10 Step Hiring Process
Finding and hiring new staff can be a real challenge. Despite record high unemployment nationally, there continues to be a lack of skilled workers in the trades. We put together this checklist of ten steps to making a great hire to help walk you through the process.
1. DECIDE TO HIRE
The first step of hiring is knowing when to hire and who to hire. If you’re filling an existing position to replace someone who’s leaving, it may not be that hard of a decision, but it’s still worth pausing to reflect on what your company needs both now and in the future. If it’s a new position you’re creating, we recommend reviewing your operating budget and looking at how this new hire will affect your overhead expenses, so you can move forward with the confidence that your business can afford it. Beyond their wage or salary, the hiring process can be expensive and time consuming, so before you dive in, you want to have a clear understanding of how it will affect your bottom line.
Draft a job description if you don’t have one already. A good job description should identify the responsibilities of the position, key skills needed, and any other requirements. It’s helpful to make sure you’re clear on what skills are absolute must-haves, and what you’re willing to train for.
2. POST THE JOB
With your job description in hand, it’s time to write a compelling job post. This is usually a paragraph that describes: the role you’re looking for, a description of your company and the work you do, the key skills and experience needed, and instructions on how to apply. It’s a competitive job market out there, so you want something that sets you apart, catches the eye, and makes it sound like an appealing place to work.
What to include in your job ad:
Job title/role
Location
What’s unique about your company
Key skills you’re looking for
Full time or part time
Compensation range
Encouragement for diverse candidates to apply
How to apply - what to include and where to send it
Why is posting the job publicly important? We know from experience that the most common method of hiring in construction is “I know a guy…” which results in word of mouth outreach. If your company is committed to diversity and inclusion, posting the job publicly will help attract a wider mix of candidates that may be outside the people you already know. It’s fairly common to see a boilerplate sentence at the bottom of the ad which says “ABC Builders is an equal opportunity employer” but you can attract a wider diversity of candidates by being more explicit and welcoming with a sentence like “People of color, trans and gender-nonconforming people, people from poor and working-class backgrounds, people in the LGBTQ+ community, and women are encouraged to apply.”
We highly recommend including information about the salary range in your job post. Generic sentences like “compensation commensurate with experience” don’t mean much of anything. If you offer great, competitive wages, then this is the place to put it out there. It will help you attract top notch candidates, and it also helps avoid wasting your time and candidates’ time with someone who needs more than what you can offer.
Think about what you need from each applicant to be able to assess their application. Is it a cover letter and resume? Do you want to see a portfolio (for design positions)? Do you want them to apply through a job portal like Indeed, send info via email, or call directly? It’s important to find the balance between making it easy for someone to apply but also getting enough information up front to make an assessment. It’s worth noting not all carpenters have a resume typed up and ready to go. They may not be sitting in front of a computer all day and easily be able to communicate via email. So the application requirements may vary depending on the type of position you’re hiring for.
Now you have to decide where to post the job ad. If you expect to hire locally, your local paper is probably the place to start. You’ll also want to put something up on your own company website—ideally the job post but also the full job description—so you can refer people there for more details. Are there any trade schools in your local area, tradeswomens’ associations, or BIPOC (Black, indigenous, people of color) industry associations that have job boards? Where you post may vary slightly by the role you’re hiring for, but Craigslist is still a go-to in many regions, especially for trades positions. We’ve had better luck with applications via Indeed for office-based roles like Office Manager, Designer, or Project Manager. Don’t forget to put something out on your social media channels—your company Facebook page, Instagram feed, or other local listservs. A few of our (free) go-to posting spots in the Northeast are NESEA, Yestermorrow, and Vermont Works for Women, but there are always other organizations in your local area that have online job boards (or old fashioned bulletin boards).
3. REVIEW APPLICANTS
Once the applications start rolling in, the trick is keeping track of everyone. One benefit of using Indeed to manage your applications is that you can rate applicants as they come in, create templates with standardized responses, and keep track easily of who you’ve rejected and who is still an active candidate. You can also use it to schedule interviews and have all communications go through Indeed so they don’t get lost in your inbox.
