Finding the right candidate even in a recession is not always easy to do. Often its not until someone is in a job that you can really see what they are like, which is why the 3 months trial period is so useful. There are ways of making the process easier and the following are some of my thoughts.
I have found that by approaching recruitment agencies in my local area Dorchester, Dorset, Bournemouth, Christchurch, Yeovil and Poole. I am able to take out some of the guess work by getting there help with organising interviews and stripping out candidates that are not appropriate. By setting out from the beginning what is expected of the applicant it will clarify a lot of misconceptions that could otherwise arise. Having someone else filter the applicants for me is very helpful, as i need people with certain skill sets for the type of work that i do.
From the applicants point of view it is often daunting coming directly to a new employers premises and many employment agencies are able to offer a room where you can carry out interviews at the agencies premises. The benefit of this is that you are more likely to get the person coming for the interview in a relaxed state as people often feel they are on neutral ground which will give you an insight into that person and also increase the number of people you can see as agencies are normally in the middle of a town or city which means you can often get a more diverse number of people coming along (people that are in full time jobs will often pop to an interview in their lunch break if they do not have to travel very far).
The attitude of the candidate is often the aspect that will sell someone to you, you just need to make sure you ask for what you need. A candidate that is enthusiastic and energised about the role you are offering them is much easier to train than someone that shows no real interest in the position and has not gone to the effort of researching some basic interview tips. With the wages you pay and the holiday benefits you offer as an employer make sure you are being realistic in what you offer. 25 days holiday is the standard across the UK for people and working hours are normally 37 hours a week, 9 till 5, Monday to Friday.
In certain areas such as farming and nursing hours can tend to be all over the place but as most good managers know by being flexible with hours and holidays you keep people happy, and happy people work better. I have found that once you have a candidate working for you take the point of view that if that person is trying hard to learn but not quite getting what you are saying try coming at things from a different angle as the tutor you need to find ways of connecting with how people learn and keep trying until they get it.
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