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they have time to focus on hiring due to
competing priorities.”
NUMEROUS COSTS OF A BAD HIRE
Business owners noted many negative im-pacts
of making the wrong hire:
■■ On average, respondents estimated
52 hours were wasted on hiring and
onboarding people who ultimately did
not work out
■■ More than half reported increased
stress on the team that worked with the
bad hire
■■ One in five respondents cited decreased
confidence in the managers’ ability to
make good hiring decisions
DELAYS TO CORRECT MISTAKES
The research also found that while a bad
hire could be identified rather quickly, cor-recting
the mistake took longer:
■■ Forty-four per cent of small business
owners said it took less than a month
to realize they made a bad hiring
decision; however, it took more than
three times that on average (16 weeks)
to let the person go
■■ Seven more weeks passed before a
replacement started working, with
70 per cent of businesses putting the
workload on existing staff during
this time
MINIMIZING THE RISKS AND
COSTS OF A BAD HIRE
The survey results indicate several ways
businesses can address deficiencies with
their hiring process and minimize risks of
making a bad hire:
■■ Branch out. Fifty-six per cent of
respondents said the best new hires
come from referrals, including
employees, friends, recruiters and
others in their network. Go beyond
posting job openings and hoping the
right person will apply.
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■■ Delegate. Forty-eight per cent
of owners noted that the most
challenging hiring step is evaluating
candidates based on their skills and
potential fit; 27 per cent admit it
takes them too long to fill open roles.
Delegating these duties to an outside
resource can cut hiring timelines and
save money.
■■ Get a guarantee. Twenty-seven per
cent of businesses working with
recruiters said they do so for the service
guarantee. Ask recruiters about their
placement success rates and what they
offer if a new hire doesn’t stick.
■■ Bridge the gap. Only 13 per cent
of respondents said they brought
in temporary professionals to assist
with heavy workloads while replacing
bad hires. The right person can lift
the burden from existing staff, keep
projects moving and may be evaluated
on the job for a potential full-time role. ■
HRPROFESSIONALNOW.CA ❚ APRIL 2017 ❚ 11