We like to send a quick two sentence standard email to each applicant once they have applied, just letting them know their application has been received and we will be in touch if they are selected for an interview. Ideally this goes out within 24-48 hrs of receiving their application. If a cover letter is important to you (and many people do not include one) then you may want to reply to give them a second chance to write a cover letter (this is especially an issue on Indeed). If applications come in that clearly don’t meet your requirements, we recommend a quick and easy rejection right off the bat. Why keep stringing them along?
Hold off on rejecting any “maybe” candidates until you’re into interviews and know you have some strong ones to choose from. As you review applications, make sure you’re clear what the key “non-negotiables” are—and your selection criteria. Reviewing applications inevitably includes some unconscious bias on the part of the hiring team. Go in aware of potential bias and consider implementing strategies to reduce hiring bias, which can include having multiple people involved in the review and interview process, using structured interview questions, and skills assessments. Instead of thinking only of “culture fit” it’s also worth thinking about “culture add”—what a particular candidate’s background could add to the culture of your company.
On location: one challenge that often comes up is whether to consider candidates who are located far away. It’s certainly legit to send a follow-up email asking if they are planning to relocate, and what the timeframe is for their move. But automatically rejecting candidates who live far away will certainly reduce the diversity of your candidate pool.
Your goal in this phase is to narrow down to 5-6 strong candidates who you want to know more about. We usually let the ad run for 2-3 weeks before starting to narrow down. Of course, if there’s someone who you see apply who you are definitely interested in, go ahead and start setting up interviews. But often it takes a bunch coming in for you to see the range of what’s strong and what’s under-par and be able to really rank the best candidates.
4. SET UP INITIAL INTERVIEWS
First decide who is appropriate to conduct the initial interview. We think of it as a screening interview—20 to 30 minutes max. Your goal is to confirm they are a legitimate candidate and are truly interested, and get a quick read on who they are and whether you want to know more.
We recommend you look at your calendar and set aside a couple blocks of time, then reach out via email or phone to schedule into those blocks. Leave a little wiggle room in between so they are not back to back. Start with the initial interview over the phone or video call. Have a short list of questions, so you can be consistent in the questions you ask each person. We like to print those up on a sheet of paper with room to jot down their name at the top, and room for their answers/our notes. Leave time at the end for their questions, but don’t let them keep you on the phone for an hour. Be clear about your timeline and next steps in the hiring process so they know what to expect.
5. NARROW DOWN TO 2-3 FINALISTS
From the initial phone interviews, hopefully you have a few you want to get to know in more depth. Invite them back for a longer 60-90 minute interview. This may involve other members of your team. Ideally this interview is done in person, if possible, so they can see your office and get a sense of the working conditions. If they’re far away, consider a Zoom or video call. For carpenters or field crew, consider a working interview (pay them for a day’s work and ask them to work alongside your crew). Decide in advance of the second interview whether you want any additional information - it could be a writing sample, a portfolio of work, list of references. Or you could have some kind of test as a part of the second interview where you put them on the spot and ask them to show you how they do something.
DON’T ask for past wage history—this has been proven to widen the racial and gender wage gap (in fact, it’s illegal to ask in many states). By eliminating salary history from the hiring process, we can help curb wage discrimination based not only on gender, but also race, age and other characteristics. Talk about their availability to start, any logistics if relevant. Be clear beforehand about your ideal timeline.
When you set up the interview, make sure you provide clear direction to the candidate about when and where to show up, how much time they should expect to spend, who will be participating in the interview, and if there’s anything you need them to prepare in advance. This is their opportunity to make a great impression, so help set them up for success. A clear process will also reflect back on the professionalism of your business.
6. CALL REFERENCES
Once you have someone you’re ready to make an offer to (or are desperately trying to decide between two finalists), now’s the time to reach out to references. Let the candidate know in the second interview that you’re planning on calling their references, so they can give the people they’ve listed a heads up to expect a call. Ideally you want to talk with someone who was their direct supervisor.
