HR ESSENTIALS: Tips for Hiring the Right People

HR ESSENTIALS: Part 4

Making a bad hire can cost your business a lot of time and money. Worse yet, making a bad hire means you may have missed out on hiring a better candidate. Learn to recognize the red flags of a bad hire before you extend a job opportunity.

Among the signs to keep an eye out for >>>

1. Lacks Knowledge About Your Business

When you ask a question, such as "What makes you think you're a good fit for our company," and the answer is something like, "Well, I'm not really sure what you do here," it's a big red flag.

If the potential candidate hasn't taken the time to learn about your company, it's likely they’re not going to be a careful and conscientious worker. People who don't strive to put their best foot forward in an interview aren't likely to strive to impress you later on down the road.

Lastly, gently probe candidates for their knowledge of your company.

A candidate who has a good understanding of your business is much more likely to be genuinely interested in the job compared to someone who isn't sure what the position entails.

2. Lying

If you catch a candidate lying on their resume or about their background check, it's best to steer clear of hiring them.

Although many people want to exaggerate their experience and others want to try and hide any misdeeds, lying shouldn't be an offense you look past.

If someone lies to you before they even get the job, how could you trust him or her as an employee to be honest about his work? Or better yet, how do you know he won't be stealing office supplies?

Read MORE for our HR ESSENTIALS Series

• Part One: HR ESSENTIALS: Does Your HR Manual Need Updating?
• Part Two: HR ESSENTIALS: Best Personality to Head Your HR Department
• Part Three: HR ESSENTIALS: Employee Safety In and Out of the Office

3. Claiming to be a Victim Repeatedly

Although bad things do happen to good people, if a candidate constantly talks about being a victim of bad circumstances, it should be a big red flag.

Hiring someone who doesn't take responsibility for their role will likely cause you big problems down the road.

Hire this sort of candidate and you'll likely hear frequent excuses about why the work isn't done or how it's never his fault when things go wrong.

4.  Talking Negatively About Past Employers

When a candidate talks negatively about every past employer, take it as a sign he or she might be the common denominator in all of the problems.

After all, if he or she complains that all of the past employers are bad, how good of a representative do you think they will be for your company? If he or she can't discuss their former employers in a professional and respectful manner, it's likely they will trash your company at some point as well.

In today's world of social media, you don't need an employee complaining about how bad your company is in a public forum.

5.  Lacks Questions for You

If a potential candidate doesn't have any questions for you about the position, the company or the hiring process, it's a red flag that they’re either so desperate they don’t care or he or she lacks any curiosity at all.

A potential hire should certainly have some questions for you about your expectations or the day-to-day business operations if he or she has any genuine interest in the position.

Carefully screening applicants and interviewees for potential red flags can help ensure you don't make a bad hire.

Take your time and rule out any candidates when warning signs arise.

As an employer, what steps do you take to hire the best employees? Join the discussion on our Facebook page. 

About the Author

Amy Morin writes about psychology and business where she offers practical tips, such as how to remove article from Google searches.