Why Hiring Wrong Is An Expensive Problem for You
Hiring a new employee costs an average of $4,000-$7,645. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates an annualized employee turnover rate of 73.88% in the hotel and motel industry. If you operate with a 13-person staff, a 73.88% turnover rate will cost you between $148,000 to $282.865 each year. There is a solution, and it’s a lot easier than you might think.
It’s time to reconsider the traditional hire slow and fire quick philosophy – at least the hire slow part. Maybe hiring should be more like speed dating. Put many candidates across the table from you but spend very little time evaluating them. You’ll find the exact number of equally qualified candidates with the same turnover and productivity rate that your current slow and expensive recruiting and hiring process finds, but for much less cost and time.
Once you determine the applicant meets the minimum job requirements, either from their application or resume, give them an unscheduled call. It seems like no one answers their phone these days; leave a clear, short message with a short deadline to call back. For example, “This is Jane from XYZ Hotel. Based on your application you look exactly like the superstars we hire. Give me a call by Friday so you and I can clarify a few minor points before scheduling a formal interview.” You’ve now just boosted their excitement level about your position and simultaneously calmed them down about a telephone interview – which is exactly what clarifying a few minor points is. Of course, leave your phone number.
Once you have the applicant on the phone, take just three minutes to ask these screening questions. If they pass the screening questions, immediately schedule an interview for a later date. A negative response to any of your questions disqualifies the candidate for hire – end the interview. Initial, date, and note on the application why you disqualified the applicant. Move on to the next applicant. This is speed dating, remember?
The 3-Minute Telephone Screening Interview
1. Do you object to a background check? If you hire people with criminal records, give them a chance to come clean. Check their criminal record ahead of the call. If you don’t have a service to check for you, search online for the circuit clerk in the county the candidate resides. Most records are online these days. In their answer you are looking for remorse about the criminal activity and honesty about having a criminal record. One of my best employees was an ex-felon.
2. Do you have a valid driver’s license and reliable transportation? Clarify that the transportation is available all the time, and in good working order. Oh, the number of times I’ve heard, “My car isn’t working,” or “My license is suspended,” or other excuses an employee can’t get to work. In the day of Uber, there should be no excuse for not getting to work – on time. Nonetheless, we don’t hire you unless you have reliable transportation for your personal use, and a valid driver’s license.
3. Are there any days of the week you cannot work? Hospitality is a 24/7 business. We let part-time applicants slide on this, because they are usually students or have other regular obligations. Fulltime applicants must be available to work when our customers expect us to be open. It’s hard enough to work around the schedules of part-time employees, you don’t want to have to manage the variable schedules of your fulltime staff too. You may have a different opinion; it’s up to you on this one.
4. Can you work Saturday and Sunday? I know, we just asked if they are available 7 days a week, but somehow people still think that doesn’t include the weekends. Best to ask and see if there is hesitation or back pedaling. Sometimes they’ll ask, “Do I have to work every weekend?” That’s an indication you’ll have more problems than not getting them to pick up a weekend shift.
Photo “Employees” by Flickr user Peter Clark used under Creative Commons License
5. Do you know any reason that could cause you to be late for work? First, you are telling the candidate you expect them to show up on time. Second, you are trying to uncover problems with getting to work, other obligations, or patterns of absenteeism.
6. If you hire students: Are you involved in athletics, drama, music or other after-school activities? Do not hire any student involved in after-school activities. They’ll tell you, last minute, “I have a mandatory meeting/event/game/practice so I can’t come to work.” Save yourself the headache, don’t hire students involved in after-school activities.
7. Will you have another job if you work with us? Are you planning to make us your priority? We don’t hire if the applicant has another job. One hundred percent of the time there is a scheduling conflict. If you are willing to deal with the frequent scheduling conflicts, determine if the applicant only wants your job to fill in around their other job. If so, they are disqualified.
8. What are your professional goals for the next 6 months? You are looking for professional goals that indicate the candidate will not be working for you in 6 to 12 months, like becoming a stylist, nurse, or emergency medical technician.
You’ll drastically reduce the number of slackers and people with too many personal obligations who make it to the interview process and into your workforce. This will save you time, money, and headache later. Use this 3-minute screening interview in conjunction with accurate interviews, short probationary periods, productive on-boarding, effective evaluations, meaningful & diverse work, and common-sense policies to hire and retain superstar employees. If this sounds daunting, book a free consult with Don to transform your workforce into productive, cohesive, team-players who stay for the long haul, and contribute to innovation and excellence on the job.