The purpose of having support staff is to make your life easier by improving productivity, so don’t underestimate the impact a new hire will make on your business, says Heather Peters, certified coach and senior consultant with Knightsbridge Robertson Surrette in St. John’s.

While it’s tempting to rush the process, either by hiring a highly recommended candidate or skipping a few steps along the way, these routes will increase your chances of hiring the wrong person. The hiring process can go especially awry if you hire an excellent candidate who just doesn’t match the needs of your particular organization, Peters says.

Here are three tips for hiring support staff:

1. Update the job description
“You have to do the prep work upfront if you want the best chance of success,” Peters says. Don’t just rehash the same job posting from the last time you hired for the position. Instead, make sure all the team members who will be affected by the new hire have made their expectations known. For instance, if you’re hiring an administrative assistant, each person he or she will report to should agree on the new hire’s education, competencies, and methods of reporting.

“Take the time now because otherwise you’re going to have countless hours of discussion, challenges, and possibly conflict with the new hire or your colleagues,” Peters says.

Questions for the job interview should then organically emerge from the detailed job description that was agreed upon by all team members with a stake in the new hire.

2. Don’t rush the process
It can be tempting to hire a new candidate after a quick and pleasant chat, but don’t undermine the hiring process simply because you’re filling a junior position, Peters says. Since supporting roles are typically customer-facing, these are often the people who are going to make your business shine.

Peters recommends using standardized situation questions, which are behavioural questions about the past workplace experiences of the candidate. For example, you might say, “Tell me about a time that you had to make an important decision on the job.” This will give you greater insight into their character and habits in the workplace.

3. Understand the expectations of the employee
Always ask the new hire how the position fits with their career aspirations, Peters says. For example, he or she may have plans to quickly move up in the organization or stay and evolve within a particular role.

Don’t rule out those who want to use the role as a stepping stone to another position, Peters adds. These types of hires will often be exceptional workers and use the position to show their worth. “Enjoy the perks of their drive and commitment on their way up the chain,” Peters says.

This is the first part in a three-part series on hiring support staff.

Next: interviewing candidates.