What To Do When Your Hire Is the Wrong Fit

Hiring the best talent is one of the most important things you can do for your company. When someone is the wrong fit, they poke holes in the fabric of the company. Productivity generally declines, there can be a financial impact, the morale of the team can suffer, and it can create a dysfunctional culture. No matter how thorough your hiring process is, there's always a chance that you'll hire the wrong person.

Statistics reveal that only half of new hires are meaningfully successful. We all make mistakes from time to time, and it doesn’t mean that you have purposefully undermined your company. It’s a temporary setback. Now it’s important to reflect on what alluded you in the hiring process, what clues you may have overlooked, and reassess position qualifications and team expectations. It’s a learning curve opportunity.

Let’s face it, the traditional interview process is flawed. Honestly, how can you really get to know someone by just by reading a cover letter, looking at a resume and interviewing them for an hour? Getting to know the candidate is a time-consuming process. Perhaps you don’t have the bandwidth for the time necessary. Were you under pressure to hire someone quickly? Was the job description accurate regarding expectations from leadership? Do you need help regarding time constraints?

Whatever the case, be prepared to act quickly. The longer you wait to address the situation, the more difficult it will be to resolve. The first step is to document the situation. This includes keeping a record of any performance issues, disciplinary actions, or other problems that the employee has caused. This documentation will be helpful if you need to terminate the employee's employment.

Once you have documented the situation, you need to talk to the employee. These are the conversations we dread having, but the resolutions are always beneficial. This conversation should be frank and honest. Let the employee know that their performance is not meeting expectations and that they are at risk of termination.

The candidate may take responsibility and negotiate to heed your suggestions and improve. It may be worth having a probationary period to allow them to show improvement. If the employee shows immediate improvement in their performance, you may be able to salvage the situation. However, if the employee is not willing to change, you may need to terminate their employment.

Throughout this situation, be compassionate. If you must terminate an employee, it's important to be mindful that the employee is going through a difficult time. Apprising the hire of their mistakes will give them the opportunity to correct themselves and prosper moving forward—even if that’s elsewhere. Whatever the outcome, it will be infinitely better for the company. However, you won’t know the full impact of the bad hire until they are corrected or removed.

Hiring the wrong person can be a frustrating experience, but it's important to remember that it's not the end of the world. By taking swift action and following the tips above, you can minimize the damage and move on. Finding a replacement is the next step.

At 4D Executive Search we are here to help with that next step. We have done the legwork regarding the lengthy discovery process. With an extensive candidate network of personal 1st connections, we are able to quickly and expertly identify and source the best candidates to meet your requirements. But it's not just about identifying people who fit the bill; it's about offering candidates who will exceed expectations by operating in extraordinary ways. Our services alleviate a myriad of frustrations while saving time and money.

That’s the extra dimension.