Finding a new employee can be tricky and time-consuming. Regardless of whether the position needs to be filled because it is empty or because it is new, it is important to find a candidate that matches the job requirements and fits the company culture.
Even though you might be aching to just find someone to fill the role, waiting to hire the right candidate can significantly impact the company—especially considering the consequences of a bad hire. However, are you doing all that you can to hire the right sales talent?
How to Attract Great Employees
When looking for a new position, three major facets that candidates are considering are culture, training, and development.
Since it is a candidate-driven market and the tightest labor market in the past 50 years, it is a best practice to look within your company and see if you are doing all you can for employees/future employees. You can do so in the following ways:
Enrich Company Culture
Applicants are putting company culture before salary and 73% of those surveyed in a study for Glassdoor responded that they “would not apply to a company unless its values align with [their] own personal values.”
Because of this, it is important to have a strong culture that employees are satisfied with. You can ensure this by having a clear set of values, maintaining a positive work environment that is open to employee suggestions/criticism, hiring/keeping leaders that “walk the walk” and do not contradict established values, checking that the benefits/perks you offer are truly benefitting your employees, and conducting a routine culture audit.
Offer a Structured Onboarding/Training Program
It is a fact that the successful integration of a new employee into the company leads to better retention: it is reported that 69% of employees are “more likely to stay with a company for three years if they experienced great onboarding.” This means that if you offer a comprehensive onboarding program, you increase the likelihood of employee retention.
If you don’t already have an onboarding/training program, take some time to come up with some general plans or position-specific plans that lay out what should be accomplished within a certain timeframe. For instance, Day 1 plans would include introducing the employee to everyone the office, having them fill out paperwork, providing them with the necessary equipment for the job, detailing their responsibilities, shadowing another employee, and perhaps taking them out to lunch to make them feel welcome. To find more information on onboarding sales representatives, check out our previous blog.
Provide Development Opportunities and Recognize Achievements
Since many candidates are looking at positions with a long-term mentality, recognizing employees’ hard work and offering them opportunities to grow in their role/transition into higher positions can draw candidates that are looking to truly have a career.
You don’t have to undergo a complete company makeover to contribute to employee satisfaction and retention; even small things can help. For instance, 85% of professionals want to hear “thank you” in day-to-day interactions.
Employees need room to grow and encouraging them to take classes/attend seminars (with company financial assistance) to develop their skills and/or train under more senior employees can increase their satisfaction.
How to Hire Better Employees
- Understand what you’re looking for: the exact skills, experience, and expertise required for the role. Take the time to evaluate what “requirements” are absolutely necessary and what can be trained.
- Structure interviews: determine which employees will be partaking in interviews, create a checklist of questions for interviewers to ask at each stage of the hiring process, have a consistent interview strategy, and hold every candidate to the same process and the same standards.To make the process easier on interviewers, come up with ideal answers to questions prior to interviews.
- Sell your culture: make sure your culture is known to candidates, such as employee satisfaction, work environment, work-life balance, and other perks.
If you’re looking to transform your company and build a winning sales team, CSS ProSearch can help. CSS ProSearch is a recruiting firm that places top sales and marketing talent for growing businesses in the healthcare, technology, and consulting verticals.
Our sales recruiters take a consultative approach to recruiting, acting as a true partner in the success of both our clients and our talent. With over 50 years of combined experience, our team combines best-in-class recruiting practices, technology, research and innovative approaches to deliver exceptional service with every engagement.