How to Hire Your Dream Team for Stress Free Holidays

I'm a HR Consultant by trade, not a recruiter. Sure, I've done plenty of recruitment throughout my career, but never really for roles I cared about. Until 2024.

My HR consultancy was growing and I recognised that I could no longer do it all by myself. I was burning out, stressed 24/7 and worried about letting my clients down. Something had to change, fast.

So I mapped out a plan, and this is what it looked like. What Does My Dream Team Look Like?

Alongside the tasks I wanted someone to pick up for me, I took A LOT of time to consider what sort of person I wanted on my team. This person would be in the office with me all day, talking to my clients and effectively replacing me as their consultant.

Their personality mattered way more than their experience (although I needed enough experience that I didn't need to hold their hand).

So in my search I looked for:

• Highly organised

• Good sense of humour

• No big ego

• Caring

• Warm & friendly

• Non judgemental.

The problem is - you can't tell any of that from a CV. Which leads us on to the next step.

Bare Minimum Screening Criteria

I thought about the level of experience someone needed to have to be able to support my clients properly. I needed someone with at least 2-3 years in managing complex employee relations cases.

I also asked for a minimum of a CIPD Level 5 qualification. Not because it mattered, but because it helped to communicate to people that this wasn't going to be an entry level job. You had to hit the ground running. Although I could teach someone the basics, that wouldn't have helped my capacity problem and would have created more work for me.

How Many Hours Do I NEED?

This was a tough one.

The first hire is TERRIFYING.

What if it doesn't work?

What if they're an arsehole?

What if my clients hate them?

What if they're shit at the job?

What if I can't afford to pay them?

So, I started small. I thought about what number of hours I would need to feel like some of the load had been taken off me - not all of it, just some. I also considered that I wanted this person to be well paid to reflect their experience, but I couldn't afford to offer £60k a year when I wasn't even taking home that much.

So I did the maths. I had a look at other HR Adviser roles that were being advertised and decided on a salary that I felt matched market rates and felt proportionate next to my salary.

I then worked out what the hourly rate was for that role (salary/52 weeks/ 37.5 hours).

This helped me forecast what I would need to pay this person each month depending on the hours they worked which helped me calculate affordability.

I didn't opt for the cheapest rate, because I needed experience. I needed valuable help and I wanted to be the kind of employer that pays well.

When Would They Work?

I decided that initially I would hire for 12 hours a week. This would take enough off me to give me some headspace, but I also recognised that for 3 - 6 months, I would need to be available to help this person so I felt that I could achieve that for 12 hours a week, giving me the rest of the week to crack on with everything else.

So all that was left to consider was the working hours.

Our client hours are 09:00 - 17:00 Monday - Friday.

I would never ask an employee to work a 12 hour shift so I went for 3x 4 hour shifts - actual hours TBD.

I did this because I realised that the ideal person for this role would probably be a woman who has had a previous career in HR but now needs something to work around their kids. And so I didn't want to prevent those very capable women from applying.

Hiring Your Dream Team

June 2024, I posted the advert out on all the free platforms. Indeed, gov.uk, our job page on our website and our social media.

Nothing happened for weeks. Actual crickets.

I didn't panic. I waited.

The first recruitment round took 4 weeks and gave me one applicant that was worth interviewing. She seemed like a good fit and I offered her the job. She accepted and then later pulled out of the process.

It wasn't the right fit.

So I reposted the advert about 6 weeks after the initial job posting.

The second round was much better, loads more quality candidates came in. I think I interviewed 5 people for the role.

I scored every candidate to make it easier for me to be objective and there was 1 point between the top two candidates. I offered the role to the top candidate.

She accepted, I sent her the contract and then she pulled out too!

It wasn't the right fit.

So I sheepishly sent an email to the next top scorer on my list. I had already told her the job had been offered to someone else. AWKWARD.

But I sent her a really honest email and told her the situation and that as a result, I'd like to offer her the job.

She accepted.

She didn't pull out.

Two years later - she's still here, our clients love her, she's my right hand woman and has helped me train and onboard our two newest recruits.

The Lesson?

Recruitment is a lot like online dating. You have to put yourself out there and see who matches with you. Then comes the fun bit - finding out whether they match your values. You'll know from their profile (CV) whether they have the basics that you're looking for, but then you need to go on a date (interview) to see if you gel.

If you're not clear on what you're looking for, you'll be thinking up ways to get out of an awkward situation. And if you try to force it, you'll end up with a poor match.

To hire your dream team, you need to get clear on what you want and why, expect it to take time and don't make decisions out of desperation.

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If you'd like some help in working through what you need out of your next recruit, calculating the costs, drafting job adverts and screening candidates, get in touch.