Have a short list of questions—ideally talk with someone on the phone, so you can get a sense of what they’re saying—and what they’re NOT saying. Some corporate employers are very limited in what they are willing to tell you; they may only be able to confirm dates of employment and the person’s role. Don’t assume that means they have a bad reference from the company.
A few sample reference questions:
“How do you know XXX, what was your working relationship?”
Make sure the job title, dates of employment, and job duties all line up with their resume.
“How would you describe so-and-so’s management style?”
“What were so-and-so’s primary responsibilities on the job?”
Try to keep your questions open-ended in a way that puts the decision of how to respond onto them. You want to encourage the reference to be honest about their experience with the applicant. Note any hesitation or awkwardness—these are the red flags that are the whole reason why we call references.
Consider calling unsolicited references—calling their current employer is definitely not cool, but if you know someone who knows someone, you could reach out to them. You just need to make sure you notify the candidate that you are calling references and who you’re calling—you don’t want to create an awkward situation where rumor gets out that they’re looking for a new job and that jeopardizes their current employment.
Example: “Your name was suggested as a reference for so-and-so, and I was wondering if we could chat about them for a few minutes. They’re being considered for a position with our company.”
Take notes! We like to have a sheet of paper with all our reference questions printed out for each call and then jot down notes for each question, and it helps us be more consistent.
7. DECIDE!
This is often the hard part—making the final call. If you don’t have the ideal candidate, and depending on your sense of urgency, you can choose to extend the search, re-invigorate the advertising, and see what other applications come in.
8. MAKE AN OFFER
Once you’ve made a decision, it’s time to make an offer. Decide what you plan to offer for compensation (refer back to the wage range in the job post and consider their level of experience within that range). Draft an Offer Letter which outlines the key pieces of the job: job title, start date, hourly wage/salary, hours per week, schedule, benefits, and any other particulars like a hiring bonus or offer contingencies.
Pick up the phone and make the offer verbally. This can be relatively short and sweet (unless they have a ton of questions right then) but basically we say “Hi XX, I’m really excited to offer you the position of Y. We’re really looking forward to having you join our team. I know you probably need a little time to think it over, so when we get off the phone I’ll email you an official offer letter that goes over all the details. Take a look and think about it over the weekend - if you can let me know by Tuesday whether or not you’ll be able to accept, that’d be great! Do you have any questions for me at this point?” Then email the offer letter.
9. NEGOTIATE COMPENSATION
Any highly desirable candidate is likely to ask to negotiate some part of the offer. Usually it’s salary or hourly wage, but in some cases it might be the amount of vacation time, health insurance, job title, or moving expenses. It’s up to you how flexible you want to be—how much you really want to hire this person, what your backup options are, and whether you have set company policies in place.
Remember whatever you negotiate sets a precedent for the rest of your team and can be pretty hard to undo. If the wage they negotiate is higher than anyone on your current team, it may be time to revisit your wage scale to make sure there’s parity (particularly pay attention to the gender wage gap). Be consistent when it comes to doling out vacation and holidays—ideally you’re referring to your Employee Handbook and not making different policies for each hire.
If you can’t match their requested wage, offer to review their compensation after 90 days or 6 months or the first year. Review the salary range and how they fit into it based on their experience. Then at least they know there’s room to grow, and a specific timeline for when it will be revisited.
10. FINALIZE THE HIRE (OR NOT!)
Sadly, there are plenty of times when you get to the negotiation stage and you can’t come to agreement, or your top candidate gets a better offer and chooses to go work somewhere else. Go back to Step 5. Do you have other finalists that you really liked? Or do you need to re-open the search?
If you do successfully make the hire, be sure to send a polite rejection email to all the other applicants. Those who you interviewed should get a personalized email note thanking them for their time and interest.
Stay tuned for our next blog post… Onboarding!