Finding the right person for the job

There’s a lot of pressure involved when it comes to finding the right person with the right personality, drive and skillset for your company. So how can you guarantee you’ve got the full package every time? We’ve brought together a few hints and tips to help make sure you end up with the best possible employees. 

What does your company need?

Are you looking for an experienced staff member who will take on managerial responsibilities, or is there a place for a fresh-faced graduate to reinvigorate your sales efforts?
To help clarify what you need to fulfil your business objectives, there may be a few things to consider before you begin the process of hiring an employee. 
Is there really a need for a senior sales role? The right person for the job might not necessarily be an experienced member of staff. If you’re looking to grow your company, an energetic graduate could be the solution to changing the trajectory of your profit margins. What’s more, if cost is an issue, you can often hire two or more graduates for the price of one senior sales person, meaning a stronger ROI.
Recruitment agencies such as Pareto can come into your workplace and assess any pitfalls or gaps in your sales strategy, identifying areas where you can improve. With this more focused style of recruitment, finding the right person becomes a lot easier.

Creating the job spec and deciding on communication channels

When you advertise for a job you’re saying something about your company, so to get the right message across you need to be concise yet detailed. You should also aim to inspire your prospective employees and demonstrate you care about them and about hiring the right person for the job.
One of the hardest challenges is getting your advertisement in front of the right people. If you aren’t using the right channels, you’ll struggle to reach the best candidates. Do your research to find the websites and job boards that will suit your company and needs.
Alternatively consider using a recruitment agency. A good agency can provide you with a myriad of industry knowledge to suit your requirements, along with access to a whole raft of talented individuals who have been assessed, vetted and chosen as the best possible candidates. 
An agency can also offer discretion, allowing you to employ the right person for the job, without having to advertise – perfect for when you don’t want competitors to know what you’re up to. This targeted and strategic approach to hiring the best sales people can often reap rewards that working alone can’t. 

The interview process

Meeting your candidates and making judgements on who’s the best for the job is usually the last step in the recruiting process. However, that doesn’t mean corners can be cut. You may even find all the prospective employees you’ve lined up aren’t quite right for your company. So how do you make sure this last and crucial step goes to plan?
Before you meet candidates for the first time, make sure you do your homework. Refresh your memory about the role you’re recruiting for and why you made the strategic decision to seek out certain traits and experience. Re-read the job ad you placed and the resumes you received, then draw up a few unique questions for each interviewee, rather than solely asking run-of-the-mill standard ones.
Also take the time to brush up on your interview technique and tactics. Do you want a simple question and answer process or would you prefer to set practical tasks or challenges to assess their abilities? Will you and the HR manager be playing ‘good cop, bad cop’ to test strength, resilience and people skills or are you both going to be a little kinder?
All of this can be great ways to discover if your candidates can really deliver, so finding the right balance is key. 
To further streamline this process, it’s always a good idea to involve a professional recruiter. You may have a dedicated specialist within your company, or you may want to consider outsourcing. Either way, having an expert with the relevant experience and training can make a huge difference when it comes to finding the right person for the job. 
What’s more, taking candidates for interview can be a long process, which can consume a lot of your time. If you’re too busy, or you’re in need of an employee quickly, opting for an agency can be a great alternative. 

Making a decision

 
After the interview process it’s likely you’ll have some hard decisions to make. 
You may want to consider the following:
-    Candidates may be equal or similar when it comes to skills, but how would the personality of each candidate fit into your team? Would they work well with everyone else?
-    Where do you see this person in a few years’ time and do they have the potential to progress within your company? 
-    What is it that they as an individual will be bringing to your company and your team? For example: is it drive and determination or a wealth of experience?

Working closely with a sales recruitment agency can help you simplify these choices. An agency with a strong industry knowledge and a firm grasp of your requirements can weigh up the options for you, whether that’s highlighting a candidate’s qualities that could sway your decision, or helping you to keep your wider strategic objectives in mind.
Whatever you’re looking to achieve when you start the recruitment process, having clear objectives, sales industry knowledge and an experienced recruiter on your side can really make a difference not only to the process but the caliber of employee you end up taking on.