Is Your Employee Engagement Problem a Hiring Problem? Talent Alone Can’t Fit the Bill

Employee engagement doesn’t “just happen.” HR and organizations work to make sure engagement is part of the company strategy . So, why does it feel like engagement is at a low when so many resources, so much time, and so much effort are invested in it?

Perhaps your organization doesn’t have an employee engagement problem. Perhaps it has a hiring problem. In fact, hiring the right people is critical to the framework of a successful organization. A good hire with a solid onboarding process can start becoming a postive contributor quickly.

A bad hire can cost tens of thousands of dollars. Certainly the dollar “cost” of a bad hire is quantitative, but when discussing the morale and productivity of an organization because of a bad hire, there are residual effects, both economic and cultural. And we’ve all been there.

Here are 7 tips to consider before beginning the excruciating process of vetting candidates to find the “right fit.”

1. Be clear about the organization’s vision, mission, and goals . By doing this, not only will the organization have a clear idea of what the organization strives to achieve but also what kind of people it wants working there.

2. Define the organization’s values: What shared behaviors, language, and mindset are important for the organization to achieve its mission. The kind of employee who will strive at Google might not be the right fit, regardless of how talented she is, for a position at a Wall Street investment company. Imagine the look and attitude of Harley Davison compared to Tesla … different company cultures should seek out talent that “fits the mold” so to speak.

3. Ethics are critical. Oftentimes hiring managers are on the frontline to attract new talent. They’re the door to the organization and the first impression. Make this first impression count.

4. Get technological. Technology doesn’t replace the importance of face-to-face encounters, the personal touch. It does, however, create strategic processes that can save time and thousands of dollars. Everything from having applicant tracking systems, social media distribution platforms, evaluations for the organization’s recruiting strategies and how effective they are, onboarding programs and more.

5. Get to the bottom of it. Are the candidates mission-driven? What challenges are organization-specific? Interview candidates and include questions to meet these challenges.

6. Hire for tomorrow. By the time you hire a candidate and she starts producing, several months have gone by. So when hiring, hire for growth. Which candidates are a year ahead on the curve and can pull others along with them?

7. Bad hires happen. (This is not a t-shirt, though it should be). We’ve all done it, hired the wrong candidate. When this happens, it’s critical for an organization to look at what went wrong:

• a. Look at the job description. Did the candidate meet the profile? Was the profile wrong?
• b. Has the organization invested in the tools necessary to make good hires?
• c. Is there a solid recruiting, hiring, and onboarding process?
• d. Are hiring managers creative? Were references checked? Once on board, were expectations clear? Are several departments heads involved in the hiring process?