Experts estimate the cost of a poor hiring decision at 50 to 200 per cent of a year’s salary. With stakes this high, it’s important to get the most out of the hiring process.

ACCORDING to the Hudson 2010 Report on hiring trends, almost twice as many job seekers in Singapore are turning down job offers (40 per cent) compared to those accepting an offer (21 per cent). The increasingly buoyant job market in 2011 means employers will face two major headaches: how to retain quality staff and how to hire the right person for the job quickly.

Revamping the Interview Process
In most interviewing processes, there will be a combination of both subjective and objective measures that should always result in selecting the best candidate for the job. Unfortunately, that is not always the case. The classic subjective techniques are résumé reviews, face-to-face interviews, and self-assessments such as personality tests.

With more candidates lying on résumés and many bluffing their way through the interview, subjective assessment alone is extremely risky. Objective assessment levels the playing field. They include knowledge, skills and ability tests, and background checks. The proper blend of objective and subjective assessments will dramatically improve the hiring success. There are three main benefits:

• Increased performance of new hires,
• Reduced turnover, and
• Increased efficiency of the hiring process.

Every organisation depends on the performance of all its employees. By selecting candidates that are more likely to perform, the performance of the company increases over time. Additionally, people who perform well are likely to enjoy their work and remain on the job longer, which in turn reduces turnover.

Finally, when dealing with many candidates, using assessments for pre-screening can eliminate candidates that do not fit without taking up valuable time. For human resource departments with limited staff strength and budgets, this can help you do more with less, without sacrificing quality. In addition, the following aspects will be critical to an objective interview:

Ensure there is a clear presentation of the job description.
Include items such as daily tasks and key performance indicators over differing periods (three months, six months, and a year).

Use blind screening processes when deciding which candidates to interview.
This means certain information is hidden so job candidates are offered an interview based solely on the strength of their applications and nothing else. Blind screening can also be done manually. Have an administrator remove the names and any other identifying information from the job applications before passing them to line managers.

Use psychometric tests as part of your application process.
Psychometric tests are a standardised form of assessment. They can measure a broad range of attributes, including dexterity and specific abilities such as verbal, numerical, abstract, and mechanical reasoning. They are typically strictly timed events and provide high quality specific information on each candidate and feed into the overall picture of the potential employee. The more common tests in the market are Myers Briggs Type Indicator and DISC tests.

Give a structured interview.
Ask the exact same questions. This puts the applicants on equal footing and makes the interviews as fair and objective as possible. The interviewer can then compare apples with apples as they recall each applicant’s response to the same question.

Give a panel interview.
A panel interview is when more than one person is in the room with the candidate. This allows each interviewer to form their own impression of the applicant and compare their thoughts about the person after the conclusion of the interview. The hiring decision is based on the consensus of a committee and not the opinion of one person.

Office culture is often a neglected and overlooked element in hiring. It should be communicated as early as the screening process. Hiring managers usually expect any suitable applicant to acclimatise into their working environment easily. Being upfront about a corporate culture will help the applicant in assessing his preference. It is pointless to “fake it” in order to hire the best person, only to have the culture suck the energy out of them because it is the wrong fit.

Honeymoon Period
The hiring process doesn’t stop once the applicant signs the employment contract. The induction process is equally important to ensure the new hire will commit to the company and not feel that he has made a career mistake. Think of it as the honeymoon period for newlyweds—a ritual that prepares partners on what to expect in life together.

This will set the record straight on expectations and not create any sense of false hopes that can lead to a resignation. It is ideally done in a classroom setting with slides to bring across the message consistently and easily. Some of the must have topics include:

• History of the organisation.
• Mission, vision, and values.
• Purpose of the organisation.
• Products and services.
• Organisational chart.
• Working hours and days.
• Working attire.
• Salary.
• Issues and grievances channel.

It is especially important to draw up a set of corporate values, mission, and vision because this will play a big part in the eventual cultural setting of the organisation. It should prevail at every instance so that it isn’t mere lip service. General Electric has its values printed on a plastic card for each of its employees so they can always remember the values of the organisation.

Social Media
In the past five years, social media has had a profound impact on the business world. Social media services and communities are so prevalent that it is rare to go a day without seeing Facebook mentioned in the news or connecting with your business acquaintances on LinkedIn. Many “tweet” about the most mundane activities of the workday.

With higher traffic volume than all the Web sites, social media allows you to build a good employer branding. It gives you the space to emphasise your organisation’s qualities that you couldn’t fit into your usual job ads.

Whether you are selling a product or service, it is the people who run the business that will determine its success. So start reviewing your hiring process and make the right changes. You will be surprised by what you can get from your recruits.

Adrian Tan is managing director of RecruitPlus Consulting.