8 Common Hiring Mistakes & How To Avoid Them

The hiring process is much more than simply choosing a candidate. It often involves extensive training – which costs money and time – trust that somebody can do precisely what they say they can, and patience while somebody learns how to do a new job adequately. Even for a perfect candidate, the onboarding and training process usually isn’t smooth sailing, but it can become a nightmarish situation for the wrong candidate.

Hiring mistakes can disrupt team dynamics, drain resources, and derail strategic objectives. The wrong person can torpedo an entire business, destroy team morale and organizational culture, and even stunt growth and innovation while costing you money. 

You can avoid all of this by taking the time to choose and screen prospective candidates carefully. It may take a little longer and require more energy, but sidestepping a bad hire is well worth it. Here are eight common hiring mistakes and what you can do instead. 

Taking the time to check references properly is one of the best ways of helping to prevent a bad hire. The problem is it can often take time to track down the various references, which is why many people either need to cut the process short or overlook it entirely.

Reference checks offer invaluable insights into a candidate’s past performance and work ethic. Skipping this step can lead to surprises down the line when the employee’s behavior or performance changes. Suddenly, the intelligent, polite person you hired three months ago has morphed into something entirely different. Now that their probation has passed firing them becomes infinitely more complex.

Solution: Implement a structured reference-checking process and outsource it to a company specializing in background checks if you don’t have the time or inclination to do it yourself. During the interview, ask specific, job-related questions about their references to gain insights into the candidate’s past performance and work ethic.

This area remains controversial, but a survey done in 2018 found that 70% of companies in the U.S. were checking social media accounts as part of their screening process. Five years on, it’s impossible not to believe that that figure has climbed even higher.

Social media can provide context about a candidate’s character and suitability for a company’s culture. However, navigating this responsibly is crucial to respect privacy and avoid discrimination. If you base a hiring decision on gender, sexual preference, age, race, or ethnicity, you are breaking the law and could open yourself up to substantial legal proceedings. 

Solution: Conduct a balanced and respectful review of candidates’ public social media profiles to assess their professionalism and whether they fit your company’s values.

Background checks are another area that often gets passed over because of the perceived time and effort involved. These checks are essential to validate candidates’ information and ensure workplace safety. They are entirely legal, and no prospective candidate in the United States would expect not to be included in one. Neglecting this step can lead to hiring individuals with problematic histories, potentially jeopardizing other employees and the company.

Solution: Make comprehensive background checks a standard part of the hiring process to ensure candidate authenticity and workplace safety. This can sometimes be a lengthy, difficult process, so use a professional service to make sure you get the best results possible.

Choosing the right candidate is not simply about picking the person who ticks the right boxes on paper. Sometimes, you need to step back and think about how that person would fit into the company. Focusing solely on skills and experience while ignoring cultural fit is a serious mistake because employees who cannot integrate into the existing company culture can disrupt team dynamics and shatter morale. 

Solution: Incorporate cultural fit assessment into the interview process to ensure the candidate aligns with the company’s values and team environment.

Placing excessive emphasis on academic credentials or previous titles over a candidate’s potential and ability to grow can lead to negative consequences down the road. This is tricky to manage; sometimes, you must go with your gut feeling. 

We all start from somewhere, usually without experience, and often just need somebody to show a little faith in us. Hunger and determination are incredibly powerful, so don’t dismiss a candidate simply because of a lack of experience or academic merit.

Solution: Balance the evaluation of credentials with assessments of a candidate’s potential, adaptability, and capacity for growth. What does your gut say? Take the interview off-track to get a clear idea of who a candidate really is. 

Time is money, as the saying goes – but a rushed hiring process can end up costing you a fortune. Rushing the hiring process often leads to overlooking critical candidate assessments. A hasty decision can result in a poor match, leading to further turnover and the associated costs of rehiring.

Solution: Set aside adequate time for each hiring stage, ensuring a comprehensive candidate evaluation. If the right person doesn’t come up, consider pushing the deadline back by a little. The perfect candidate is worth the wait. 

One of the biggest hiring mistakes occurs before you’ve even begun interviewing potential employees. Posting vague or inaccurate job descriptions can attract the wrong candidates, which wastes time. A clear and detailed job description is essential to ensure that applicants have a realistic understanding of the role and its requirements. Having to backtrack on something in the job description is embarrassing and unprofessional. 

Solution: Craft clear, detailed, and realistic job descriptions to attract suitable candidates and set correct expectations.

Involving other team members in the hiring process is an excellent idea for two reasons: it helps foster a sense of trust and togetherness with existing employees while adding more diverse perspectives to help assess how well a candidate would integrate into the team. However, this needs to be done carefully. You’re the boss, and you will be making the final decision, but the input from others can be invaluable. 

Solution: Involve relevant team members in hiring to assess team compatibility and broaden perspectives.