As a small business owner, your ability to hire and retain top talent will be the difference between ordinary and extraordinary. After 13 years of owning, scaling, or coaching hundreds of businesses, my biggest ‘experience share’ when it comes to hiring is this; If you’re struggling to hire A-level talent, it’s either your hiring process, your culture, or you. When going through this article or building your own hiring funnel, don’t be afraid to take a hard look in the mirror and ask yourself these three tough questions.
- Do I have a process that attracts top-tier talent?
- Do I have a culture and onboarding process that retains top-tier talent?
- Am I the leader that top-tier talent wants to work with?
You control the answers to these questions. Let’s get started!
The Ultimate Hiring Funnel: A Step-by-Step Guide to Finding the Perfect Candidate.
If you own a home service business and are struggling to find the right candidates for your team, this is for you! Hiring the right employees is crucial for the success of your business. Do you feel like you’re wasting time and resources on interviews that don’t lead anywhere? If so, you’re not alone. Many companies struggle with the hiring process, but there is a way to make it more efficient and effective. The solution is to create a hiring funnel. A hiring funnel can help you streamline your hiring process and attract the best candidates.
Hiring is marketing. Think about recruiting just like you do lead generation. Try to get as many good leads (candidates) as possible for the best price possible. Here’s a proven system to make that happen.
Start with a “Hiring Funnel”.
(Download Your Template) A hiring funnel is a step-by-step process that companies use to filter and evaluate job candidates. Some people refer to it as the recruitment funnel, however, the goal is the same. To narrow down the pool of applicants to the best candidates for the job. The hiring funnel starts with a compelling job ad and ends with an on-site or working interview. In between, there are several steps that help you assess the skills, values, and fit of the candidates.
Step 1: Create a Compelling Job Ad
The first step in the hiring funnel is to create a job ad that captures the attention of potential candidates. A compelling job ad should describe the job’s responsibilities, qualifications, and requirements, and highlight what makes your company unique. Customize it, when writing your ad to ensure that it speaks to the person you want to hire.  Use clear and concise language, and make sure your ad stands out from the competition.
Too many applicants? How’s the quality of your candidates? Too many people applying for the job means you may be over-promising or offering too much. Your ad probably sounds too good to be true and therefore might be attracting the wrong person.
- Crickets? Little to no response means your ad is missing something or isn’t promoting you, the job, or the brand enough. Are you all business and no play, you might be asking the wrong questions or requiring too much.
- Just right: When you have a winning job ad, the flow of applicants should be steady and the quality should be high. That’s when you know you’ve communicated your position and company correctly.
IIs it broken? Go back up a step. You need to revise your ad or job description. Every step tells a story. (Don’t worry, once it’s right you can use the ad over and over!)
Step 2: Review Applicants
Once you’ve posted your job ad, you’ll receive resumes and cover letters from interested candidates. Review the applications carefully, looking for relevant experience, education, and skills. Identify the candidates who meet your requirements and invite them to the next step of the hiring process.
At this point, you have several options to screen and evaluate the candidates. You can use phone, Zoom, or In-Person interviews. Conducting individual interviews can help you get a better sense of each candidate’s personality, communication skills, and experience. However, if you have a large response you can use some of the several below ideas to narrow down your search further.
- Group Interviews: Group interviews can be an effective way to assess candidates’ interpersonal skills and teamwork abilities. Conducting group interviews can also save time by allowing you to evaluate multiple candidates at once.
- Introduction Video Job Overview: Creating a 1-minute introduction video can help give candidates a better understanding of the company’s culture, values, and needs. Email it to the interested candidates and see who responds.
- Questionnaire: A questionnaire can help you evaluate a candidate’s technical skills and experience.
Step 3: First Interview – Core Values over Skills
The first interview should focus on the candidate’s core values and beliefs, rather than just their skills and experience. You want to ensure that the candidate is a good fit for your company culture and shares your organization’s values. This interview is an opportunity to get to know the candidate and understand their motivation for applying for the position.
- What to ask: Questions relating to and that reflect your business’s core values.
- Who conducts the first Interview: It can be done with an HR generalist in the company or someone you trust to find good character.
- Remember, It’s not about the technical skills or their history, it’s about getting along with the crew and being a solid individual. (Don’t worry we will get technical in the next rounds)
Step 4: 2nd Interview – Meet the CEO or department head
The second interview is where you’ll get more in-depth with the candidate. They can meet with the CEO or a department head. The Employer should now explain who you are as a company. Show the potential candidate your vision, and explain the flow and organizational structure of your company. How you’re growing, how they need qualified awesome people! Talk your company up with Opportunities, PTO, benefits, and whom they will report to. Tell them about the team as well as the department. Make sure to review their work history and skills. We like to end the 2nd interview with a bit of a serious/ intimidating note. Explain that if selected to move forward with a 3rd interview, they will be asked tough applicable real-working questions. They should also be ready to demonstrate their skills and knowledge on-site.
STEP 5: 3rd Interview: On-site / Working Interview
The third interview is the most critical step in the hiring funnel as it helps you evaluate the applicant’s skills, experience, and ability to work in a real-world environment. In this stage, the applicant will be asked to perform the tasks that they will be required to perform if they are hired for the position. This interview can take place either on-site or remotely, depending on the nature of the job.
It is important to note that the tasks assigned to the applicant during this interview must be relevant to the job, and the applicant should be able to perform them safely. Before assigning any tasks to the applicant, make sure that what you are having them do is covered by your work comp or insurance. You don’t want to be liable for any injuries or accidents that may happen during the working interview.
Do You Pay for the Third Interview? This is a common question, and the answer is yes! If you want the best candidates, you need to invest in your hiring process. Paying for the third interview shows that you value the candidate’s time and are serious about finding the right fit for your team.
STEP 6: Voting on the Winning Applicant
After your applicants finish the 3rd, working interview it’s time to make a choice. Get everyone together who participated in the interview process and have them vote or rank their favorite candidates. Share the pros/cons and agree on who everyone believes would be the best candidate for the position. After your applicants finish the 3rd, working interview it’s time to make a choice. Get everyone together who participated in the interview process and have them vote or rank their favorite candidates. Share the pros/cons and agree on who everyone believes would be the best candidate for the position.
By following these steps, you can create a hiring funnel that will help you find the best candidates for your home service business. Remember to be thorough and invest in your hiring process. The right employees can help take your business to the next level!
Go out there and Crush it!
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