Hiring the right person for the job can be a difficult and daunting task to say the very least. Especially in the building products industry, the fact is that our industry is one of the most unconventional industries there is. It is not for everyone. If you talk to any recruiter or hiring manager from a major distributor or material supply company (working with the public), they will undoubtedly have a story involving someone they thought was going to be a perfect fit, that turned out to be a flop. The question then becomes, how to stop hiring people who disappoint you?
Unfortunately, there is no sure-fire way to ensure that your next hire is going to be the perfect one. There are however somethings that you can do to make sure that you give yourself the best odds of finding the right person for the job.
One of the first and most important things you can do is make sure you provide an in-depth and accurate job description of the position you are trying to fill.Often in our industry we see job descriptions that are vague and very uninformative. If you are hiring a Outside Sales Representative for example, it would be best if you were up front with your potential candidates about what is going to be expected of them.
Sales rep (at least in most cases) have a job that very rarely allows for regular hours. The fact of the matter is, if you are a sales rep for a building products supplier or vendor there is going to come a time when your phone rings at 9PM and you are going to need to answer it to keep the customer happy. When you are a sales rep in this industry the customer’s needs (whatever those may be) are your responsibility, bottom line. That is something that is often skated over when jobs of this nature are posted, and it can often lead to an otherwise good sales rep walking away.
Another prudent thing to do is follow up with your candidates, often as employers we feel like the candidates should be coming to us. This is not always the case, while it is true that the initial contact is most often initiated by the person searching for employment, there is no reason that you cannot follow up with your most promising candidates. Don’t be afraid to let them know you are really interested in having them come to work for you. This is one of the benefits of using a recruiting firm in the hiring process. Which brings us to the final suggestion for finding the right person to fill your opening.
Using a professional recruiting firm that has experience in the building industry can be a great way to make sure that the next person that you hire is the right person. A good recruiter is going to know the ins and outs of the building products industry, as well as being very good at communicating the requirements and expectations of the job in question. They understand what it takes to be successful in this industry. They can do a lot of the leg work for you, singling out the best possible candidates and presenting them to you for your review.Ho
The building product supply industry is unlike almost any other out there. Finding the right candidate to fill your current openings is not going to be easy, but it can be done. For every position there is someone who will go above and beyond all expectation, the important part is finding them and making sure they find a home within your company.
Choose the Right Candidate today!
