“Why would I want people who only think what I think?” Carol Decker, publishing consultant

Hiring can be a tough process without a few guidelines to help focus on the results you want to achieve. These guidelines will help reduce the stress of hiring the right person for the job.

Publishing consultant Carol Decker said, “I believe in hiring people who are smarter than I am. I want people who are interested and smart.” She even allows that she thought some of the people she hired in the past twenty years would be running companies one day and that she would like working for them! The old saying, “Always be kind to people on their way up because you might pass them on your way down,” holds merit today.

Carol’s idea of smarter is valid. Also, that could mean smarter in areas different from your own knowledge base. A good team is comprised of members whose skills compliment the others.

So what you do you to build a great team? 

1.    Don’t hire in your own image. If you want to replace yourself, hire someone just like you. Otherwise, know the qualities you think you want in a position that will compliment the team. Keep in mind that every candidate for the job will have different strengths and weaknesses. All will have different approaches to problem solving, communication and getting along with others. 

2.     Have clear expectations. Written job descriptions are a must. It is best to have written human resource practices and policies. When you have performance reviews your employees will have the benefit of clear expectations and be better equipped to respond to feedback about their work.

3.     Hire people with a sense of humor. Work can be tense, but made less so with people who can laugh at themselves. If you want your employees to work hard, you have to have some fun along the way.

4.     Don’t hire friends. It is always tempting to think that just because you’re friends you can work well together. Unfortunately, that isn’t the case in many more incidences than you would imagine. It’s often hard for one friend to be the boss and the other the employee. If you think you might ever have to fire that friend you hired, consider if she is the type of person who would still be friends with you.

5.     Don’t hire during the first interview. Take your time in hiring, as least enough time to follow up on recommendations. Even if you are in a rush, do a background check. It’ll save you much more time in the long run. If you really need to fill a position quickly, hire temporary workers to fill in the gap while you look to the permanent employee.

6.     Follow your intuition. This is the most important of all. Time and time again, people tell me that their number one hiring mistake comes from not following their gut. Everything can look just perfect about a prospective employee, but a nagging gut feeling tries to tell you something. Listen to it. If you don’t feel comfortable about hiring someone, follow your intuition.