Hiring Mistakes Cost £30k upwards in 2024 - Not Anymore!

Identifying and eliminating a 'Bad Hire' during the Hiring Process: How can you confidently spot and remove them?

Let's start with the obvious - what is a 'Bad Hire?' for any membership organisation, team, or department?

An unfortunate hiring decision occurs when a new employee falls short of the expectations established during the recruitment phase. This can happen due to various factors, such as insufficient skills, subpar performance, or difficulty in integrating into your organisation's environment and culture.

Research conducted by Oxford Economics and Unum has revealed that the average expense associated with a 'bad hire' amounts to approximately £30,614, considering a yearly salary of £25,000 or higher. This encompasses not only recruitment costs but also various other hidden expenses linked to hiring the wrong candidate.

The Key Steps to Take to Avoid a Bad Hire

It is undeniably regrettable for all parties in the hiring process, including the new employee, when it becomes apparent, often soon after their start, that they are not a suitable fit or lack the necessary skills for the position they were offered and accepted.

Whilst this happens for many reasons, there are several step options to take to reduce your risk, damage, cost and impact of any bad hire.

1. Establish Your Brand's Employer Value Proposition (EVP)

Before embarking on the recruitment journey, it is essential to have a profound and crystal-clear understanding of your organisation’s culture and employer brand.

Articulate its personality, core values, and distinctive selling points. This clarity will act as a guiding beacon, helping you attract candidates who are in perfect harmony with your brand identity.

Discover our guide to creating your EVP specifically tailored for the membership sector.

2. Collaborate with Membership Sector Specialists.

Partner with recruitment agencies that specialise in the membership sector, avoiding agencies where membership is merely a 'department or division'. By selecting agencies with a deep understanding of the sector, you gain access to a wide, diverse pool of top-tier talent. These agencies can efficiently shortlist candidates, saving you valuable time and resources. This strategic approach ensures that your efforts are focused on interviewing highly relevant candidates, ultimately preventing the potential pitfalls of a misguided hiring decision.

3. Develop Comprehensive Job Descriptions.

Creating a precise job description is your first line of defence against unsuitable hires. Clearly delineate the skills, qualifications, and cultural attributes you’re seeking. Specify the areas of expertise required, whether it’s in marketing & digital, events, policy & public affairs, finance, education & training, secretarial & governance, communications & PR or membership roles.

Access our guide to creating Job Descriptions for the membership sector.

4. Implement Competency-based Interview Techniques.

Move beyond conventional interview questions. By employing competency-based questions, hiring managers can gain deeper insights into candidates’ practical skills, their approach to handling challenges, and their compatibility as team players. This method ensures fairness, aligns closely with job requirements, and offers a preview of the candidate’s potential future success in the role. The right membership sector recruitment specialist can guide, support, and fulfill key elements here, find out what we deliver.

5. Evaluate Cultural Compatibility.

Ensuring a good cultural fit is crucial to avoid disruptions or premature departures. It is important that new hires resonate with your brand’s ethos and company culture. During interviews, explore the candidate’s values, teamwork experiences, and what they seek in a future employer to gauge alignment with your organisational culture.

6. Conduct Thorough Background Checks and Reference Verifications.

It's crucial not to underestimate the importance of background checks and references. These aspects are often overlooked or rushed through with minimal checks, such as phone references or written ones, due to our busy schedules.

It's essential to verify candidates' qualifications and work history and to gather feedback from their previous employers. This step offers an extra layer of assurance, ensuring that you make a well-informed hiring decision. We can provide tailored support for the checks you need to ensure that the right decision is made for you!

7. Consider Initially On-Boarding as an Interim 

Consider hiring key hires as an interim, before committing to a permanent hire. This approach allows you to evaluate a candidate’s performance in real-time and ensures a mutual fit for both the candidate and your organisation.

8. Trust Your Instinct!

As a seasoned professional, sometimes, it’s important to trust your gut feeling about a candidate, especially if something doesn’t feel right despite their qualifications on paper.

Unseen Costs and Consequences of Poor Hiring Decisions?

• Reduced Team Efficiency: An underperforming new hire can delay project timelines and reduce the overall efficiency of the team.
• Adverse Effect on Morale: A poor hiring choice can negatively impact the morale of existing team members, resulting in decreased job satisfaction and potentially higher turnover rates.
• Diverted Resources for Training and Support: Extra resources often need to be diverted towards training and supporting a poor hire, taking away from other productive endeavors.
• Recruitment and Onboarding Costs: The costs associated with recruiting, interviewing, and onboarding are a wasted investment when the wrong person is hired.
• Damage to Member and Customer Relations and Reputation: A poor hire interacting with members, clients and key external stakeholders or representing the organisation can directly harm member and client satisfaction and worse still, tarnish the organisation's reputation.
• Increased Burden on Other Employees: Team members may have to shoulder additional responsibilities to compensate for the poor hire’s deficiencies, leading to overwork and potential burnout.

Each hire represents an investment. By planning ahead, collaborating with an expert agency experienced in the membership sector, and committing time and effort to finding the ideal team member, you make an investment that yields substantial returns.

This approach goes beyond merely sidestepping financial missteps; it fosters an environment where talent can flourish and ensures that your organisation's culture and reputation remain robust over time.

Contact us, we are here to help.