5 Ways to Stop Hiring Losers

 

Written January 13, 2011 

 

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Here’s a fact:  More than three of four hires disappoint their employers in the first year on the job.

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Over the years, many of these business owners have referred to these people as “losers.”

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Before we discuss how to Stop Hiring Losers, it’s important to understand what a loser is. Now, I could try to be creative and make a acronym… but I’m not going to.

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We all know what they are and who they are. They’re the ones that even though they were hired to increase your productivity, profits and make you $$$, they’ve ended up robbing you of your time, energy and costing you $$$.

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Sure, they may be outgoing, friendly people but you didn’t hire them to be your friend. You hired them to make your organization more successful.

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Along with causing you stress, headaches and sleepless nights, the losers in your company have made it impossible to grow your business. Even though you’d like to be spending your time improving your productivity and increasing your revenues, the average manager spends most of their time babysitting losers.

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84% of Employees Cost YOU $$$

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Studies have shown, in the average US Organization, only 16% of their staff can be considered TOP Performers. This means 84% are “Average” Employees (comprised of what I refer to as “Workplace Survivors” & Mis-Hires).

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Think about it, the only real reason to hire a new employee is to make you money. Sure, the employee’s main responsibilities may include: service your customer, attract new clients, manage a team, recruit candidates, fill orders, answer the phone, drive a truck, etc. When done correctly, your productivity, sales and revenues will increase. But when the employee can’t or won’t perform as expected, they will hinder your growth.

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Why Businesses Stop Growing

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According to the SBA, the majority of US Small Businesses grew an average of just 3% last year. Now, when I say majority, I’m not talking about 51%. In this case, “majority” is used to describe over 95% of small business.

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Then there are their business counterparts. Companies that not only grew, but doubled, tripled and quadrupled their revenues. And most of them did nothing more than what Jim Collins tells his readers to do in his best selling book Good To Great; “Put the right people, in the right seat, on your bus.”

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Those that are hindering your growth whether because they don’t fit your culture (reliability, work ethic, etc.), their team (unity, communication, etc.) or the job (natural productivity) must be replaced.

 

Whether you decide to find a position they better fit within your company or let them go and start over, this is a difficult management decision that must be made if you want to grow your business.

 

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5 Ways to Keep LOSERS Off Your Payroll

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To grow your business, it’s time to stop employing LOSERS. Stop allowing a fraction of your employees to do the job you’ve hired them to do.

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When you’re selecting candidates, remember these five ways to Stop Hiring LOSERS:

 

1. Don’t Expect Candidates to Find You – If you’re only recruiting “passively” with classified ads, general web boards and employment agencies, you’re only going to find “passive” job seekers. You need to do everything in your power (network, referrals, educational partnerships, etc.) to “actively” recruit motivated TOP Performers.

 

2. Believe Only 50% of the Resume – Studies have shown, 95% of resumes contain exaggerations. The best thing about a resume is it tells you if the candidate (or their professional resume writer) can use grammar properly, can last more than a few months in a job and has the basic education or training required.

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3. Believe Only 50% of the Interview – Your reason for having the interview is to make sure the candidate will fit your culture, team and the job. Their reason for accepting the interview is to be who they need to be and say what they need to say to “sell you” on hiring them.

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4. Don’t Rely on Your Instincts Alone – Your “gut” has been proven wrong before and it will be proven wrong again. This works both ways. You’ve surely passed on someone who made a bad first impression that later became a TOP Performer for a competitor. You’ve also hired the energetic, friendly, punctual candidate that became a drain on your time, energy and cost you a lot of money.

 

5. Use Pre-Employment “Job Fit” Assessments – If you don’t have a 75 percent Hiring Success Rate of TOP Performers, it’s time to join the 90’s. For over 30 years, most of the Fortune 500 and virtually every Market Leader has kept their use of assessments secret from their competitors. The secret is now out. To hire the right person for the job the first time, use a Job Matching tool.