The Hiring Team: What to Consider, How to Develop and Align
By Jen Goldman & Patti Dorsey, Bolster
Summer 2023
When developing and aligning the hiring team for a job opening, there are several key considerations to keep in mind. These considerations help ensure that the team is well-prepared, cohesive, and focused on finding the best candidate for the role. Here are some important factors to consider:
Define the role and requirements: Clearly define the job role and its requirements before assembling the hiring team. This ensures that team members have a clear understanding of what they are looking for and can effectively evaluate candidates based on those criteria.
Determine the team composition: Consider the expertise and perspectives needed for a comprehensive evaluation. Identify individuals from relevant departments or teams who can provide valuable insights into the role and its requirements. Include a mix of team members who will work closely with the new hire and those who have experience in hiring or interviewing.
Establish team roles and responsibilities: Assign specific roles and responsibilities to each team member. This could include tasks such as resume screening, conducting interviews, assessing technical skills, evaluating cultural fit or checking references. Clearly define expectations to ensure smooth collaboration and accountability.
Provide training and guidelines: Ensure that all team members are familiar with the organization's hiring policies, procedures, and any legal considerations related to the hiring process. Provide training on effective interviewing techniques, evaluation criteria, and unconscious bias awareness to promote fair and objective decision-making.
Develop a structured interview process: Create a standardized interview process to ensure consistency and fairness across all candidates. Develop a list of key questions that align with the job requirements and evaluate candidates based on their responses. Consider using behavioral or situational questions to assess skills and competencies. Assign each interviewer a focus area to ensure the same questions are not being asked multiple times.
Foster effective communication: Encourage open and transparent communication within the hiring team. Establish regular meetings or check-ins to discuss candidate evaluations, share feedback, and address any concerns or questions. This helps maintain alignment and facilitates informed decision-making.
Promote diversity and inclusion: Aim for diversity within the hiring team to avoid unconscious biases and bring different perspectives to the evaluation process. Encourage team members to consider a broad range of candidates and ensure that the team's decision-making process is fair, inclusive, and unbiased.
Set a timeline and deadlines: Establish a timeline for the hiring process, including specific deadlines for each stage. This helps keep the team focused and ensures that the process moves forward efficiently. Regularly review progress and adjust timelines if needed.
Evaluate and provide feedback: After the hiring process is complete, gather feedback from the team members on their experience. Assess the effectiveness of the process, identify areas for improvement, and implement necessary changes for future hiring efforts.
By considering these factors when developing and aligning the hiring team, you can increase the chances of finding the right candidate for the job while fostering a collaborative and effective hiring process.
Bolster is an on-demand executive talent marketplace that helps accelerate companies’ growth by connecting them with experienced, highly vetted executives for full-time, interim, fractional, advisory, project-based, or board roles. Jen Goldman is Co-Founder & Head of Talent Acquisition & Member Supply and Patti Dorsey is an Executive Recruiter. Learn more about Bolster here.
This post is part of the America Achieves Talent Summer Series. America Achieves is a national nonprofit organization founded in 2011 to strengthen democracy by building educational bridges to the middle class and re-establishing the link between work and opportunity.
In early 2023, America Achieves selected Bolster, Edgility Consulting and LER Consultants (LER) and DGW Consulting Group (DGWCG), all nationally recognized talent sourcing and executive leadership firms, to participate in a philanthropically funded national talent pipeline pilot project known as the Collective Impact Talent Initiative. The Collective Impact Talent Initiative builds upon America Achieves’ work with equity-centered economic growth and workforce regional coalitions through the Commerce Department’s Build Back Better Challenge and Good Jobs Challenge, both of which were part of the Biden Administration’s American Rescue Plan. The Collective Impact Talent initiative, with its partners, provides inclusive, place-based regional coalitions from across the country, from upstate New York and Central Valley California, to Virginia and Texas, among others, with individualized and capacity-building support to source, recruit and hire the key diverse talent needed to drive the regional coalitions’ innovative and bold visions of equity-centered economic growth and workforce development. The Collective Impact Talent Initiative is grounded in the belief that coalitions and their work are only as good as their teams and people. You can learn more about the Collective Impact Talent Initiative by going to catalyzeblog.americaachieves.org/talent_initiative or by emailing catalyze@americaachieves.org.
