Being a startup or a small business doesn’t mean you can set lower goals than large businesses. Set your standards high and your goals even higher. Remember, your hires are the definition of your success. Look for a specific kind of people, not a big-name diploma. The most efficient hiring process is not the one that ends the fastest, but the one that ends with a mutually beneficial long-term partnership with a brilliant person. Quick hires that seem like a victory at first, might as well become a quick disappointment. It’s all about turning the resources you invested in the hiring process into an asset.

That is exactly why:

1. Start with a strong core and ask it to help

The first people you hire, the core team are your biggest asset – these bright folks are your face and connection with the outer world. Whenever a new position is open, first ask your team to recommend someone for the job. Brilliant people usually have brilliant friends ;)Aim at building a core team that is passionate about the work they do, passionate about your company values (you need to have those too by the way). If you keep building up this way, your 2nd and 3rd-degree connections will soon become your semi-automated hiring goldmine.

2. Unique people require unique perks

No, we are not talking about the money here (there are exceptions). Make people come to you, instead of you trying to hunt them down, offer something of unique value.Start offering the perks that are relevant to your perfect candidates – you don’t need 500 applications, you need just one right candidate. Use your strong core team to become known for your awesome perk/company culture/philosophy and make it work for you.

3 . Always look for active thinkers

Look for people who are not merely looking for a job but rather those who want to contribute towards the success of a team. Challenge them. Ask if they notice something that could be done better in your business, ask if they ever had ideas in their previous job, did they share them?In a great business, there is no space for “fillers”, no space for that’s-not-my-job kind of thinking.

Remember, your time has value. The best gift you can make yourself is to save yourself from the trouble of having to fill the same position again too soon.

Dimitar Karaivanov, CEO of Kanbanize
https://kanbanize.com/