Ask yourself – do you really need to fill a position?

Spend time planning your recruitment strategy. Implementing an effective recruitment strategy will save time and assist better recruitment decisions further down the track.

Firstly, why is there a vacancy? Some common reasons are:

•a resignation in your team

•a project requires more support

•a member of staff takes long-term leave

Secondly, what recruitment methods are available?

•Entry level: recruit employees at junior level and promote them as they are trained and developed.

•Open vacancies to the external job market

•A combination of offering internal opportunities to develop current staff and bringing new talent and ideas to the workplace.

In the absence of a Human Resources department, these are questions to consider in developing a recruitment strategy.

Finally, think laterally:

•Will you need to fill the vacancy at all?

•Are other team members able to adopt some of the responsibilities?

•Does the structure of your team and the jobs within it meet the values, priorities, strategy and current technology in the company?

In some instances, the departing or absent employee will have made the job their own based on their own skill set or the job may have started as one thing and evolved into another.

Composing an Adequate Job Specification

The job specification is the most important document in your recruitment strategy. It will be a fundamental part of the advertisement for both candidates and recruiters. Stating the obvious, writing may be a journalist's bread and butter but writing a job specification is an entirely different proposition to reporting the news.

Complaints from people about being misinformed about a job are not uncommon. The job specification (spec) needs to be clear and precise about the person and skills you're looking for. It should accurately reflect the nature and responsibility level of the job.

The main goal of the spec is to interest people with the skills and experience you're looking for but make it specific enough so that you're not inundated with a lot of inappropriate applicants. Moreover, the spec forms the criteria for short-listing applicants and devising interview questions.

Even if a job spec already exists, it pays to asses it and make any necessary changes.

Essential information to include in the spec:

•A brief overview of the company, department and product or service. If you're looking for a journalist or designer, then mention the publication or website's readership and editorial style. Don't rely on your company's reputation alone to encourage people to apply – sell your company.

•An overview of the job and where it's placed within the organisation. Who does it report to? Who do they manage?

•List any other key relationships

•List the main duties and responsibilities

•Include any key numbers such as size of teams and budgetary responsibilities

•A person specification listing the minimum skills and experience required for the job

•Use general terminology rather than jargon and company-specific phrases

If in doubt, consult the current person in the position to come up with a summary of their main duties but consider the needs of the company rather than the specific skills set of the current employee.

Evaluate any qualifications that you plan on requesting. Compliance issues require a qualification in some professions but consider whether you really need a certain qualification for your job. Asking for qualifications could deter some of the population such as older workers.

Decide whether you need to include contact details for applicants wanting more information. This will depend on how many people you expect to apply. Junior positions will attract a higher than normal number of applicants. Keep in mind that speaking to applicants provides the chance to assess the quality of applicants.

Timing is everything

Be prepared for the fact that your recruitment process could take several weeks including development of a recruitment strategy. It's tempting to rush the process in order to replace the outgoing employee and fit in a handover but this apparently ideal situation runs the risk of recruiting the wrong person and a waste of time and money in the long run.

Finding Candidates

Most major media outlets have their own web sites and a jobs section in the classifieds but smaller concerns would benefit from the cheap and convenient web sites for job-seekers. If you don't have a big advertising budget, both general and specialist job web sites could be the best avenue. There are also plenty of trade publications which would give you a much more targeted readership.

Consider how you want applicants to apply and include this in your advertisement. It's easier to compare applications if you have a form where you decide the format and questions.

Alternatively, if budget permits, there is the option of hiring an employment agency to manage part or all of the recruitment process which could range from sending you candidate resumes through to short-listing applicants and conducting the first tier of interviews. Brief the agency thoroughly so that they understand your company culture and what you're looking for in an applicant.

Making the short list

Once you've set a closing date for applications, wait until all the applications have arrived and establish a system for choosing a short list of candidates. Five or six interviewees per vacancy is sufficient.

Determine a handful of essential criteria from the job spec and give each applicant a mark for each. If the position is junior, you'll be looking for potential. If it's senior, you'll be looking for experience and knowledge.

The Interview

The purpose of the interview, of course, is to find the right person for the job and you'll want to get the best out of each candidate attending an interview. It's worth having a second interviewer so long as it's someone who will contribute a constructive assessment of candidates rather than just agree with your opinions.

In the interest of finding someone who meets your criteria, have a set list of questions for all candidates to test how they measure up in each category. Of course, in any interview situation, you shouldn't limit yourself to the set questions as more probing and specific questions will arise. But asking the same questions of all candidates will also mean the process is fair for applicants and simple for you.

At the interview, you will want to find out from a candidate:

•understanding and knowledge of the job, consumer and company

•any technical skills that may be required - for example, editing and writing skills or online experience

•any specialist knowledge necessary in the position

•soft skills such as team work and time management

A good opening question is” How did you prepare for this interview?” This will indicate how interested they are in the job and how well they apply their professional skills. Find out what they know about the job and the company.

Behavioural questions are the centerpiece of most interview strategies. The current school of though in recruitment is that asking for examples of past behaviour in similar situations is the most effective predictor of future behaviour.

Ask the candidate to provide an example of a situation where they had to do something required in the job. For instance, if accuracy and working to tight deadlines are requirements, ask the candidate how and where he/she performed these tasks. Remember to ask the candidate for the outcome and how they managed the situation.

In addition to asking questions, assessing applicants in a test is an effective way to determine technical expertise or specialist knowledge.

Most major daily newspapers test cadetship applicants on general current affairs knowledge and writing ability. This is not out of the question for more senior positions either. For example, you could give a sub editor some copy to edit. Or if scientific knowledge is necessary, provide the applicants with a written test. The holistic approach of several assessment methods is more effective because you will gain a more rounded view of the applicants' abilities.

Decisions, decisions…

Discuss and assess each candidate by marking their answers. Consider each applicant in relation to the job spec instead of comparing them with one another.

If none of them are suitable, it's advisable to start the process all over again. This sounds like a daunting task but it's much better than hiring an unsuitable person and having to start over in a few months.

Short list the top three candidates. Your number one choice may not accept the position so it's worth staying in touch with your second and third candidates by providing feedback and encouraging them to apply for positions in future.

Follow-up

Advise applicants promptly when they won't be interviewed or have not been successful based on an interview. If the recruitment process is delayed, inform the applicants. It's good business practice to treat applicants as clients. A professional approach will represent your company in a favourable light and save applicants unnecessary time-wasting and uncertainty.

Legal Requirements

Consult your Human Resources experts for legal advice to avoid the common pitfalls concerning data protection and discrimination. Alternatively, seek out advice from the relevant government department or statutory authority.

Finally…

Remember that rushing any part of the process will increase the likelihood of poor decision-making so taking the time to develop a thorough recruitment strategy will serve your immediate and long-term recruitment needs.