her because the other VP’s were more in to clock watching than a win-win partnership.

When you interview a person ask open ended questions and make sure you are having a dialogue and not a contrived conversation. Ask questions that will relate to the type of work you need done. If it was a retail position don’t ask, “Have you worked with the public?” Ask, “Tell me about a job you’ve had working with the public face-to-face?” Ask, “Tell me about a positive interaction you had where you solved a customer’s problem.” Then sit and listen. Ask, “Tell me about a negative interaction you had with a customer and how you handled it?” Then sit and listen and observe. You’ll find out more about a person in open dialogue than by playing twenty questions.

5. Closing thoughts: Whenever possible have more than one interviewer and compare notes afterwards. Make sure that each interviewer takes a litt

For small business owners one key to success is hiring good people. For many, they have a small business but it’s like having the worst job on earth, they can never leave. Is that you? Do you feel like you can’t leave because when you do everything goes wrong? It doesn’t have to be that way if you hire the right people.

I know you’re saying, “Ed if you have to work for the people I get you wouldn’t be writing that crap.” That might be true … but then again I’ll go down the street and find other small businesses that are working like a charm. What’s the difference? Usually the quality of the people they hire. You say but I can’t pay the money they’re paying. That might be true too but usually I find that the money is not all that different.

So what is the difference in hiring people? Let’s take a look at the critical elements of hiring good, even great people.

1. Define the job: You have to start by knowing yourself what you want. Exactly what are the results of the job? When I was VP of Compaq and was looking for an Assistant this sharp young lady came in for an interview. She asked what the job entailed. I said, “Your job is to make me more productive.” It entailed answering phones, preparing presentations and all the myriad of details but the bottom line was that she existed to make me more effective. She turned out to be outstanding. You have to know up front what the bottom line of the job is … why this person will come to work for you everyday. Know this before you begin interviewing.

2. Be honest: For starters be honest. If you can only pay minimum wage then you have a job that is transient, with lots of turnover. That means your processes better be simple and straightforward like McDonalds so you can plug-and-play people. Be honest about it with the applicants. Be honest about the fact that they may not stay for the long term and you understand. Be honest if you have no benefits. They won’t surprise you later if you are honest up front.

3. State your values up front: Before you begin the hiring process establish up front exactly what it means to work for you. Make a short list of values that you stand for and will not tolerate less. When my wife and I ran a small chain of diet centers I had my value list of things like honesty, being on time, caring about the customer and a few more. When I interviewed each person received our value list – here is what we stand for if you work here. And I didn’t leave it at that. I would give them a brief example of what each one meant in action. I had more than one person look me in the eye and say, “I don’t think I can do that”. We parted company right there.

4. Interviewing: You must first get to know the person and what they want out of a job. That’s right, what they want from the job. Are they just passing through, which is okay if you have low paying jobs; or are they looking for something more substantial. It’s here you should know if they have special needs, like babysitters or a parent they take care of at home. You don’t have to ask those questions directly and it is not a reason not to hire someone. But I can tell you if you work with people on their needs they are more than likely going to work with you on yours. My Admin I mentioned earlier was a single Mom and she was upfront with me on her need to be at school functions when possible and doctor visits and the like. I made a deal with her that as long as what I needed was done and she communicated with me on her needs then I didn’t care about hours of work. It was a great match and she was truly outstanding, the other Admin’s envied her because the other VP’s were more in to clock watching than a win-win partnership.

When you interview a person ask open ended questions and make sure you are having a dialogue and not a contrived conversation. Ask questions that will relate to the type of work you need done. If it was a retail position don’t ask, “Have you worked with the public?” Ask, “Tell me about a job you’ve had working with the public face-to-face?” Ask, “Tell me about a positive interaction you had where you solved a customer’s problem.” Then sit and listen. Ask, “Tell me about a negative interaction you had with a customer and how you handled it?” Then sit and listen and observe. You’ll find out more about a person in open dialogue than by playing twenty questions.

5. Closing thoughts: Whenever possible have more than one interviewer and compare notes afterwards. Make sure that each interviewer takes a littl

You have to start by knowing yourself what you want. Exactly what are the results of the job? When I was VP of Compaq and was looking for an Assistant this sharp young lady came in for an interview. She asked what the job entailed. I said, “Your job is to make me more productive.” It entailed answering phones, preparing presentations and all the myriad of details but the bottom line was that she existed to make me more effective. She turned out to be outstanding. You have to know up front what the bottom line of the job is … why this person will come to work for you everyday. Know this before you begin interviewing.

2. Be honest: For starters be honest. If you can only pay minimum wage then you have a job that is transient, with lots of turnover. That means your processes better be simple and straightforward like McDonalds so you can plug-and-play people. Be honest about it with the applicants. Be honest about the fact that they may not stay for the long term and you understand. Be honest if you have no benefits. They won’t surprise you later if you are honest up front.

3. State your values up front: Before you begin the hiring process establish up front exactly what it means to work for you. Make a short list of values that you stand for and will not tolerate less. When my wife and I ran a small chain of diet centers I had my value list of things like honesty, being on time, caring about the customer and a few more. When I interviewed each person received our value list – here is what we stand for if you work here. And I didn’t leave it at that. I would give them a brief example of what each one meant in action. I had more than one person look me in the eye and say, “I don’t think I can do that”. We parted company right there.

