The story repeats itself once and again - in every small and medium enterprises: the new employee hired has an impressive resume, he interviewed like a champ, the background investigation came back with no blemishes. However, his first week on the job, and you find that he is not the right person. Now, you have to start all over again!

So. where do small and medium enterprises go wrong? Whom to blame for? The HR department, the interviewer or the process itself? Today's job seekers are smart enough to outsmart anyone. They are proficient at interviewing. They already know what to be asked, what to say, what to show and how to bluff their way through. You cannot stop them unless you implement an effective hiring process.

Most small businesses succeed only because they recruited a few good people when they started up. So, it is none but they should know better how an efficient workforce and some specific human resources strategies could have statistically significant impact on the performance of a small business.    

Strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
As a small business with a faulty hiring process, you face another recurring problem. You hire Dr. Jekyll to find Mr. Hyde leaving your company. Why it happens? Most frequently it is because you pay better rates of pay to the newcomers - better than the rate you are paying your old workers. It hurts their dignity.

Hire and fire: close the revolving door
According to a study, 86% of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) keep their recruiting managers extremely busy making them to manage the revolving door of applications, resumes, hiring & firing. But it does not work - you not only fail to recruit the right person but also lose some of your best workers. Problems cease to stop when you take this as a 'part of business'.

Erroneous hiring = catalysing downfall
Have you ever read a newspaper story telling how a wrong hiring process and a few bad employees kill a business? Never! But it can really 'kill' a healthy business - albeit slowly. Several studies show that the negative impact  of continual talent churn is so serious that it often contributes to the decline of company's stock prices. A faulty hiring process may result in instability of workforce, continual training expenses, burnout for existing employees, degradation of customer services, and erosion of customer satisfaction.

When workload clouds judgment
Why do small businesses get stuck with bad employees? Typically, it's because they often lack a well-defined recruitment policy or, despite having it, just let their workload cloud their judgement. And whenever you are  desperate, you are more likely to drop your standards and hire anyone who will 'work out'. Such hiring habits result in a weak workforce and must be avoided by SMEs.

No fair pay/reward, no commitment
Another important point most SMEs fail to understand is the importance of building and maintaining a fair pay system that stands up to scrutiny. When a business chooses a pay-rate/reward system, it should be transparent enough so that everyone knows how one's pay/reward is calculated. Pay your employees adequately keeping in mind their qualification, experience, skill-set and how they contribute to the company. Do the same while giving pay hikes to your employees.

A little neglect breeds great mischief
While hiring new employees and paying them the right rates, make sure that you are not underpaying your old staff - pay equal for work of equal value.  It is important to undertake job and performance evaluation regularly and reward every individual employee as he deserves.  If an employee takes all the time in the world to do a job while another completes it in 30 minutes, they shouldn't be judged in the same way. Quality and quantity of work, commitment, skill-set - all should be considered while rewarding your valued workforce.

By implementing a robust and well-managed recruitment process, SMEs can gear up their drive for revenue and profit growth. A wise employer needs to know how to attract and retain good employees. People leave for one reason or another and there are enough for replacements- employee management is not as simple as this. Sometimes it may be frustratingly difficult to find out or replace the calibre of employees an employer is looking for.

A small business is a small business is a small business - with a small workforce; this workforce must be sufficient and stable enough - only good people should be recruited, talent must be appreciated and retained.