We frequently get that panic call from a hiring manager worried about filling a vacant position. The department head won’t meet his/her production goals. The workload is too much for the remaining staff. More employees will quit if we don’t find a replacement employee soon.

It is hard not to react and find a body as soon as possible. Even if you had a process in place, that may go out the window in lieu of the urgency to fill the position. But unless you like to take big risks, your quick turnaround may actually cost you in high turnover, mounting replacement costs and unnecessary exposure to legal risk.

A recruitment process has three key phases, including planning, recruitment, and employee selection, and can be modified to fit your business needs. Each organization has to start somewhere to improve recruiting, hiring, and retention of valued employees and at Ethos Human Capital Solutions; we’ve assembled the 16 key questions you should use as a checklist to make sure your recruitment process is on track. Applied consistently, these queries will pinpoint the holes in your process and what you need to address before you consider hiring your next employee. These questions will also provide you with a consistent and effective process, which can be used by you, your executive team, or your line managers.

Ask Yourself these 16 Questions to Make Sure Your Recruitment Process Is on Target

1. Is this an actual vacancy? Does the role need to be redefined?
2. What are the job duties?
3. Have you defined the expectations of success (at Ethos, we use a Success Profile with every position)?
4. Do you have an idea of whom you want to recruit? Do you know if they will fit your profile of success?
5. Where would you advertise for this position? How would target the ad to attract someone who would fit the Success Profile?
6. How will you screen the resumes? What is your policy for storing and referencing resumes?
7. Will you conduct a telephone screening? If yes, what types of questions will you ask?
8. Do you have a job application/procedure/form?
9. Do you have a Selection Interview plan? How are those conducting the interviews prepared? Have they done any interviewing training? Has everyone been told which questions may cause legal issues?
10. Do you have effective interview questions based on the Success Profile and the position requirements? Do you use an interview guide?
11. Will you conduct second interviews? How will you decide which candidates make it to this step?
12. Does this position require testing? How will you implement and measure? Which tools will you use?
13. Who makes the final hiring decision? Are there any other hiring approvals that need to be completed before extending an offer?
14. How do you manage the offer of employment? At what point are background and reference checks conducted?
15. How did the recruitment process, the success profile and the interview plan work? What will you do different next time?
16. Do you have a new hire orientation/induction plan? What is the training plan for the first few weeks for your new hire? Are there specifics and timelines associated with the training?

By asking these questions and following the steps you ensure that you are recruiting the best employees. This will help your organization succeed and grow–creating a workplace that will meet both your needs and the needs of your potential and current employees.

Look for more blog posts on recruiting success as we evaluate each of these 16 points.

Need Help with Your HR Recruiting Process? Ethos Human Capital Solutions is driven to help you maximize each recruiting assignment to hire the best-qualified person for your open position. Starting with a Success Profile, we help you outline the key responsibilities and goals to find the perfect match for your open position. Contact us to learn more about our recruitment services.