As top Houston recruiters, we know that the fierce job market has resulted in many candidates exaggerating their experience or skills, or even lying about the type of environment in which they thrive. As a result, it’s up to you to ask the right questions and use effective techniques in order to weed out the not-so-worthy candidates and focus on the strongest ones.

However, sometimes, despite your best efforts, a bad fit candidate slips through the cracks and winds up on your payroll. When this happens, it can cost your company time and money in the form of lost productivity, reduced morale, and an increased tax burden. Therefore, it’s important to spot hiring mistakes early on, so you can quickly deal with them and move forward.

To help you, here’s are 3 signs to look out for and how to handle each one:

Sign #1: They don’t ask any questions.

Not asking questions can mean a variety of things:

• They don’t care about the new job
• They’re afraid to ask questions
• They don’t communicate well
• They don’t understand the job, but don’t want to look dumb by asking too many questions
• They think they can figure it out on their own, even if it takes a long time
• They think they know better than you or your staff

In any case, none of the reasons above are a good thing. They indicate a lack of curiosity, a lack of focus, or an inability to act professionally.

What you should do: Especially in those first few months of employment, it’s critically important to encourage new hires to ask lots of questions. One way you can do that is to pair a new hire up with a company veteran as a mentor. Not only will a long-standing employee be able to answer many of the new hire’s questions, but the new hire may be more comfortable asking a co-worker questions, rather than the boss.

Sign #2: They treat people differently, based on rank.

You want employees who work well with all people, regardless of their position in the company. And an employee who talks down to the receptionist or an assistant can have a big negative impact on the morale of your entire team.

What you should do: If you see signs of bad behavior, immediately pull the employee into your office for a private discussion. Have specific examples of the behavior that you have witnessed. Also make it clear that such behavior won’t be tolerated.

In the future, to avoid this problem, ask your receptionist or assistant what their first impressions of the candidate was during the interview process. Was the candidate professional and respectful or condescending? They may be able to offer you the insight you need to make a better hiring decision in the future.

For more help on avoiding hiring mistakes, read Don’t Make These 5 Hiring Mistakes at Your Houston Company.

Sign #3: They have a toxic attitude.

As a candidate, in the interview, they seemed friendly and engaging. But now that you’ve hired them, you realize they don’t play well with others.

What you should do: If you haven’t seen the bad behavior yourself, don’t rely on hearsay or assumptions. Instead talk privately with managers and staff who work directly with the new hire. Does the negativity seem to just occur with one person, or with many people?

If you hear enough information to validate complaints, then invite the employee to your office for a neutral discussion. Perhaps there is a good reason for their behavior, such as issues at home. If not, though, then it’s up to you whether to begin the termination process or try to get the employee on track.

In the future, if you’d like some help with the hiring process, give us a call. As Houston recruiters, our top priority is delivering exceptional job candidates, not good candidates who may have the adequate skills. But people who are truly top performers.

If you’d like to learn more about how we can help you, please contact us today.