A Guide to Know How to Hire Employees for Your Small Business

Are you here because you want to start hiring for your business? So, you have decided you want to hire employees for a small business? You are at the right place to learn about every little detail you might get stuck at.

When a business reaches a point where your team is running short to complete the tasks on time, it is time to hire potential employees. It can surely be a hectic task, but you should be proud of yourself for coming this far. This guide will walk you through the small business hiring process, from job postings to onboarding new employees.

In this blog, we will look into📝:

Making your small business ready for hiring: Here, I have included information of why as a small business you require employees to do certain tasks, or maybe you need employees in the future.
Things to keep in mind before starting the hiring process: All the small details regarding what should be kept in mind before the hiring process, we go through a step by step guide to help you figure out the whole hiring process.
How to go on with the hiring of employees: The entire hiring decision explained to you in detail, with also giving you tips regarding what you can do after you hire an employee for your small business.

You might not be sure about the hiring procedure but I am certain that you must have a clarity about not spending over the top in it. Hiring process doesn’t get completed in a day. If you need to recruit someone, you need to plan and execute the best hiring methods.

This is possible if you plan things correctly and do your own research about the market trends and the current scenarios about how businesses can reach out to the potential employees. This blog will be a guide to hiring procedure.

Making Your Small Business Hiring Ready

Hiring employees for a small business is a complicated procedure, which is why recruitment marketing is so important. You are hiring an individual and gaining their confidence to be a part of your team. They are confiding in you for their payroll and job security. Considering the current situation of recession and people dealing with recession, the burden falls on business owners to decide what is best for them.

It is very clear that if you are a part of a small business, then you will have multiple roles in the organization to make ends meet. However, if you are ready to hire a new person, then make sure your business is ready for newcomers.

Employees will need security and comfort and the need to work with and for you. You will also need to prepare your business with the resources to hire. This is why a million small businesses choose not to hire anyone for fear of bad hiring decisions.

Is your business ready to hire a new employee?

This might make you question your business and yourself, but it is important. It will let you differentiate between the wants and needs of your business.

Additionally, compliance with federal labor laws is crucial to ensure that you meet all legal obligations when hiring new employees.

You need to understand that almost every small business owner and the people working with you need to take up multiple roles.

This might get you overburdened, but you can ask yourself a few questions:

Make a list of the tasks which need to be done in your particular business. Assign these tasks to your current employees including yourself. If it is manageable then you do not need it.
After analyzing the tasks, if you are still left to do certain tasks by the end of the week, then first try to calculate the working hours. Also, calculate the hours needed to complete the tasks. You are not required to hire if the task can be completed in a few extra hours.
Make a note of your financial condition. Ask yourself if you are ready to give them good pay every month on time with few employee benefits.

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You definitely need to hire someone if you are not able to handle all the above-mentioned things. Now that you know your requirements, you can finally decide if you need a full-time employee or a part-time employee to work for you. There are people who would work for you on a contract basis as well. It all depends on your business’s needs.

Full-Time Employees

They will require a monthly salary, employee benefits, and health benefits.
They will work in a setting you provide and also use your resources.
They will work only for your business.
They will be responsible for completing the tasks you give.

Part-Time Employees

They will also require a monthly salary, but other benefits are not necessary.
Part-time employees may work on their own setting and their resources depending on the task you give them.
They might have other jobs as well.

Contractual Basis

They will be required to pay after the work is complete.
They will work on their setting and use their own resources.
They will not be exclusive to your business.
They will work according to their timeline and have a contract for the tasks.

Set up your EIN for New Recruit

If your checklist has made you decide that you require a candidate for your small business, then it is time to get yourself an EIN.

EIN is a nine-digit employee identification number. It is needed if you hire someone other than you. To get an EIN, you need to contact the IRS and successfully complete their formalities and tests.

Understand your Tax Requirements

Now that you’ve got an EIN number, you can worry about the more typical things—taxes! This will require you to seek professional advice and conduct thorough research. Do not miss out on any formalities.

Small businesses need to be aware of the federal taxes, state taxes, and employment taxes, which seem to be different in every state.

State will require you to submit the W-2 form and report the amount of wages of each of your employees. There are specific rules on withholding of taxes and according to the IRS you can deposit the taxes.

There would be withholdings like medicare taxes, employment reports, and social security, which you will also have to pay from your pocket to match the amount.

Set up your Payroll

Now, you are just one step away from hiring an employee for your small business. This one seems like an important thing for most of the employees. Your employees will want timely transactions of monthly salary.

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To streamline the process, consider using benefits administration software to manage employee benefits efficiently.

For that, you can approach any payroll provider who can set up a smooth transaction service for you. You can also create an automated salary transaction system for your employees.

