5 signs you hired the wrong candidate for the job and what to do about it | Ladders

Sometimes, a new hire turns out to be the wrong one. Here are five signs you didn’t pick the right person for the job, and what to do about it.

They show you that they don’t actually want to do the work

Research has found that 64% of job candidates are better on paper than in person during interviews, but what if the reversal of fate happens once they actually start the job?

This type of new hire might never contribute in meetings, seem two-faced when it comes to getting things done and generally acts like they’d rather be anywhere else but at work.

This isn’t someone you want on your team.

They talk, talk, talk all day long

How is your team supposed to get work done if the new employee can’t stop talking about non-work topics?

While they should definitely make an effort to get to know people, they should also set boundaries for themselves so they don’t throw off other team members with excessive chatting. They should use lunch breaks, conversations by the water cooler and company events to really get to know people.

They’re a know-it-all

What’s more annoying than working with someone who thinks they know everything? This is a classic office know-it-all.

If your new hire is constantly telling others on the team why they’re right and everyone else wrong, you know you’ve got a problem on your hands.

Team members don’t like working with them

Chances are, you’ll hear about how difficult they are to be around from your other direct reports. You might even witness someone complaining about them once they’ve shown their true colors.

They cut out of work very early—every day of the week

The last thing new team members should be doing is leaving excessively early every day, especially without the manager’s permission.

It’s one thing if the new employee don’t have much to do on the first day— once introductions have been made, they’ve gone to orientation, and they’re set up at their workstation— but it’s another if they always leave early with heaps of work to do.

What to do if you hired the wrong person

There are a few ways to move forward.

Don’t have a sloppy hiring process

Brian Sutter, Director of Marketing at Wasp Barcode, writes about this in Entrepreneur.

After mentioning how employers should monitor how new employees do when they start their position, among other points, he writes, “for small business owners with a lot to do and not enough time to do everything, it may be tempting to hire someone quickly to help with demands. Unfortunately, quick decisions made on hires often turn problematic for companies, costing money and time small business owners don’t have. If you simply can’t do the legwork, consider using an employment agency or recruiter to help you find the right fit.”

Get them a mentor

A mentor might be able to help the new hire improve their performance.

“Offering mentoring is another good way for an employer to orient a struggling employee. A mentor can provide vital information about the company, office culture and the reporting structure. A mentor is usually not a direct supervisor, but rather a talented and well-connected employee who’s been around for a few years,” a Robert Half blog post reads.

The company later released research showing that among business owners who hired the wrong person for the job, 53% agreed that it “increased stress on the team.”

Let them go

The Harvard Business Review features information about how it might get to this point, and includes commentary from Claudio Fernández-Aráoz, an author and senior adviser at Egon Zehnder International.

“In the worst cases, termination may be your only option, particularly if you find that the problem is not coachable, if you are unwilling to further invest in coaching, or if the error or behavior is intolerable. It should be your last resort, however. ‘Most likely as the hiring manager you have a large share of responsibility for the mistake, and thus should never fire a person without thoughtful consideration,’ says Fernández-Aráoz. If you have to let someone go, take a hard look at the hiring process you used and figure out how to change it next time around,” the publication reads.