Hiring traps are pitfalls or mistakes that can sabotage your recruitment process, lose the best talents and hire the wrong people. Hiring the wrong team member can end up wasting your time and your company resources.

• Hiring based on what you feel or persona

Often some hiring managers and human resource personnel hire based on their liking and personality. They tend to find candidates that could mirror their mannerisms or behavioral nuances. Hiring based only on your gut feeling on that day might be inviting because you built rapport but take note that human personality is extremely complex. What works for you may not work on others and vice versa. If you hire those that mirror your persona, you might end up hiring a team of your clones.

Actionable tip: Hire based on a pre-screening process that measures IQ and EQ and industry-standard HR processes. 

• Focusing more on technical qualifications but not on Emotional Intelligence

Emotional Intelligence (EI) skill is also valued as one of the predictors of success. Not everyone has a similar EI and not everyone has strong EI skills. Some can easily go angry when reprimanded while others have self-control and self-awareness. In an interview setting, a candidate with a good EI combo can actively listen, empathize, use appropriate body language and show up early.

These are the examples of good EI

• Empathize with team members

• Compose oneself even under pressure and highly emotional situations

• Make informed and careful decisions

• Resolve conflicts

Actionable tips:

1. Watch out for signs of body language that can tell a bad from a good one. These body language signs are not meant to be exhaustive but these are some of the most common signs seen on candidates.

Bad

• Clenching fist

• Constantly looking at their mobile phones

• Crossing arms

• Fidgeting

• Lack of eye contact

• Limp handshake

• Not smiling

• Rushing speech

• Slouching

• Steady eye contact like ogling

• Trembling voice

Good

• Firm handshake

• Maintaining eye contact but looking in different facial parts

• Sitting straight

• Nodding 

• Shaking hands

• Leaning slightly

• Not treating candidates fairly

There are many internet articles telling to treat your candidates well because they are also customers.  It turns out to be true when one of your applicants started badmouthing your company in social media after they had a bad interview experience. Applicants are customers too and one day they will be your customers showing up in your store or branch. While not every one of your applicants will enter your “welcome club” as some will surely be rejected, treating candidates with respect brings benefits. Treating them fairly brings these benefits:

• Positive work environment impression 

• Good image brand

• More opportunitt knowing what to do because your trainer went to his/her vacation can be demotivating during your first day. A well-prepared onboarding process saves time, money and helps new hires get motivated.

  How to do it:

  • Use the onboarding checklist - Here is the template.

  • Communicate closely by inviting the new employee for lunch or dinner.

  • Conduct a job orientation.

  • Provide employee handbook.

  • Get feedback from the new hire to make sure if there’s room for improvement.

  • Have an experienced or senior employee work beside the new hire.

  The bottom line 

  Avoiding hiring traps can save time and money, improve your company image, retain and hire the best talents. Hiring mistakes can be best prevented by having a proper plan and consistently following the best hiring practices. So there we have the four hiring traps. Do you have some more to add?