It’s no secret that hiring the right people can either make or break your business - especially in our customer service-focused industry. That’s why it’s so crucial to have a solid team in place at your dealership. Sounds simple, right? Well, that’s not always the case. Finding your next great employee isn’t always easy, but we’re here to help. We’ll give you 5 quick tips on hiring the right people so your business can continue to succeed and grow in new ways.
Be honest and clear about what the job entails - To find the right employee, you’ll want to start by writing a detailed job description to avoid wasting your time on unqualified candidates. Be sure to include all duties and responsibilities that will be expected of the position (even less glamorous aspects). This shows future employees what’s expected of them and will help them decide if the position is a good fit even before formally applying. It’s also a good idea to include “Other duties as assigned” just to make sure you leave some room for additional tasks not explicitly covered in the description.
Interview more than one person for the job - It’s okay to be picky when hiring a new employee, in fact, we encourage it. Even if you feel like your first candidate’s interview went well and they would be suitable for the job, interview at least two or three more. It’s always a good idea to have a large selection of candidates when hiring so you can be confident that you’ve chosen the ideal fit for the position. Don’t have a ton of applicants for your role? It’s okay to hold out for the right one - and sometimes talking to candidates who aren’t the right fit helps to show you who the right fit would be.
Know exactly what you’re looking for - You’re likely to have an abundance of applications come in once you post a job, even if they all aren’t necessarily qualified, so the tricky part is weeding out applicants. It’s important to know exactly what you’re looking for in an employee and it’s a good idea to have a list of non-negotiable qualifications that you’d like to see on a resume (ie: sales experience, customer service experience, etc.). If the applicant doesn’t have all of the qualifications you require, move on to the next.
Have a list of questions ready - Having the questions you plan on asking written down will keep you on track during an interview and will ensure candidates remain on a level playing field when it comes to questions. Scenario questions are great options that can help you get a real feel for the candidate and you can easily compare how others handled the question. We always like to throw in a few abstract questions - like what’s the best compliment you’ve ever received - to see how quickly a candidate can think on their feet, and get to know them a little better.
Keep personality in mind - Personality is so important when it comes to hiring a future employee. Keep in mind how the candidate’s personality traits align with the potential job as well as the company culture. In some cases, it’s a good idea to get your current team involved in the hiring process to see if everyone jives together and if your team has any feedback on the particular candidate. Plus, it will help them feel more invested when their new co-worker starts, helping ease the transition.
Every dealership needs a strong team in place, and it all starts with the hiring process. We hope these tips will help you take a deeper look at your own process to see what’s working and what might need tweaking when it comes to hiring future employees.