Step-Wise Tips to Hire Employees for Your Small Business

After you have made your business well-equipped for new hire, you need a best fit for your company. You are running a small business and you are not in the position to hire someone who is not serious or someone who can not withstand multiple roles.

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According to your needs, you will require to attract the best candidate for you who works with you for the business and its betterment.

Have a Discussion About the Job Roles

It is better to have a small discussion either with yourself or your existing employees about the roles they are lacking at. There might be things that you and your team are not able to perform. It may be because of a lack of experience or knowledge. That is when you know it’s time to hire.

If there are multiple roles that are related to each other, then you can look for an employee who has an added skill set. For example, if your small business is a fashion brand and you lack marketing and content creation skills, Then, you can look for an employee who has experience in marketing and an added skill in content management.

After this, prioritize your future needs from the business and what your vision is. This will help you to have a clear mindset about the kind of candidate you want to hire. Using this concept, it will be easier to hire employees for small business.

Create a Detailed Job Description for the Hiring Process

A candidate must be well aware of the roles he will be required to perform. For this same reason, it is important on your part to make it clear. An ambiguous job description will discourage the candidate and create confusion in his mind.

Your job post should be detailed and reflect your company’s branding and values to attract the right candidates. Your job description should include all the necessary details, such as:

Find the most qualified candidates and mention if certain qualification is preferred or essential.
The amount of skills and experience a particular candidate has in a particular role that you require. Also, if the experience is essential or not.
Have a clear mention about the roles an employee will be needed to perform. Even if there are multiple roles, there must be accurate details in the job description.
The amount of working hours you require them to work for you.
Last but not least, hourly or monthly salary you are ready to pay them.

Considering that you’re a small business and there might be a variety of roles, a single employee must be performing, you must offer the payroll according to that. A candidate must not feel that they will be under-compensated.

Before finalizing your job description, think clearly about the expectations you might have from the employee. This will streamline your hiring process.

It does not matter if you are a one-man business or have a small team, but if your job description contains details about the work culture and hiring practices of your business, it will have a strong impact.

Write about any other perks and bonuses you might be offering your employees, it will attract top candidate to apply for the job. If you have a nice job description, it will be easy to find and hire your first employee.

Post your Job Listing to Attract the Best Employees

In today’s world there are hundreds of websites to find the potential candidate for the available positions. Your problem will not be to get the applications but the issue will arise in selecting the candidates who are ready to put their best foot forward.

Here are a few ways to find the best talent:

Word of Mouth

This is the most traditional and cost-effective way to recruit someone. You can ask your fellow mates, friends, family, and other small business owners if they know of someone.

This method saves you the fees of the current job listing websites. It can also save you from getting too deep in the background check procedure.

You can also use poster advisor tool to find and print the posters of the open position. This is a classic way for bringing on a new employee.

Utilize Job Listing Websites

The world has moved forward, and people now tend to sign up on various websites for job opportunities. If you want to get the best talent for your business, then you will definitely find them on these sites. This way, you can also compete with larger businesses.

The only downside is the fees they acquire for you to post the listing for a limited amount of time. You will have to pay approximately $250-$350 for a month.

After you have paid the fees, your listing with the job description you prepared will come up on these websites. Some of the websites you can check out are:

LinkedIn
Glassdoor
Craigslist
Monster
Well found
Indeed

Speaking from a job seeker’s perspective, these websites give them confidence in knowing the details about the business and understanding the job roles before applying. This also encourages employees to prepare for the interviews and screening rounds.

Screening All the Applicants to Hire the Right One

This is the most tedious task because you might be receiving hundreds of applications for one position. The first step for you will be to thoroughly analyze the CV of all the applicants. You can eliminate the candidates on the basis of:

The position’s required skill set.
Required experience or internships the candidate has.
Qualification required for the job role.
The structure of the CV, if the CV is well-organized.

This will be called an initial screening. If you still have a lot of candidates that you can not interview, then you can have a 5-minute telephonic interview round. You can call the candidates and talk to them about themselves and the skills they have. You can also ask them about their salary expectations.

This will let you know more about the candidate and will give you clarity about the person. Now, you will be left with the interview rounds to finalize the best.

Plan your Interview Process

Big companies and firms tend to have 3 to 4 rounds of tests and interviews for their available positions. However, small businesses are often constrained by finances and can not afford to conduct extensive tests and interviews. \

There are a few types of interview plans which you can follow:

Panel Interviews

As the name suggests, you will have to arrange job boards for this method of interview. You can ask your team to sit with you or ask outsiders to help you with the selection procedure. In this scenario, the panel comes well-prepared with the questions to ask the candidate and help you find the right candidate.

This type of interview can give you a different perspective of the people sitting with you. It makes a good impression on the candidates about the company and about the work they might have to do.

