How to Know if You’re Hiring the Wrong People

Effective team building begins with smart hiring. It’s important for any business to have policies and standards in place, ensuring the right people are hired; and that if the wrong people are being hired, corrections are promptly made to the hiring process.

Of course, even the best recruiters and hiring managers misfire from time to time, bringing in an employee who simply does not fit with the company culture. When it happens habitually, though—well, that’s a major warning sign.

But how does your company know when it’s hiring the wrong people? What are some of the red flags to be aware of?

1. Your employees seem to know very little about the organization. If you have new hires who seem to know almost nothing about your company’s vision and values, it’s probably because of a faulty onboarding process—but it may also be because you’ve hired people who have done little or no research into the company, and thus have not made an educated decision about accepting a position in your organization.
2. Your employees have totally different values than yours. Are you hiring for fit, as well as for skills? You may have candidates who have the right resume qualifications but who don’t have the same conception of success. That may have a corrosive effect on your team dynamic and company culture.
3. You and your employees have different concepts of work/life balance. Do you expect your team members to work super-long days, or do you feel strongly that they need to punch out to recharge their batteries? If your opinion differs from that of your employees, it could be problematic.
4. Your employees are loners. There’s nothing wrong with hiring introverts, but if your employees simply refuse to be collaborative—well, that’s going to make it hard to build a strong team!
5. You feel like you have to sell your business too hard. You should seek employees who are enthusiastic to work with you, not ones who have to be convinced!
6. You ignore your gut feeling during the hiring process. You need to make sure your mind and your gut agree; your gut is trying to tell you something, and you’re foolish to ignore it!

Bottom line: You want to hire the right people. You need to hire the right people. And that means knowing when you’re hiring the wrong ones! To learn more about best hiring practices, don’t hesitate to check out ACES’ HR resources.