Candidate Profiles

Time to hire is one of the primary metrics we use to measure our success.  Regardless of whether you are working internally to fill a position or engaging the services of an outside recruiter – time is money.  The faster you can source, attract, interview and hire – the better your return.  Every position has a written job description.  This is the document that you, or your human resources team, puts together to describe the tasks, activities, responsibilities and experience requirements for the position.  If you don’t have one of these you should.

Now, the “candidate profile” is a separate document.  This is an illustration of the person you want to hire.  The words on this document are much more descriptive of the PERSON, rather than the POSITION.  Here are some of the essentials of a candidate profile:

1. Where did they work in the past?  Look around at the rest of your team.  Who are the most successful?  Where did they come from?  What did they do before you hired them?
2. What did they study in school?   List at least 3 different degrees that most generally provide the foundational skills you are looking for.
3. Where have they demonstrated the top three technical requirements?  In my experience, candidates emphasize their strongest technical skills on their resume.  They will also elaborate on their favorite tasks and activities when they talk about their work experience.  Use this newfound knowledge when you are reading resumes.
4. What is their personality like?  What personality traits will gel with your team?  How important is a professional appearance, writing skills or a sense of humor?  Is it important to you – or the company – that they are involved in the community?  How about leisure-time pursuits?

Once you’ve written down a description of your ideal hire then share it with the person/people who are screening candidates for you.  As well, share it with the members of your interviewing team and use this profile as a basis for your interview evaluation.  You’ll be surprised at how smoothly your hiring will go since you know EXACTLY who you are looking for.  By doing a little extra work up front you’ll be more decisive and you’ll know the right person when you meet them.

We’ve seen a dramatic decrease in our time to hire by using this method.  In fact we’ve even seen some 1:1 interview to hire ratios!  Oh, and our 12 month retention rate is over 90% – it works!  Happy Hiring!

For more information on hiring great talent – and getting hired – visit us here.