Checking the box on hiring and retention

• Pick a job title
  
  
  • Include keywords to help your job post rank on search engines
    
    
  • ⭐ Bonus: Include a benefit or perk next to the title to make it more enticing like Restaurant General Manager—Never work Sundays 
    
    
• List compensation expectations
  
  
• Indicate hours of work
  
  
  • Full-time or part-time
    
    
  • Typical work hours and shifts
    
    
  • Days of the week
    
    
  • Overtime expectations (if applicable)
    
    
• Indicate expected start date
  
  
• Describe the day-to-day tasks and responsibilities of the role
  
  
• List the skills and abilities needed for the role
  
  
• Describe the work environment
  
  
  • Indoor
    
    
  • Outdoor
    
    
• Describe the physical demands of the job
  
  
  • Bending
    
    
  • Sitting
    
    
  • Lifting
    
    
  • Driving
    
    
• List required education and experience
  
  
• List any additional eligibility qualifications
  
  
  • Certifications
    
    
  • Industry-specific experience
    
    
  • Experience working with job-related equipment
    
    
• Compose an Affirmative Action Plan/Equal Employment Opportunity (AAP/EEO) statement
  
  
• Review your job description and trim it down so it’s clear, but concise. Remember, 60% of applicants search for jobs on their phones.
  
  
  • Condense information into bullets where possible

• Post to job boards
  
  
  • Indeed
    
    
  • Zip Recruiter
    
    
  • Monster.com
    
    
  • Google Jobs
    
    
  • Glassdoor
    
    
  • ⭐ Bonus: Many job boards will let you sponsor your job by listing it at the top of the search results for a fee
    
    
• Set up text-to-apply, a system that allows job seekers to start their application by texting a unique code
  
  
  • Print posters and display posters featuring your text-to-apply code
    
    
  • Include your text-to-apply code on flyers you give out with your product/service
    
    
  • Send your text-to-apply code out in email
    
    
  • Add your text-to-apply code to the bottom of your receipts
    
    
• Post to social media
  
  
  • Share on your personal accounts to engage people you know
    
    
  • Find social media groups related to your role (e.g. a Facebook group for cooks)
    
    
  • Find social media groups for your local community to attract people in the area
    
    
• Offer your employees an incentive if someone they refer gets hired
  
  
  • Encourage employees to share your open role on their social media accounts to increase reach

Week before the interview

• Review the candidate’s application, and make note of any questions you may have about their job history, gaps in employment, changes of career, etc.
  
  
• Double-check your questions to make sure they’re appropriate and not offensive and/ or discriminatory
  
  
• Organize all your questions, including behavioral and culture interview questions. If interviewing as a panel, make sure each participant is aligned and has the list of questions
  
  
• Make sure you’re prepared to answer questions about your organization, team, culture, etc.
  
  
• Know the next steps in the interview process so you can communicate that to candidates

Day before the interview

• Reserve a space to conduct your interview
  
  
  • Make sure it’s clean and free from distracting and/or confidential materials
    
    
• Review job description and required skills and competencies for the position
  
  
• Get ready to take notes, whether that’s on a notepad or via your phone or tablet

Complete your due diligence before selecting a candidate

• Gauge the interest level of the candidate after their interview
  
  
• Let the candidate know what next steps are and when they’ll receive an update
  
  
• Review your notes and eliminate any candidates who were dishonest about their qualifications or failed to pass the screens
  
  
• Identify top candidates
  
  
• Call references
  
  
• Make your final decision
  
  
  • If no candidate feels right, review your applicant pool again or repost the job listing
    
    
• ⭐ Tip: Throughout the entire interview and selection process, stay in touch with candidates via text message to keep them interested
  
  
• Partner with your Ops and/or HR team to determine the final details of the offer
  
  
• Extend a formal offer of employment to the selected candidate
  
  
  • A phone call is a nice, personal way to share the news

• Send your new hire an official offer letter and new hire forms
  
  
  • W-4
    
    
  • E-Verify
    
    
  • Form I-9
    
    
  • Direct Deposit form
    
    
  • State Tax Withholding
    
    
  • Company handbook
    
    
  • Uniform policy
    
    
  • Phone policy
    
    
  • ⭐ Tip: Whenever possible, send digital forms and accept e-signatures. This makes it easy for employees to complete their paperwork quickly and even easier for you to keep track of it all. Workstream can help.
    
    
• Schedule your new hire’s start date
  
  
• Ensure they’ve completed all their onboarding forms
  
  
  • ⭐ Bonus: Text reminders are an easy way to nudge employees to complete their paperwork.
    
    
• Register your new hire for orientation if applicable
  
  
• Send rejection letters to candidates who were interviewed and not selected.

• As soon as you know the candidate isn’t suitable for your position, begin putting together the rejection letter and send it. Don’t leave anyone hanging
  
• Acknowledge their interest in the position and the time and effort they’ve put into the interview process
  
• Personalize the letter
  
  
  • Use the person’s name and the title of the position they applied for
    
    
  • Bring up points from their interview that reflected well on them
    
    
• ⭐ Optional: Include feedback
  
  
  • Be gracious and careful so it doesn’t come off as insulting
    
    
  • Offer to provide individual feedback and allow the candidate to follow up if they’d like to receive it
    
    
• ⭐ Optional: Invite them to apply again if you see potential in the candidate
  
  
• Review your letter before you send
  
  
  • Is it professional?
    