4. Interviewing: You must first get to know the person and what they want out of a job. That’s right, what they want from the job. Are they just passing through, which is okay if you have low paying jobs; or are they looking for something more substantial. It’s here you should know if they have special needs, like babysitters or a parent they take care of at home. You don’t have to ask those questions directly and it is not a reason not to hire someone. But I can tell you if you work with people on their needs they are more than likely going to work with you on yours. My Admin I mentioned earlier was a single Mom and she was upfront with me on her need to be at school functions when possible and doctor visits and the like. I made a deal with her that as long as what I needed was done and she communicated with me on her needs then I didn’t care about hours of work. It was a great match and she was truly outstanding, the other Admin’s envied her because the other VP’s were more in to clock watching than a win-win partnership.

When you interview a person ask open ended questions and make sure you are having a dialogue and not a contrived conversation. Ask questions that will relate to the type of work you need done. If it was a retail position don’t ask, “Have you worked with the public?” Ask, “Tell me about a job you’ve had working with the public face-to-face?” Ask, “Tell me about a positive interaction you had where you solved a customer’s problem.” Then sit and listen. Ask, “Tell me about a negative interaction you had with a customer and how you handled it?” Then sit and listen and observe. You’ll find out more about a person in open dialogue than by playing twenty questions.

5. Closing thoughts: Whenever possible have more than one interviewer and compare notes afterwards. Make sure that each interviewer takes a litt

ts. Be honest about the fact that they may not stay for the long term and you understand. Be honest if you have no benefits. They won’t surprise you later if you are honest up front.

3. State your values up front: Before you begin the hiring process establish up front exactly what it means to work for you. Make a short list of values that you stand for and will not tolerate less. When my wife and I ran a small chain of diet centers I had my value list of things like honesty, being on time, caring about the customer and a few more. When I interviewed each person received our value list – here is what we stand for if you work here. And I didn’t leave it at that. I would give them a brief example of what each one meant in action. I had more than one person look me in the eye and say, “I don’t think I can do that”. We parted company right there.

4. Interviewing: You must first get to know the person and what they want out of a job. That’s right, what they want from the job. Are they just passing through, which is okay if you have low paying jobs; or are they looking for something more substantial. It’s here you should know if they have special needs, like babysitters or a parent they take care of at home. You don’t have to ask those questions directly and it is not a reason not to hire someone. But I can tell you if you work with people on their needs they are more than likely going to work with you on yours. My Admin I mentioned earlier was a single Mom and she was upfront with me on her need to be at school functions when possible and doctor visits and the like. I made a deal with her that as long as what I needed was done and she communicated with me on her needs then I didn’t care about hours of work. It was a great match and she was truly outstanding, the other Admin’s envied her because the other VP’s were more in to clock watching than a win-win partnership.

When you interview a person ask open ended questions and make sure you are having a dialogue and not a contrived conversation. Ask questions that will relate to the type of work you need done. If it was a retail position don’t ask, “Have you worked with the public?” Ask, “Tell me about a job you’ve had working with the public face-to-face?” Ask, “Tell me about a positive interaction you had where you solved a customer’s problem.” Then sit and listen. Ask, “Tell me about a negative interaction you had with a customer and how you handled it?” Then sit and listen and observe. You’ll find out more about a person in open dialogue than by playing twenty questions.

5. Closing thoughts: Whenever possible have more than one interviewer and compare notes afterwards. Make sure that each interviewer takes a litt

the person and what they want out of a job. That’s right, what they want from the job. Are they just passing through, which is okay if you have low paying jobs; or are they looking for something more substantial. It’s here you should know if they have special needs, like babysitters or a parent they take care of at home. You don’t have to ask those questions directly and it is not a reason not to hire someone. But I can tell you if you work with people on their needs they are more than likely going to work with you on yours. My Admin I mentioned earlier was a single Mom and she was upfront with me on her need to be at school functions when possible and doctor visits and the like. I made a deal with her that as long as what I needed was done and she communicated with me on her needs then I didn’t care about hours of work. It was a great match and she was truly outstanding, the other Admin’s envied her because the other VP’s were more in to clock watching than a win-win partnership.

When you interview a person ask open ended questions and make sure you are having a dialogue and not a contrived conversation. Ask questions that will relate to the type of work you need done. If it was a retail position don’t ask, “Have you worked with the public?” Ask, “Tell me about a job you’ve had working with the public face-to-face?” Ask, “Tell me about a positive interaction you had where you solved a customer’s problem.” Then sit and listen. Ask, “Tell me about a negative interaction you had with a customer and how you handled it?” Then sit and listen and observe. You’ll find out more about a person in open dialogue than by playing twenty questions.

5. Closing thoughts: Whenever possible have more than one interviewer and compare notes afterwards. Make sure that each interviewer takes a litt

her because the other VP’s were more in to clock watching than a win-win partnership.

When you interview a person ask open ended questions and make sure you are having a dialogue and not a contrived conversation. Ask questions that will relate to the type of work you need done. If it was a retail position don’t ask, “Have you worked with the public?” Ask, “Tell me about a job you’ve had working with the public face-to-face?” Ask, “Tell me about a positive interaction you had where you solved a customer’s problem.” Then sit and listen. Ask, “Tell me about a negative interaction you had with a customer and how you handled it?” Then sit and listen and observe. You’ll find out more about a person in open dialogue than by playing twenty questions.

5. Closing thoughts: Whenever possible have more than one interviewer and compare notes afterwards. Make sure that each interviewer takes a little different approach. If you happen to have a receptionist or a person who is talking with the applicant while they wait make sure you get their input regarding the candidate. What did they say and how did they act in the waiting room. When interviewing is done by more than one person and you are the leader, pick out one of your current and outstanding employees, the ones you say to your spouse and friends ‘if I had a hundred of them’ and tell your interviewers, “We are looking for another Sally.”

Interviewing and selecting employees can be fun and it should be. It is the key to the better future of your small business. Think about how you do it now. Consider what is working and what is not. Consider these simple ideas and decide on a process for hiring and you will hire the right people.