Hiring your first employee is a big step in growing your business. If you’re unsure if it’s time to hire, check out this article we wrote and hopefully it will help you decide if the time is right. If you’ve decided it’s time to hire your first employee, we’ve laid out a few tips to help you with the process.
Steps to hiring your first employee
- Create a job description
- Post the job listing
- Conduct interviews
- Extend an offer
- Create an employment contract
- Set up your employee’s payment information
- Onboard your employee
Create a job description
The first step to hiring is becoming detailed on what the job entails. Make a list of all the duties you would expect this employee to perform. Describe what the company is, what the hours of the job are, hourly or salary pay, any manual labor requirements and anything else you want this prospective employee to know before interviewing. There are templates available online that can help you form your job description.
Post the job listing
Post your job listing where you think your prospective employee would see it. This could be in the newspaper, on LinkedIn, or other job listing websites.You may even want to work with a recruiter or a contractor agency to help you find the right person for the job. Also pay attention to the job listing categories so you can select the correct ones to increase visibility for qualified candidates. This is why it’s beneficial to write detailed job descriptions so you only receive relevant resumes.
Conduct Interviews
This is the most important part of the search for your first employee. Write down a list of qualities you would like to see in your future employee. Create a list of questions you want to ask this person; make sure you’re prepared so you can find out all the information you need. Be sure to interview a few candidates to make sure you have the right option.
This is a good time to also make sure that your employee has any necessary certifications or licensing and check for references.
Remember candidates are also interviewing your business, and you as a boss, during this process. You should lay out expectations for the role and the conduct within the organization, as well as working hours, any manual labor requirements and make sure you have set expectations of how you will work together
Extend a verbal offer
Once you have decided who you want to hire, you will need to extend a verbal offer. This means you will need to let the employee know that you would like to hire them, and list out the terms of employment. These terms can include any benefits, pay, or expectations you have for the candidate.
Create an offer letter & written agreement
To make the employment official, your candidate should sign an offer letter, or a written agreement that outlines the terms of employment. This will include how much they get paid, when they get paid, what training will be required, and what benefits are provided. (This could be an ideal time to come up with a training plan if required)
While an offer letter/ written agreement are both optional they can be beneficial. This written agreement outlines the legal terms and conditions of their employment, and is a good backup to prevent legal issues. You can find templates for employment agreements and contracts online.
Set up your employee’s payment information
You will need your employee to fill out a W-4 form. You can find this form here. Your employee will need to provide proper documentation such as a social security number card, drivers license, or passport. You will need to determine how you want to manage payroll, or if you want to outsource payroll. This SBA guide helps you with setting up your payroll and guides you through the legal steps.
Onboard your employee
Once you have set up all of the employee’s payment information, and the offer letter and/or written agreement has been signed, you will need to onboard your employee. While it may feel like an extra “job” for you – making sure that new employees know what you want, what you expect and get the necessary training will save you time in the long run. Think about all that time you spent recruiting/hiring, that’s a sunk cost (that means you’ve spent the time/energy/money and you can’t get it back), make sure you get the most out of the investment you’ve already made.
If you need additional information on how to complete the hiring process, the U.S. Small Business Administration has great resources available.