In our professional lives, we get better at tasks we do often. But sometimes, complex responsibilities that we might do infrequently, like hiring, can be a challenge.
You may be a brilliant Project Manager or IT Director, but if you only hire once or twice a year, each hiring cycle may feel like reinventing the wheel. It’s a high risk, high potential scenario, and it’s hard.
For some perspective, we surveyed 550+ hiring managers (across departments, years of experience, and levels) at one technology company. We asked them how frequently they expect to hire in the coming year, here is what they said:
- 71% of managers expect to hire 1-2 people in the coming year.
- 21% will hire 2-4 people.
- Only 8% plan to hire more than 5 people.
If hiring is one of our most critical responsibilities as a manager, how will we ever get good at it if we only attempt it once or twice a year?
Why is hiring so challenging when it’s infrequent?
Skill refinement is heavily dependent on frequency. Regular practice allows us to navigate the nuances, sharpen our abilities, and streamline the task for optimal efficiency.
But when it comes to activities like hiring, infrequency limits our opportunities to grow and adapt. The task becomes even more daunting considering the high stakes involved – the wrong hire can disrupt team dynamics and derail projects.
So, how can we improve?
- Set Guidelines and Structures: A structured hiring process helps to mitigate the impact of infrequency. Adopting a clear method or framework that you can use year in and year out eliminates the “reinventing the wheel” dilemma.
- Participate in Training: Engage in hiring workshops with other managers or interview role-playing exercises. Discussing your hiring experiences with other managers (and hearing their stories) allows you to reflect and grow. Doing this in a training environment allows you to learn when you are not in the middle of a high-stakes hiring cycle. Practicing interview questions (when the pressure is not on) helps prepare us for the real deal.
- Build Your Interview Team: Including a diverse group in the interview process can provide a more comprehensive understanding of a candidate. However, be sure that everyone on your team understands their role in the selection process (Are they qualifying the candidate? Are they assessing proficiency in a particular skill? Are they closing the candidate on a presumed offer?)
- Employ (The Right) Technology: Most hiring decisions today will involve multiple technology platforms (applicant tracking systems, candidate assessments, etc.) However, it is important to consider if your technology supports and enables the process you said you wanted to follow (see #1). Even when technology means well, it can lead us down unintended paths. Thus, it is important to select tools that make it easy to perform infrequent tasks.
- Reflect and Learn: Post-hiring, reflect on the process. What were the strengths and weaknesses of your hiring team? What lessons can be learned from candidate experiences? Documenting these reflections can provide a valuable resource for future hiring cycles.
While the infrequent nature of hiring may make it more challenging to master, implementing strategic actions can help ensure a smoother, more efficient process. After all, securing the right person for your team can be a significant stride towards long term success.
