Over the past few years we have had to be extremely creative to find great employees. Recently the number of Technical Professionals seeking new positions has more than doubled. Instead of having to search high and low to find a few great people, employers and agencies are bombarded with hundreds – or even thousands – of CV’s. So how are you going to find the truly great employee?

Recruiting for an employee to fill your position can be a frustrating and a time consuming process. From writing the job spec and the advert, which has to be exciting and challenging to attract great people, to the actual interviews with likely candidates, your time is guaranteed to be stretched to the maximum for a period of time.

Here are 5 tips to help you find a great employee:

1. When you review a CV, look for length of time on the job: a candidate with several short- term employers (less than a year) could mean a lack of commitment on their part. Of course, with all the recent redundancies, it could just mean they got caught in the fallout.

It isn’t necessarily a fact that they were laid off because the company was cutting back. Star performers are not laid off if the company can avoid it. Be sure to check those references carefully, especially if the company is still in business. You don’t want someone else’s “deadwood”.

2. Look for gaps in employment and ask for an explanation. Long periods out of work could signal a time out to update their education – or it may indicate some criminal background.

3. Watch the employment dates for “overlaps”. This could be a simple error, but also might indicate that the candidate is not being truthful about previous employers. Ask the person to explain it, and be sure to call those employers and verify dates of employment with them.

4. Have a copy of the job description at hand when you review the CV’s. The more skills that match your job description, the more likely you will be to have a great match. Focus on what they have done in the past that matches what you want them to do. Write a list of things you want them to do and then ask questions that will get those answers (or the lack thereof).

5. Sort your likely CV’s into two piles – one for those that look perfect to you, the other for those that look good. Conduct prelimnary telephone interviews and ask them why they want to work for your company.

While these tips aren’t the whole picture in hiring a great employee, using them increases your chances that you will hire the perfect match for your company.

With the present restrictions on information that a previous employer is allowed to give you, it is important to pay attention to all the details you get from the candidate. It will make the difference between having a GREAT employee working for you, or just having a GOOD one.

At Langley James we are at hand to assist with writing Job Descriptions.

Langley James are experts in their field and have been helping companies both attract and retain the best management talent for 15 years.  A recruitment service founded on service excellence, we are experts at what we do and with a bespoke approach, we help you save time and are happy to share our specialist knowledge to help you Recruit Someone Worth Recruiting.