There are a couple of big hiring mistakes that some organizations fall prey to.

One of them is leaving a position open for too long, which can cost the organization a ton of time and also money. The only mistake worse than that is hiring the wrong person for the position, which can cost even more time and money.

Unfortunately, employers commit these mistakes on a regular basis in the employment marketplace. So how can you and your organization avoid making these two mistakes and instead ensure that your hiring process is as targeted and effective as it can be?

With all of this in mind, here are two key elements of hiring the right job candidate for the position:

#1—Evaluating the position

Specifically, it’s important to evaluate the position as the previous person left it, if the opening is not a brand-new position. What is the position intended to accomplish, now and in the future? How will the position change and grow in relation to the organization’s vision and objectives? These are questions that you must answer before selecting the right person during the hiring process.

It’s important to have both short-term and long-term expectations for the position in mind. Many times, the wrong person is considered and hired because not enough attention is paid to the parameters of the position, both in its current state and in the future.

#2—Evaluating the candidates

There are a couple of important points to keep in mind when evaluating candidates. First, ask targeted questions that will determine not only if they possess the necessary skills and behaviors, but also on how they will utilize those skills and behaviors to solve problems. (Because when you get right down to it, solving problems is what hiring is all about.)

The way to accomplish this is through the use of behavioral-based interview questions, which are situational in nature. The situation could be a real one from the candidates’ past or it could be a theoretical one.

The goal, though, is the same: to see how they reacted in the past or might react in the future. You want to get an idea of how the candidate will think and act in a given situation, or more specifically, how they’ll potentially behave as a member of your team.

An example of a behavorial-based interview question would be, “Tell me about a situation where you had to overcome a conflict, either between you and another co-worker or between two other co-workers, in order to accomplish a common goal.”

In short, the candidate must match the position and the position must match the candidate. Evaluating both thoroughly before the interview process is critical to finding and hiring the right candidate for the position.

If you’re looking to hire exceptional candidates, then we invite you to connect with our team today and see what The Doepker Group can do for your organization.

We also invite you to click HERE to find out even more about the many services that we offer to employers.