The Tough Consequences of Making a Bad Hire
Extending a job offer after going through the expense and time-consuming legwork of advertising the job, narrowing applicants, conducting interviews and making your final decision can be a thrilling time. Sometimes, however, a candidate who looked good during the hiring process quickly makes it clear that they were not the right person for the job. Whether it’s poor work quality, a bad attitude, spotty attendance or something else, making a bad hire has significant consequences for a business.
The High Cost of a Bad Hire
A bad hire can have a ripple effect across the organization. Making the wrong choice can lead to:
- Lost productivity: If a new employee can’t do their job effectively, time and money are wasted. Training and onboarding cost real money and people-hours, and if you’re not getting your desired output, the new employee is costing money. Additionally, other employees will often have to step in and pick up the slack, which negatively impacts their output, as well.
- Decreased morale: If employees have to pick up the slack for a bad hire, it will lead to resentment and negative feelings. Asking people to take on more work for the same pay while the new employee skates by barely doing the minimum isn’t fair, and it won’t take long for bad feelings to spread.
- Re-recruiting costs: Hiring new employees is an expensive endeavor – the average cost to hire an employee is $3,300, and those costs increase with the skill level and responsibility level of the role. All the money you spent on the bad hire is literally money down the drain. Those costs then double if you have to hire someone to replace them.
Hire Right The First Time
Making a bad hire has long-term impacts on the organization and fixing a mistake can take months. It is important to address the situation quickly, because every day a bad hire comes to work means more money wasted and more resentment stirring on your team.
Partnering with a recruiting firm can help you avoid the cost and consequence of making a hiring mistake. A strong partner can help you craft effective job descriptions to attract the right applicants, narrow choices strategically, interview thoroughly and conduct effective background checks. They can also leverage their industry expertise, market knowledge and candidate pipeline to ensure that you’re only interviewing people who will ultimately be worth your time and money.
The Reserves Network Can Help!
If you are looking to improve the quality of your hires while controlling costs, contact the staffing experts at The Reserves Network today.
