What to Look for in an Employee

We’re back! We have been so busy at Huntington lately with building, expanding, and growing! With growing the company, we have been learning quite a bit about interviews and hiring.

It’s no secret, we’re hiring. You can check out that post here if you’re interested in a sales position. I may be a tad biased, but Huntington is a great place to work! Many of you who read our content are tasked with the job of interviews and hiring. So, we thought we’d brush up on what makes a good employee, AND how to see that in an interview.

Some advice from Forbes:

  1. Require at least one personal reference along with professional references. This can be from a friend. Someone who spends time with them in their personal lives. Some questions to ask this personal reference: –Why do you think they’re interested in the job? –Are they reliable? –How long have you known each other?
  2. Trust your gut. Odds are you know your job. Another probable assumption is that you know what will be expected out of the position your interviewing for. With that said, your intuition can be one of your most reliable sources.
  1. Be clear about the job description. Again, you know what the job requires, the interviewee will not know this unless you are very clear. Doing this will help you avoid hiring people who only waste your time, are lazy, or are simply not fit for the job.

Interviews and Hiring

What We’ve Learned from Interviews and Hiring

Huntington has found these tips to be helpful, however, Forbes doesn’t write to the everyday family-owned small business. We know small business very well an we know your work can become your family. There are significant differences from small businesses to corporate companies, so we’ve added a few tips of our own to aid the hiring process for small businesses.

  1. Your fit within the company. Skill set is very important, sometimes you need someone who already has these skills and sometimes you can train them. But just as important as skill set is one’s fit within the company. In a small business, you’re working side by side with coworkers all day long. You’re a team! You communicate all day long, mostly about the job, but also about personal lives. It’s inevitable. So make sure this person is someone that can handle the strong relationships that grow within the company.
  2. Be flexible! Be prepared to do big things like dealing with important clients, as well as being willing to take out the trash! This is huge! A job may be relatively reliable, but sometimes things happen and you’re expected to drop everything you’re doing to take care of some other issue. This is just part of the job, so make sure they’re willing to join the crazy thrill of a small business!

We love small business dynamics and we’re always learning here at Huntington. I’m sure in 20 years, we’d have a whole list to add as well grow and expand as a company. If you have any tips about interviews and hiring that you’ve learned from a small business, comment them below.