5 Hiring Hazards to Avoid
in the Wireless Industry

By Alec Pleet

Are you committing hiring hazards, ones that could be detrimental to your company's sales? The backbone for any wireless retailer is your staff, and to allow your bottom line to thrive, you must avoid the five main hiring hazards.

Developing a solid workforce is an ongoing process that requires planning and careful execution. This is especially important at the recruiting and hiring stage, when new members will be selected to become a part of your organization. Finding the right kinds of employees to add to your team begins with a vision. Start by envisioning the qualities and characteristics of the ideal employee and don't settle for anything less. In the current economy, many individuals are looking for jobs, and it may take a bit of hard work and discretion to find the right people to fill your vacancies. Determine the right combination of skills and attributes for a successful employee in the wireless industry as the basis for your vision.

Your vision of the "perfect employee" should guide all of your hiring decisions. With that guiding vision in place, you can begin the recruiting and hiring process. However, beware of the following five hazards that could be detrimental to your organization.

Simply Listing Your Job Opening, Instead of "Selling" It

When you place your job ads on websites like CareerBuilder and Monster, you want your hiring investment to return candidates that can boost your bottom line. However, how you market your job openings play a tremendous role in the type of candidates you will attract. Even with the increase of potential candidates in today's supply-heavy job market, you nonetheless should sell your job opportunity to the candidates you truly want.

Too many employers make the mistake of simply listing stale details about the job opening, instead of "selling" the career opportunity. While employers were previously limited in space due to the predominance of classified ads placed in the newspaper, today's internet prevalence gives employers the ability to market their job ads persuasively - and subsequently, attract the candidates that will cement the profitable success of their organization.

Consider a typical "stale" job ad, which simply lists the basic details about a job opening:

Wireless Pro is hiring part-time and full-time staff members to sell mobile phones.
Pay is commensurate upon experience.
Preference given to those who can work evenings and weekends.

Now imagine the type of candidates you can attract with an advertisement that truly sells the job:

Are you looking for an opportunity to showcase your communication, leadership, and business skills?
Would you like a recession-proof career with tremendous growth potential?

Wireless Pro is hiring professionals who want a rewarding career representing mobile products that continue to reshape consumer's lives. With nearly unlimited earning potential, great benefits, flexible hours, and excellent advancement potential, a career with Wireless Pro is the perfect opportunity for passionate professionals who enjoy working with consumers.

Taking the time to craft an exciting job advertisement, one that "sells" a position and includes details about incentives and expectations, will attract the attention of job seekers who are quality candidates.

Failing to Include Clear and Precise Candidate Expectations

A second faux pas employers commit in the job ads is excluding pertinent information regarding expectations and qualifications. Subsequently, too many executives waste precious time scanning applications and resumes of candidates who are poorly qualified.

In your job ad, you must clearly outline what characteristics, experiences, and qualifications you are seeking. Likewise, you should also succinctly indicate what type of candidate is NOT ideal for the position. It is perfectly acceptable for you to write in your ad that "DMs for convenience stores are not encouraged to apply." This will save time and energy for both you and potential job applicants.

Depending Upon a Poorly Trained Recruiting and Hiring Staff

Avoid using staff members for recruiting and hiring that have not been properly trained. One of the biggest problems in the recruiting and hiring process is that the employees responsible for reviewing candidate credentials and conducting interview are poorly trained. These types of responsibilities are integral to the success of your organization. They should not be placed on the shoulders of newly hired staff or assistant managers. Recruiting, hiring and interviewing should be conducted by senior staff with the proper training in soft skills and human resources skills.

The staff members who are responsible for selecting and interviewing candidates need to understand the organization's vision for the "perfect employee" and have a strong working knowledge of the ever-changing needs of the wireless industry.

Recruiting When You are Short-Staffed

Avoid recruiting when you are short-staffed. Wireless retailers tend to wait until it is too late to begin the recruiting and hiring process. If you wait until you are short-staffed to think about bringing in new employees, you are setting yourself up for certain failure. Not only will your existing employees feel the strain associated with constant schedule changes and being called into work at a moment's notice, the customers will not receive the optimum level of service from a shorthanded staff. This will all translate poorly on your bottom line.

Recruiting and hiring should be ongoing processes. Don't wait until one of your star performers turns in their two week notice to start looking for a replacement. Keep the door open and interview candidates on a regular basis. This will allow your organization to meet with more candidates over a longer period of time. Your recruiting and hiring staff will not feel stressed or pressured into making a decision, and more time can be dedicated to finding those ideal candidates that are in alignment with the vision.

Hiring People Who Have Limited Availability

Avoid hiring people who have stringent schedules, multiple jobs and/or limited availability. If you are hiring with your guiding vision in mind, then you should not settle for the candidate who is simply available. You should hire the candidate who meets your organization's needs. Therefore, you should look for candidates who are flexible and those who can work during the peak hours in the wireless industry, especially evenings and weekends. The flexible employee is one who can grow and adapt to the changes in the organization.

Evaluate your organization's susceptibility to these four hazards on a regular basis. Let your vision for the "perfect employee" guide all of your recruiting and hiring initiatives, and your wireless retail business will be well on its way toward excellence.

Alec Pleet is Senior Vice President of Retail at Retail Business Development (RBD). RBD is a premier provider of retail management outsourcing, consulting and training services for the wireless industry serving wireless carriers, master agents and independent cellular dealers. For more information visit www.retailbusinessdevelopment.com or call 866.869.6975.

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