    
  • Is it concise and to the point?
    
    
  • Did you run it by your legal and/or HR team?

Before the meeting

• Outline an agenda and schedule enough meeting time to cover all topics
  
  
• Ask employee to complete a self-evaluation (optional)
  
  
• Review employee's self-evaluation (optional) and job description
  
  
• Review employee's performance targets
  
  
• Gather your thoughts and all the data to meaningfully discuss:
  
  
  • The goals and objectives of the review
    
    
  • Employee’s performance over the past X months (what was done right / what can be done better), particularly as it relates to goals set during the last review
    
    
  • New goals and targets
    
    
  • Career development aspiration

During the meeting

• Give the employee context on what the goal/purpose of the employee review is
  
  
• Start the conversation on common ground by reviewing the employee’s responsibilities together
  
  
• Discuss the progress they’ve made toward their goals and assessment of competencies
  
  
• Discuss potential roadblocks or undocumented contributions by employee, asking the employee for input and insight
  
  
• Discuss and get aligned around what the next phase of goals will be
  
  
• Ask the employee about their career aspirations and outline a plan for working toward it
  
  
• Thank them for their contributions and for being on the team
  
  
• Set up another meeting if there is insufficient time

After the meeting

• Modify or update performance review based on conversation
  
  
• Finalize and sign employee performance form
  
  
• Run through final performance form with employee and obtain their signature

High-performing employees

• Take a look at their self-evaluation (if you had them complete one)
  
  
  • Make note of how they view their own performance
    
    
  • Have they identified any struggles you should address?
    
    
• Recognize their effort and work related to their responsibilities
  
  
  • Call out moments they’ve gone above and beyond their responsibilities
    
    
• Discuss ways they can grow
  
  
  • Ask about their professional goals and if there are any roadblocks or additional resources they may need to be successful
    
    
• Set new targets based on previous performance
  
  
  • ⭐ Tip: Let this be a discussion. Allow your employee to suggest targets too!
    
    
• Wrap up
  
  
  • Congratulate them on their performance and encourage them to keep up the good work

Under-performing employees

• Take a look at their self-evaluation (if you had them complete one)
  
  
  • Take note of how they view their own performance
    
    
  • Have they identified any struggles you should address?
    
    
• Bring up potential areas of improvement
  
  
  • Create a list of items you’d like to discuss
    
    
  • Frame your feedback as what can be done to improve rather than weaknesses or deficiencies
    
    
  • Be direct (but kind) rather than generic
    
    
  • Make it a dialogue between the two of you vs. just talking at your employee. Ask them questions. Seek context.
    
    
  • Give the employee time to absorb what they heard
    
    
• Acknowledge the areas where they performed well
  
  
• Offer help and advice
  
  
  • Share personal experiences where possible. This allows feedback to be more authentic and meaningful and conveys empathy
    
    
• Don’t be mean. Your goal is to help them improve, so show you care and guide them in the right direction
  
  
• Wrap up
  
  
  • Set realistic goals they can work on
    
    
  • Reinforce that while there are things that need to be worked on, learning is part of the journey and you’re here to help

Milestone rewards

• Take a moment to celebrate your employees’ birthdays and work anniversaries
  
  
  • Gift card to their favorite store or restaurant
    
    
  • Movie tickets
    
    
  • The day off
    
    
  • Special treats like cake
    
    
  • Celebratory lunch

Performance rewards

• Acknowledge great performance, whether that’s during a performance review cycle, or a standout moment when employees go above and beyond
  
  
  • Donate to their favorite cause in their name
    
    
  • Give them some extra company swag
    
    
  • Custom trophy or plaque (This is a fun way to award an Employee of the Month too!)
    
    
  • Bonus
    
    
  • Shoutouts on your social media pages or company-wide emails

Team and peer rewards

• Celebrating as a team is a great way to build camaraderie. Celebrate great teamwork at least once a year
  
  
  • Give the team new swag
    
    
  • Do an offsite activity together like a night of bowling, group lunch, or tour of a local attraction
    
    
  • Take a wellness class together, live or virtual
    
    
  • Participate in a charity activity together
    
    
  • Learn a new skill or hobby together like pottery or origami
    
    

• Acknowledge special occasions and holidays, especially if your team has to work during them
  
  
  • Bring in treats
    
    
  • Decorate your business
    
    
  • Host a team party
    
    
  • Encourage employees to dress up their uniform to match the occasion
    
    
• Implement a peer recognition program
  
  
  • Enable employees to vote on who is the Employee of the Month
    
    
  • Create a space for employees to shoutout each other whether it’s on paper or during team meetings

Surprise rewards

• Find opportunities to surprise and delight your employees at least twice a year. It’s often enough that it doesn’t feel rare, but not so often that it loses its impact.
  
  
  • Bring in treats
    
    
  • Give employees new swag
    
    
  • Set up an at-work scavenger hunt for employees to discover throughout the day (This could be as simple as hiding gold coins on St. Patrick’s Day.)