Phone and Video Interviews

After COVID, video conferencing and work-from-home culture have become a comfort zone for people. However, it is not a bad idea and is cost-effective for both parties. If the position available is to work from home, then it makes sense that you take telephonic and video interviews.

Telephonic conversation could be an initial or first round and followed by a video interview. You can ask your questions and can give a short task as well if needed.

To arrange a video interview, you will have to priorly intimate the candidate and ask for affirmation before scheduling the call.

In-Person Interview

An In-person or face-to-face interview is suitable when you are hiring for work from an office position. This gives the to-be new employees a chance to visit your office and learn more about the work culture.

The only thing which might need to be taken care of will be to be courteous and not let them wait for a longer period of time. It gives a false impression of late-work culture.

Face-to-face interviews will give you an appropriate amount of time and chance to explain the work and roles. You can ask the questions and study the candidate’s body language as well.

Ask the candidates about their salary and expectations for perks from the business.

Defining Your Hiring Needs

Defining your hiring needs is a crucial step in the hiring process. It involves identifying the skills, qualifications, and experience required for the job, as well as the company culture and values that the ideal candidate should possess. Start by analyzing the specific job requirements and responsibilities. Consider the essential skills and qualifications needed to perform the job effectively, as well as any additional skills that would be beneficial.

Next, think about the company culture and values you want the ideal candidate to embody. Reflect on the type of work environment you aim to create and the values that are important to your organization. This will help you identify candidates who will thrive within your company culture.

Finally, consider the long-term goals of your company and how the new hire will contribute to achieving those goals. This will help you pinpoint the skills and qualifications that are not only essential for the current role but also for future growth and development. By clearly defining your hiring needs, you can streamline the hiring process and attract candidates who are well-suited to your small business.

Design an Appropriate Job Offer

Now, you are just one step away from successfully getting your next hire. While drafting the job description, you must have already mentioned the benefits of working with your business. A job offer will consist of a detailed version of the same.

It must have the salary details. If your salary divisions are in variable form, then make a point to clearly mention them.
The tax deductions should have a separate column in the job description. If you’re hiring a fresher, they might need a proper explanation of the same.
Mention all the perks and benefits your business will be offering them.
Have a column about the yearly bonuses or incentives made.
Over-time rules should also be mentioned in the job offer.
Termination or resignation details are a must with the required notice period and the legal requirements you want them to serve.

A well-crafted job post can significantly enhance your chances of attracting the best candidates.

After you have designed a job offer, make a note to let your legal advisor check the job offer once. They can give you professional advice if something major is missing in the letter. You must also ask the new employee to read the job offer carefully before signing.

Start Preparing the Onboarding

Congratulations! You have finally hired someone fit for your business. Onboarding is quite simple and with due time the employee will get accustomed to your working culture.

If you already have a team, then onboarding will become a little easier. You can ask the team to help them with the roles for which they are responsible.

But if you are hiring your first member, then you have to take the leash in your hand. You must make them comfortable with the working environment, deadlines, and their roles.

The most important thing in onboarding is to ask them to submit all the important documents for payroll, tax, and EIN.

During the initial phase, they might require a little hand holding from you. You might be required to let them get familiar with any software you use or any kind of manufacturing process your business has.

To Summarize

The process of hiring a new employee is not that typical. What matters is that you are being diligent enough about the background check and hiring the right person for you. There could be times when you regret your decision because of whatever reason. Still, you can try to mentor the employee with your skills.

If your new employee has the desired skills, your workload and your business could reach the heights and improve the things you might be lacking at. While hiring a new candidate what matters is the dedication and determination to work. If you are able to see that in any candidate then he/she is worth hiring.

Small businesses often don’t go through such intense steps to find a great employee. Ultimately, however, it is going to lead to the success of your small business. By following a structured small business hiring process, you can ensure that you find the right fit for your team.

FAQs

How do I hire the right employees for my small business?

If you’re ready to hire someone, there is no such thing as the right employee. It is all about what works for your business and what kind of skills you require. Firstly, the responsibility falls upon you to decide the job roles you want to hire for. The next step is to choose the skills your business may need.

Then comes the difficult task of finding employees with appropriate skills and roles. You can arrange tests, interviews, and discussions with the candidate. You can also conduct a background check and search for previous experiences and job roles.

How can I hire employees fast?

Hiring can become simpler if you plan ahead and prepare in advance. While you establish your employee’s required skills, you can start forming the structure of the job description.

As soon as you have listed your job posting on the websites, you can start preparing your hiring procedure, interview modes, and questions. You will be left to streamline the hiring process and select the best candidate. While the interviews are going on, you can form a vague job offer letter. Voila! You have successfully hired an employee quickly.