The process of hiring a consultant can be burdensome. Without the right tips on how to screen consultants, candidates might pass the technical skills part successfully. However, you may later discover that they weren’t the perfect fit for your business.
Knowing all the ins and outs of screening potential consultants is a must before choosing to hire one. That’s because it’s not just limited to their interpersonal and business skills.
In this article, you’ll learn about the method we follow at ReedPS to pick the perfect consultant for you.
How To Screen Consultants?
Knowing how many times companies experience “Bait and Switch” can be terrifying for business owners. At ReedPS, we take the hassle out of screening consultants and get the job done for you. This way, you get to find the perfect consultant through a risk-free process.
Generally, there are a few pointers to take care of when screening consultants, the most important of which are these five:
Phone Interviews
Most of the time, outsourcing leads you to hire people from the opposite side of the country where it’s not possible to meet them in person. In this case, companies may have to resort to phone interviews. However, this can be a great opportunity for fraud.
“Bait and switch” happens when you conduct a successful phone interview with a promising candidate and end up hiring this candidate. Nevertheless, you find a totally different person showing up for work.
So, instead of phone interviews, video calls provide more trust and better communication.
Online Technical Tests
An online technical test is another way underqualified individuals use to trick you into hiring them. Simply, you can never be sure that the person taking the test is the one you choose to join your business team.
Therefore, it’s better to skip the technical test and demonstrate a real-life issue to candidates. This way, you get to monitor their thinking and analysing process. Additionally, you can assess their approach to solving problems.
Reference Checks
Accurate reference checks can be hard to obtain. Naturally, most applicants present references of people who are sure to give positive reviews about their work. Thus, though critical, sometimes reference checks can be a waste of time.
Otherwise, if reference checks are absolutely essential to you, then it’s better to do some personal investigation yourself.
Minimum Wage Rate
To guarantee professional personnel sticking around, make sure they’re getting paid a fair percentage of the overall bill rate. So, somewhere between 40% and 80% should be acceptable.
Takeaway Question
One of the most effective tips is giving candidates a takeaway question and asking them to email the answer back (no deadline required). This gives you extra insight into the way they think as well as their analytical skills.
Hire a Consultant with Reed PS
It’s not always simple knowing how to screen consultants. Rather, it requires much expertise in the field of business to choose the right candidate.
With the support of Reed Professional Services when hiring consultants, you can choose from a pool of credential-checked industry-leading experts so you can rest assured that what you ask for is always what you get.
Contact us today to find out how we can help you!
