Hire Slow, Fire Fast - Does It Actually Work?
When building a team that will help your organization reach its goals and grow, it's important to ensure the right people are in the right seats. Getting it right often means taking your time in the hiring process to ensure your candidates are qualified and able to do the job and role you need. While it can be frustrating to have a position open for an extended period, creating a thorough vetting process will pay off in the long run.
On the other hand, just as important as taking your time while hiring when someone is not working out in their role or is not a good fit for the company, it is crucial to fire them swiftly to avoid further interruption to the greater goal. Still curious about hiring slowly and firing fast? Let's get into it a bit more:
Understanding The Hire Slow, Fire Fast Approach
Sure, you understand the general concept of hiring slow, and fire fast, but let's define how your business should hire and fire moving forward.
What Exactly Is "Fast"?
Fast is a relative term, and everyone's idea of fast can vary. Well, no. Not when it comes to firing fast. It's easy to "wait it out" when it comes to a new employee and seeing if they are suitable for the role. The fast-firing method means you recognize an error in the hiring process, understand the person will not succeed in the role and have the hard conversation of letting them go so they can move on career-wise. Being a leader means making tough calls and executing challenging discussions. Firing fast is a perfect example of a leader having to move swiftly and have a difficult conversation for the better of the organization.
What Exactly Is "Slow"?
Hiring slowly is the having the ability to not hire based on reaction. Knowing the role you seek to fill will be better handled when someone is thoughtfully hired based on the process you have implemented and see fit for your business. Hiring slow is a longer strategy that ultimately pays off big time.
Hiring & Firing At The Right Speed: The Benefits
We get it; it is costly and can put a lot of goals behind when there is an open role in your organization. The need to fill the role often can take over the quality of recruitment you're willing to do and cost you more money and less progress overall when the position needs to be adequately filled. Here are some of the benefits of hiring and firing at the right speed:
Improves Values Alignment
Hiring and firing say a lot about your values as a company and your brand's mission. If you are dedicated to making your products and services the best available to your customers, it all starts with your team. Who you have representing your brand is just as important as the products and services you are pushing out. Keeping someone who isn't doing well in their role or the company is lowering your standards just as being too lenient with the hiring process and getting someone in a position to fill it is. If quality is your priority, it should be in all areas.
Ensures That The Right People Are In The Right Seats
When your dream team is carefully selected, and employees who don't meet your expectations are eliminated, you ensure the right people are in the right seats. When every person in their role understands, is capable of doing their part, and understands the goal – magic happens for your business. The right people in the right seats are crucial; it all begins with the hiring process.
Keeps Company Agile
Business is business, and you have to keep it moving. Nothing is personal when it comes to meeting goals and bettering your organization. If someone is a bad fit, they are immediately fired and make way for a more ideal candidate to go in and do the job correctly. It's all about productivity and efficiency.
Better Team Performance
Team productivity skyrockets when everyone on your team is doing their job well and meeting goals together. No one wants to feel as though they are doing more work than someone else or that everyone on the team understands one another except for one person. Your team will all align, and when morale is high, productivity and increased profits follow. Hiring the right people can make or break your team's performance.
The Biggest Myths Of Hire Slow, Fire Fast Approach
With any theory, there are a lot of myths floating around. Let's debunk some myths surrounding the hire slow, fire fast approach:
Firing Staff For No Reason
Under no circumstances should you or is this approach suggesting you fire staff with no viable reason behind it. The hiring process and having an open role can be expensive and timely. Two things no organization likes to see wasted. Firing fast means seeing a TRUE challenge with the employee in their position and knowing they are not a fit for your organization. Knowing the person is wrong for the role can be based on performance, peer reviews, or deliverables, but the evidence needs to be tangible.
Hiring The Right Person On The Spot
As much as hiring the right person on the spot works in movies, this process must be taken seriously and isn't a great idea in the real world. Regardless of how enamored you are with a candidate's skill set or how excited you are to start working with them, you shouldn't make such a big call on the spot. The idea of hiring slow is to not hire with emotion, so hiring on the spot is entirely off the table.
Disregarding Company Talent Pool And Training
Hiring slow can also mean hiring slow, internally. You can still hire slowly when a candidate is someone from your company! If you use this approach while hiring, you have acquired a staff that fits their roles, understands your company's goals and mission, and works hard to achieve them. That sounds like a great starting place to search for candidates in open roles. Take the same time to hire for the new position with a person already working for you, and never count out your existing employees.
Is It The Right Approach For Your Company?
There are a ton of approaches or processes when it comes to hiring. Research is the best way to determine which will work best for your company. Figure out what method will land you the best employees and come closest to matching all your requirements.
An Approach for Longevity in Your Staff
These days workplaces can feel like a revolving door, with staff constantly moving on and chasing the next best thing or being stalled by individuals who aren't a proper fit. One of the best ways to ensure you're hiring the right people is with the hiring slow, firing fast approach. However, recruiting can be a challenge that holds up a lot of progress for businesses, and GCE is here to help. We can take all the recruitment guessing out of the equation and deliver resumes that will excite you about your future staff. So contact us today to get your extraordinary team built