It’s no secret that the labor market is challenging right now – more jobs than ever are going remote, there’s been a shift in hiring best practices, and job searchers are going through multiple rounds of interviews to be turned down, or worse, ghosted completely.
If you’re considering revamping your hiring processes to find the best fit for your association’s open positions – or just want to make sure you’re considering all avenues - keep reading.
If you also recognize the changes in employee behavior that drove the “Big Quit” after the pandemic and the difficulties inherent in sustaining remote teams, you might have new questions about your hiring process. Have you had good candidates ghost your hiring process by simply disappearing? Have you offered positions to qualified candidates only to be told they had already accepted another offer? Have new employees left within the first six months of employment because of culture issues? It might be time to review your hiring process and establish new goals for creating a successful team.
A strong staff is the foundation of your association’s success. You need people who have the necessary skills and who are positive parts of the culture. Your staff members need to trust each other, and managers need to trust the people who report to them. Hiring well is key to building a successful team.
At Rhythm, creating world-class team is at the core of who we are. It’s how we create customer joy and deliver an innovative platform, so hiring the right people for the right jobs is mission critical to us. We’ve optimized our hiring process to attract and hire top-tier talent. You might be able to use our experience to enhance your own. Here is how we go about it and what we’ve learned:
Embrace tools to help you hire well
Recruiting, interviewing, and hiring is an extensive, busy process - and it must be done while tending to your daily responsibilities. To keep track of all of the details, we use a hiring software tool. There, we configure any job openings and personalize the hiring process to the needs of the role. This not only helps us automate many of the steps, but it also ensures we’re conducting a fair and equitable hiring process. As we receive applications and conduct interviews, the tool keeps track of resumes, interview scores, and next steps.
Hiring Software Platforms:
- Greenhouse
- Breezy
- JazzHR
- Workable
Determine what makes the perfect candidate
To best find success in the hiring process at Rhythm, we identify characteristics that would make someone successful in their role. For a Product Specialist, we look for individuals with enormous empathy and high technical aptitude as their main responsibility is to help our customers use the platform effectively. For a Software Engineer, we look for people who are sharp problem-solvers with a background in development.
In the hiring process, we call those characteristics “attributes” and we score them after every interaction with a candidate.
Identifying these attributes at the beginning informs how we write the job description, what questions we ask during interviews and on assessments, and who we ultimately hire. It’s a foundational step.
Throughout the hiring process, interviewers are asked to score attributes on a five-point scale whenever they have a clear opinion of it. Reviewing these scores in summary makes the hiring process more efficient and effective.
Develop an honest and realistic job description
There is power in transparency and practicality in the hiring process. When done well, this approach attracts quality candidates and ensures they aren’t surprised if and when they join your team. The job description should inspire the right candidates to apply, getting them excited about your organization and the role. As for the wrong candidates? The job description can save both of you time by helping them see it isn’t the right fit.
Here's how we structure the job description:
- High-level introduction of the organization
- High-level introduction of the role and the impact it has on the organization
- Expectations of the role and regular responsibilities
- Background, skills, and values needed
- Perks, including benefits, culture, and continuing education
- Compensation ranges
Standardize interviews
In this competitive market, talented job candidates have many options. One of the ways we stand out is by simplifying the interview process. We’re able to move faster because we already know what attributes the right candidate has - it doesn’t take several rounds with panels of interviewers to make a decision.
The best part? It shows respect for every candidate’s time.
Our typical interview process doesn’t have more than four interviews:
- Initial Interview: This short, 15-minute interview is to determine if the applicant meets the basic requirements for the role. This is led by someone on our administrative team.
- Second Interview: This 30-minute interview with the hiring manager is to dig deeper into the candidate’s background and skill set. Here, we’re looking to see if the candidate’s experience and career aspirations are compatible with the role we have open.
- Panel Interview: Depending on the role, we invite candidates to meet with other members of the team for up to an hour. Staff members often have a deeper understanding of tactical, interdepartmental needs and can ask related questions.
- Final Interview: This 30-minute interview with the hiring manager is to confirm the skills examined in the hiring assessment and confirm the candidate shares Rhythm’s core values. Here, we typically ask situational questions.
Develop assessments to score for each candidate.
In an effort to remove personal biases from the hiring process, we ask every candidate to complete an assessment that helps us to better evaluate their capabilities objectively. The questions posed in a written assessment vary from role to role, but every hiring manager is looking to gauge the candidate’s ability to be successful at Rhythm.
If you decide to try this approach, be intentional with the questions you ask and keep it at a reasonable length.
A team made up of world-class talent unlocks limitless potential. Your team members are the torchbearers of your organization, furthering your mission in a collective effort on a daily basis. As you prepare to grow your team in the future, consider how efforts made in the hiring process will impact your endeavors.
We are proud of the team we’ve built and hope our experience can help your association navigate a changing hiring environment.
