Preparing For Your New Hire
November 15, 2019
Preparing for a new hire, especially if it’s your first hire, can be daunting. 99% of the time hiring is a great sign of a successful business, congratulations, you’re doing things right. Taking on that new employee requires some careful considerations though, and you must be wary, or you’ll find yourself dealing with a lot of difficulty.
Below are some insightful steps that will help you make intelligent decisions about onboarding that new staff member, that way you are covered for whatever challenges might present themselves down the line.
Organize Your Processes
First and foremost, you need to cover your bases legally and legitimately with everything that you do to make your hire. You must get an Employer Identification Number (EIN) from the IRS, registering with the Department of Labor in your state for paying unemployment taxes, acquiring a worker’s compensation policy, and building a record-keeping process are key components to the process of preparing for a new hire. For more information on your new hire and what you need to do, visit the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) website about hiring a new employee.
Develop A Personnel (Employee) Handbook
Possessing a handbook for employees is a significant component to running your business; an informal collection of policies and procedures typed up is a great starting point and may be all that you need. Having policies in writing – including dress code policies to how vacation time is handled – is extremely helpful at onboarding with your new staff member. Handbooks can always be tweaked and improved, the most important element is your starting point.
Focus On Employee Potential, Not Past Accomplishments
Your position may require someone to have a great level of skill or knowledge in order to meet the job demands or client expectations. When you need an expert, you should expect to have to take the time to review multiple candidates to get to the one(s) that really stand out as great candidates. When you run a small business, you will more than likely find that your new hire has to be multi-faceted and need to be flexible to perform many different roles. Try not to get too caught up in what someone has done in the past, and instead focus on how their abilities will benefit you both in the future. Don’t just find that person who is well oriented for your anticipated workload, but who is a great cultural fit and will perform to both of your expectations.
Sign A Contract
It could just be a job offer letter or a contract drafted by a business lawyer, either way, having a written document that outlines expectations is crucial to you and your new employee for both of your protection. Whichever type of document you create it will need to have details about what both you and the new employee are bringing to the position – the employer (salary, benefits, paid leave, etc.) and the employee (work hours, confidentiality, non-compete, etc.). Keeping all of these expectations in writing will ensure that if things don’t work out you aren’t left out in the cold, or worse, in legal trouble.
Set Realistic Expectations
Your new employee will never be you, and they aren’t you, so you should never expect them to be another version of yourself. They have a unique knowledge, skillset, personality, and mindset which will be very different from yours. Different employees need different levels of direction, different types of recognition, and work at different paces. You are no longer just a business owner, you are a manager – it’s up to you to identify how to reward, support, and develop your new hire to maximize their potential and have both of your find success with their position.