and ask them for referrals. Create a generous employee referral program that might be a motivating factor for existing employees to help you find the right candidate. Referrals can make hiring for start-up and small business jobs so much easier and more streamlined.

2. Post your roles on jobsites

Remember to post your role to some of the best job sites in Canada to gain as much visibility as possible. Some of the popular sites in Canada where you can find plenty of start-up jobs are:

• Refer HR
• Indeed
• Eluta
• Jobilica
• Jobboom
• Talent Egg
• LinkedIn
• Monster

3. Know what you have to offer

When you’re a small business, the general perception might be that your pay range might not be as high as a larger company. And even if you can’t afford to pay the highest salaries, think about the other ways in which you can attract good employees. You may be a small business, but you might be able to offer more learning opportunities or flexibility than a larger business. You might be in a neighborhood without a lot of employment opportunities that could make you an asset and strengthen your roots in that society. Offer relevant perks like permanent remote work, or tuition reimbursement benefits that other companies might not be offering. When you start hiring, think about assets and leverage them.

4. Ask great interview questions

Hiring is a two-way street. Much like it’s the candidate’s job to impress you, it’s equally your job to impress the candidate. You might not be the only company who the candidate is interviewing with, so you need to step up your game and prove that you’re the best fit. When you take the hiring process seriously, it shows up in your interview with the candidate and makes them feel valued when they spend time with you.

5. Do a test drive

Hiring someone can be an expensive process, but it’s even more expensive to replace someone you’ve hired. So, before you make a final hiring decision, it’s important to know if the candidate can do the job you’re hiring them for. Technical assessments, completing tasks or short projects are a great way to gauge this and ensure that the candidate is good fit before there’s a long-term commitment.

6. Consider hiring older employees

When you’re a smaller business, an older employee will be able to bring in a certain level of experience and knowledge to your company that can only come with age. They will also be able to offer some mentorship to the newer hires which can only benefit the company’s onboarding culture.

7. Don’t hire more than you need to

Give your existing employees room to grow and make a solid effort to retain your best employees and make them feel valued. There are many ways to do this like promoting within the team or you can find a way that works for you and make it count. Employee loyalty is priceless and cannot be found on a resume.

There is no harm in holding out for the right employee especially if you’re a small business, just make sure that you’re holding out for the right reasons and aren’t being too stringent with your hiring process. If you’re wondering how to hire the right employee, think outside of the box and find hiring solutions that work for you. Remember that your hiring responsibilities do not end when you hire someone, onboarding is a major step to retaining employees. Make sure that new hires are introduced to the culture of your company on day one and find a way to make them feel valued and excited to be there.

There is no perfect recipe or strategy when it comes to hiring, as each business’s needs are different from one another. But by spending more time in creating developing your recruitment strategy and making sure that the candidate has a good hiring experience with your company, you’re setting a standard for yourself in the job market. Being a small business in no way means that you can’t hire great talent. Honing your hiring strategy and investing more time into it will get you where you need to go when it comes to making great hiring decisions.