Nearly 74% of employers agree that they assessed the wrong qualities when hiring staff. The emergence of the Great Resignation and a rise in suitable individuals that can be selected to work as employees has forced most recruiters to amp up their hiring processes.
Recruiters and HR teams now look for the right soft skills in applicants instead of looking only for hard skills. Soft skills help recruiters assess an applicant’s personality, qualities, and work ethic. If you are wondering what qualities you must look for when hiring staff, you are in the right spot.
With contract recruiting gaining popularity in recent times, it is essential to understand how this recruiting strategy works. A contract recruiter is a professional who specializes in temporary or project-based recruitment. They work for organizations that need to hire staff for specific projects or assignments. Contract recruiters have expertise and are experienced in sourcing candidates with various skill sets for a particular time frame.
If instead, you are on the job hunt and want to work at a reputable company, you can look for staffing jobs through Lensa. This guide will look at the top qualities a suitable staff candidate must possess.
Communication Skills
Communication skill assessment is of utmost importance during the recruitment process. A good communicator is most likely to respond to messages and provide prompt updates in the future. All staff members must have good communication skills to interact directly with clients, colleagues, and business partners. Note that it is possible to assess communication skills via phone and email, even if in-person interviews are not conducted.
● Strong communicators can get their message across in written form perfectly
● They can accept feedback and can work well with instructions
● A good communicator will often ask questions, is open, and likes to engage each time another person tries to communicate
Confident And Positive
Another quality that you must pay attention to when recruiting new staff is looking for confidence. A confident person is often more productive and believes in their skill set. They can juggle projects better and work harder to meet deadlines. Confidence also allows managers to trust an employee and many of their important tasks. Hiring managers should look for the following to ensure confidence:
● Can switch roles with ease
● Does not hesitate to ask for help
● Continually works on polishing their skill set
● Can figure out solutions to a problem independently
● Asks for training or is interested in furthering their education to be an even better fit for the job in the long run
● Does not hesitate in taking up any task you assign to them
Ensuring a positive attitude in your candidate can take a lot of work to determine during the interview process. However, this quality is essential if you need someone who loves their job and is enthusiastic about working at your company.
A cheerful staff member uplifts the mood of others as well and helps create a healthy work environment. Asking applicants how the job fits into their career plans will help you assess if they have sufficient knowledge of your company and its work culture.
Figure out whether this job is a stepping stone for them or if they wish to pursue a meaningful career with you. If they use you as a stepping stone, you have your answer.
Teamwork
While the ability to work independently is essential, recruits must also be able to work as part of a team. Make sure your applicant sees other staff as equals and is willing to put in sufficient effort to do their part of the job. Ask questions like:
● Do you like to work alone or as part of a team?
● What Is your working style?
● Do you feel comfortable being part of a team since you have mostly worked independently at previous jobs?
It is also good to ensure your candidate understands the company culture and is willing to make changes to fit in. They must be friendly and ready to adapt to any lifestyle changes that come with the job. Discuss on-site, hybrid, and remote work schedules beforehand, so the candidate knows what is expected of them. Talk to all staff members to figure out what qualities they would love in an ideal colleague. Look for EQ (Emotional Intelligence) over IQ in your applicants.
Loyalty, Honesty, And Potential
With tons of applications, it is easy to get overwhelmed and make mistakes. Make sure you focus more on soft skills than hard skills if an applicant meets basic technical requirements. Any candidate that loves challenges is willing to learn, and can adapt easily is perfect for the role, even if they have a few skills missing.
To find out whether someone is adaptable, look at what role they had at a previous job. An advanced degree, such as a Master’s, also shows the candidate is interested in new skills and can easily take on multiple roles. Apart from potential, a great candidate must also be loyal and honest:
● Due to the Great Resignation, companies must look for employees and staff willing to work for a long time. Keep in mind that recruits may still look for other jobs even after onboarding with your company.
● Some applicants often lie on their resumes or load them up with accomplishments. If you do come across such a CV, then it is quite likely that the candidate is not very trustworthy.
● Ask questions like what a candidate would do if they made a mistake. Ask them if they would lie or accept the mistake and work towards making amends to see how honest they are.
Endnote
There are many other qualities you can look for apart from the ones we mentioned above when recruiting new staff. These other traits must be defined based on the job role, industry, post, and salary. Make sure to have a proper team of recruiters ready to skim through applications and give them ample time to do so. This way, you can make sure you are hiring the right people.
Featured image by vishnu vijayan from Pixabay.
