Qualifying Qualifications What Really Matters in a Candidate - Spark Hire

Qualifying Qualifications What Really Matters in a Candidate - Spark HireRunning a small business requires getting the most out of every candidate. Theres no room for error when hiring a candidate who will fulfill multiple roles and perform a variety of functions. As such, identifying exactly what youre looking for in a candidate before completing the hiring process can be vital to making the right decision. But focusing solely on a predetermined set of qualifications may actually stunt your hiring search, preventing you from finding the best, most well-rounded candidate for your open position.As an example, an article from Britains HR magazine discusses a school which hired an under-qualified candidate, despite the teachers years of experience in other high-level related positions. The candidate was hired as the head teacher at a primary schoola job for which she was technically under-qualified. Shed had experience teaching while at a think tank, but hadnt yet gotten her PGCE, a qua lification for the position. Her hiring sparked some outrage because of her failure to obtain her PGCE prior to hiring. The article, though, presents reasons why certain quantifiable qualifications may bedrngnis always paint the best picture of a potential candidate.The article finds that hiring candidates based solely on listed, predefined qualifications, and not taking into account other experience, can hurt businesses looking to hire candidates. There are a number of immeasurable traits which make candidates the perfect fit for your small business. Leadership skills, resilience, experience, and how well a candidate handles pressure situations are all equally important in the hiring process. Small businesses, many of whom need more utility players, should be especially cognizant of hiring the most well-rounded candidate, not just the most qualified one.Small businesses face even tougher decisions when it comes to hiring new job candidates and a wrong hire can be far more detriment al than for their bigger counterpart thats why figuring out what is important in a candidate, outside of just a certain set of qualifications, is crucial to your hiring process.Is your small business hiring? Let us know in the comments what intangibles you look for in a candidate outside of just a defined set of qualifications.IMAGE Courtesy of Flickr byjonny2love