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Small Business Hiring: Dos and Don’ts from Someone Who’s Done It

Small Business Hiring: The Dos and Don'ts from Someone Who's Done It

Hiring your first few employees is exhilarating; you’re building a team of people who will help you build your business into an empire (or at least a venture that will enable you to pay your mortgage). But while it’s exciting, hiring people is also exhausting, frustrating and sometimes, even depressing.

Before building the initial team for Signs.com, I thought a lot about the hiring process. I knew that the personnel decisions I made would have a huge impact on our budding company, and that the stakes were high. Now that the company is humming, I look back and see mistakes I’ve made as well as successes I’ve had. I can definitely say that spending the time to hire right has made all the difference. Here are the top Do’s and Don’ts of hiring:

Don’t

Focus too much on the resume. Just because someone has an Ivy league education doesn’t mean that he’s the right fit for the job. And experience doesn’t always trump enthusiasm; a person with 20 years of experience may be set in her ways, while a young graduate may bring fresh, creative thinking to the position.

Do

Ask for samples of past work, or specific examples that show a candidate’s skills. Take the time to carefully consider the material the person provides—it speaks volumes about that person’s abilities and background.

Don’t

Try to talk yourself into hiring someone. If your gut is telling you that the candidate isn’t right for the job, but your brain is reminding you that if you don’t get someone in there in the next week you’re going to fall behind schedule, you go with your gut. Every time.

Do

Consider how the candidate will fit in with the rest of your staff. In small companies, employees often work together in tight quarters. If personalities clash, things can get ugly quickly. In order to maximize your team’s effectiveness, your entire team should gel.

Don’t

Hire friends who aren’t the best candidate for the job. Sure, it’s a fast, easy fix, but if they’re not capable of doing the job in the long run you’ll end up having to fire them. This mistake can cost you time and resources as well as destroy valuable friendships.

Do

Hire friends who have the skills you need, especially if you’ve worked with them in the past. Having the right people around you—those who share your vision for the company and are optimistic, positive and generally upbeat—makes all the difference.

Don’t

Have unrealistic expectations. Small businesses have small budgets. You’re not going to get David Sedaris to write your company blog for $8 an hour.

Do

Get creative. Start by hiring interns or students who will work for less money because they don’t have any experience. Find those diamonds-in-the-rough who have the skills and just need the right environment in which to hone them.

Don’t

Break the law. If you’re not familiar with antidiscrimination laws, get familiar before you start interviews, or make your first hire an HR professional who’ll help you with the rest.

Do

Ask open-ended interview questions that will allow the candidate to talk about his talent and experience. That’s all that matters.

Don’t

Make promises you can’t keep. Don’t inflate the salary range, lie about the number of hours required, or misrepresent the daily tasks the job entails.

Do

Be upfront about the positive and negative aspects of the job. If you need the person to work a lot of overtime in the beginning, say so. Otherwise, you’re setting yourself up for a mass evacuation next month when all your new employees walk out at once. Offer perks that overcome the negative aspects of the job. Perhaps employees can work those overtime hours from home, or gain some extra vacation time in addition to overtime pay.

Don’t

Let opportunities pass you by. You might be interviewing a sub-par writer who’s actually the perfect person for your marketing department. Or perhaps you’ve found an incredible web developer, but he prefers freelance work over full-time employment. Don’t insist on sticking to the parameters you created in the beginning of the process, or you might miss out on something really great.

Do

Use your powers of negotiation, creativity and flexibility to find the right people. It can be incredibly rare to find excellence—do whatever it takes to bring it into your company.

Don’t

Give up. Hiring can be a long, drawn-out process. You’ll find yourself becoming cynical and pessimistic that you’ll ever get through it. Stick it out.

Do

Ask for help. Tell everyone you know about the employment opportunities at your business. Hire a recruiting firm if necessary. The right people are out there—and it’s worth it to put in some long, exhausting weeks to find them.

Don’t

Make the decision by yourself. Bad candidates can be on their game once or twice and great candidates can have an off interview. Getting another’s opinion through a second and third interview can help you see through those inconsistencies.

Do

Check references. There have been countless times where I have been ready to make a hire only to have someone come out of the woodwork and tell me why that hire wouldn’t be a great decision.  Bullet dodged.

I reviewed hundreds of applications and conducted dozens of interviews to hire the amazing team at Signs.com. In the end, my hard work has paid off. Now I’m surrounded by skilled, talented people who are helping me shape the company into an industry leader. Was it painful? Yes. Was it worth it? Absolutely.

Nelson James is COO and Co-Founder of Signs.com. Signs.com produces custom banners and signage for small businesses and other customers seeking a custom signage solution. Nelson also previously helped grow small businesses including his time as VP at Lendio and Co-Founder and President of SEO.com.

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