Top 6 Red Flags to Watch for When Hiring

Hiring the right candidate is the best way to set your company up for success and higher productivity. The majority of companies have made hiring mistakes. Hiring mistakes cost your company precious time, money, and overall productivity of the business. It is a challenge to tell the difference between good and bad hires. Therefore having strong recruitment, assessment, and interview process is key. Moreover, one way of knowing the difference between these hires is watching out for the red flags.

Here are 6 important red flags to watch for when hiring:

1. Lack of interest

Lac of interest is a strong red flag to watch out for. It is important to hire candidates who are interested in and care about your company’s values and mission. Uninterested candidates do not care about the impact they have on their coworkers or the team as a whole. They are looking out for themselves. Watch out for candidates who are interested in what you do. In addition, an interesting hire believes in the success of the company, value their clients and coworkers, and feel responsible for the success of the company.

2. Late for the interview

Showing up on time for an interview says a lot about a person. Lateness for an important job interview is a red flag and can be an indication the candidates are not good planners, and they may fail to prioritize important client meetings when hired. You need dependable employees who will show up on time. However, they might have genuine reasons as to why they are late. In this case, you need to look for experienced recruitment services who will know if the candidate is legit or not.

3. They are Overqualified

Every business owner is looking for an experienced professional to join their team. However, it is important to ask yourself why they are applying for the job. An overqualified candidate is a red flag. They tend to ask for more money, they expect a quick promotion, have issues with their team members and the management, even more, they see the job as a short term fix until they get something better.

4. Only focused on pay and benefits

You should be careful when a candidate only talks about the pay and the benefits of the job. Getting a job is not always about money. A suitable candidate is passionate about the job and the company. Use questions to dig deeper and get to know what they are really looking for.

5. Lack of Eye Contact

Lack of eye contact can mean a lot of things. For example, it could mean the candidate lacks confidence, they do not trust you or they are lying about what they are saying. These are red flags because the candidate will probably have the same attitude with clients. Also, if the candidate is lying, what more would they be holding back from you?

6. Lack of Questions at the End of the Interview

A great job interview goes in two ways.  When you are done asking questions, the candidate should also ask questions. All candidates should have questions about your company. It shows their interest in the role they applied for, the company culture, and how they fit. Lack of questions is another red flag and it shows they might not have a strong interest in the job.

Final Thoughts!

Spotting the red flags is challenging. Take your time to understand your candidate to see if they show you the above red flags. Use recruitment services if need be as they will allow you to understand each candidate from a different perspective. Look out for Workpay Africa which is an employee management solutions that will help you in your hiring process. Register with us and learn more about our solution.