Have You Made a Bad Hire?

Have you hired the wrong person? Fixing that bad hire can become a very expensive repair.

Research shows that hiring the wrong person cost companies far more than the employee's annual salary. It's crucial that companies take the time and invest in a thorough interview process using proven assessment tools to find and match the right candidate for the job.

Hiring the wrong person for the job is an expensive mistake companies can hardly afford. Employee turnover can cost the company anything from 50 percent of a low-skilled hourly worker's annual wages plus benefits, to three to five times the annual salary and bene?ts of an upper management position. In other words, if an employee in the upper management earns $50,000 a year, the actual cost to the company is actually $150,000! This is based on lost opportunity cost and the loss of business, potential customers and momentum.

Furthermore as the employer, you're back to square one - looking for a replacement and having to take the time to train another employee.

Brad Smart, author of Topgrading: HowLeading Companies Win by Hiring,Coaching, and Keeping the Best People, asked managers how much time was spent on smoothing things over with irate customers, unruffling feathers with co-workers and support staff, coaching and mentoring, lost opportunities, missed goals, performance meetings, severance packages and other distractions resulting from hiring the wrong person.

Smart found that the average time spent working with a bad hire is 150 hours for an employee earning between US$90,000 and US$150,000.

The question therefore is: Do you have 150 hours to waste on trying to "fix" a wrong hire?

Since your answer is most likely NO, then the question becomes: How do I avoid making the Bad Hire in the first place? Harrison Assessments offers some insight into whether a particular person will be suitable for a particular job description. The HAI assessment will help you select the right candidate for the position.

Already made the wrong choice? The Harrison Assessment may be able to help develop the person or guide you as to what other position in your company they may be suited for.