Is Hiring Easy with Social Networks?

In business, there is a natural tendency for people to use the “do-it-yourself” approach in many disciplines. Do your own bookkeeping, write your own press releases, draft your own contracts, set up your new computer, and the list goes on and on. Yet, is this the best use of your time? And, are you getting the best results?

In the past, business owners often hired friends, and friends of friends based simply on a referral. Today, with the advent of social networks, “do-it-yourself” hiring appears to be even easier? You have this huge network of people at your finger tips. Yet, what good is a huge network of people if they are not the “right” people? And, how do you know what “right” is for your company and the position you are hiring for?

Even with LinkedIn and other social networks available, companies will continue to make the same mistakes they have made for years. Hiring people because they look good on paper, yet failing to ask the right questions to assess if the candidate is the “right” fit.

Do you know what good performance is for the position?
Do you know how to assess if a candidate has the likelihood of being a good performer for the position as you have defined it?
Do you use a system to evaluate candidates to achieve predictable hiring results?

Go ahead . . . tap into the vast resource of your social network. It is valuable sourcing tool. Yet, do your homework once you identify candidates.

Evaluate each candidate carefully. A candidate with a great pedigree is not an “A” player for your company unless they are the right fit and are they actually “willing” to perform to your expectations.

Don’t let the ease of social networks and your vast referral network lull you into thinking that hiring is easy. It’s not! Finding people is easy, find the “right” people is not. Find the “right” talent takes a disciplined hiring system with a well-defined interview and assessment strategy.