Almost three quarters (72%) of New Zealand HR Managers have hired an employee who did not meet expectations, according to the latest independent research from recruitment specialist Robert Half.

The results of a bad hire for a company can be damaging with almost half (49%) of those surveyed naming a loss of productivity as the greatest impact, 30% citing lower staff morale and 20% quoting a monetary cost.

Megan Alexander, General Manager at Robert Half New Zealand said: “According to our independent survey, up to 5% of employee turnover in New Zealand is the result of poor hiring decisions. These can have very damaging effects on a business. The implications of a bad hire can go beyond the monetary element, affecting corporate culture and the overall performance of a workplace.”

“Companies are looking to grow and increase profit. Consequently, every hire should demonstrate measurable results towards the company’s development and strategic goals, making the search for the right talent a priority for HR directors.”

“In today’s market, businesses are time-poor and everyone is competing for skilled talent, especially when the wrong hire can cost a business time, money, and damage its corporate brand.”

Hiring the wrong candidate for a role can incur costs for a company including the employee’s salary that did not reflect performance or output; training costs; impacted productivity of the employee, colleagues and management; potential loss of revenue and the ultimate cost to re-recruit for the role.

“The earlier the wrong candidate is identified, the more likely appropriate measures can be taken. It might seem like a good idea to remove the employee from the role, however this should be considered as the last resort in order to keep costs and losses already incurred as low as possible. Often the employee can be offered additional support, more time can be invested in the on-boarding process or there may be an opportunity to assign a new or different role,” said Megan Alexander.  Continue here to read the full article

A Robert Half press release, May 11, 2016