Recruiting Time Management: Seek Emotional Intelligence to Find the Best Talent”

Recruiting is one of the most time-consuming projects in today’s business world, with the average time to fill a position taking anywhere from 14 up to 60 days on average, according to Hirevue. With numerous factors to consider, a bad hire will force the team to repeat the process for the position, wasting even more time and energy in the process – something that is crucial to avoid if you want to ace recruiting time management.

In addition to finding people who are a cultural fit with the skills required for the job, it is paramount that emotional intelligence is among what you are looking for. People with high emotional intelligence are highly capable of controlling their emotions as well as the emotions of others. They have the ability to identify their feelings, interpret them and know how their feelings can impact other people. In this article, we discuss the benefits of hiring individuals who are emotionally intelligent, how you can assess EI in candidates, and strategies you can use to hire individuals with high EI.

 

Benefits of hiring employees with high EI

Hiring emotionally intelligent individuals is good for the hiring team, for your own challenge of recruiting time management – and for the growth of your business. People with low emotional intelligence are likely to impact performance and productivity negatively, as well as drain their managers time and focus. Here are some of the benefits that come with hiring people with high emotional intelligence:

• Improved teamwork and collaboration – Employees who show a high degree of emotional intelligence value the ideas of others and are good communicators. This makes them able to work well in a team
• Better decision-making – With the ability to know how their emotions affect others, they are thoughtful and make better decisions. This also makes them better leaders
• Better work environment – When a team is made of individuals who respect each other, they are able to create an environment where everybody gets along with one another. This boosts morale and reduces stress
• They adjust to change easily – Change is inevitable in business, but most employees find it hard to accept change. However, people with high emotional intelligence easily embrace change
• They develop better relationships – People who respect and value others are able to develop meaningful relationships. Besides fostering great relationships with co-workers, the same extends to the customers as well

 Methods for assessing EI in candidates

Assessing emotional intelligence in candidates can be tricky. But, it is doable with the right methods. Here are suggestions that you can try:

Other-reporting
This method takes other people to give insights into the emotional intelligence of the individual in question. You can ask previous co-workers to give an account of what it was like to work with the candidates. Some of the questions to consider can include how the candidates solved problems, how they handled a mistake they made, and how they got along with others.  You can also approach other people such as the receptionist, elevator attendant, or a waiter in a restaurant if you happen to have the interview in a restaurant. Seek to gain insights into how the candidates interacted with these people. Were they rude or friendly?

Ability testing
This puts the candidates on an actual job to see how they perform on the job. To measure emotional intelligence, you would need to look out for their ability to recognize their emotions and that of others. Also, see how they react to emotions.  

Look out for clues during interviews
When interviewing candidates, keep an eye on clues that indicate their level of emotional intelligence. Watch how they express themselves as well as their body language. If they thoughtfully answer questions and are aware of their body language, it is an indication of highly emotionally intelligent people.

Personality tests
Use personality tests to measure emotional intelligence skills. You can create your own tests that gauge the candidate’s emotional intelligence. Measure traits such as empathy, self-awareness, adaptability to change, communication ability, and how they respond to feedback

 

Strategies for recruiting candidates with high EI 

If you want to hire individuals with high emotional intelligence, here are some strategies that you can include in your plan:

Create thorough job descriptions

In addition to writing attention-grabbing job posts, make sure to include all the requirements for the job. Include high emotional intelligence among the essential soft skills.

Use hiring experts
People who have experience in recruiting already know how to spot emotional intelligence in candidates. Consider outsourcing the hiring process to reliable hiring experts. But, it is crucial to find a provider that can help you meet your goals. Consider using the help of international expansion experts to get access to a talent pool, and find the right candidate that fits your company’s culture and has the needed skills.  

Use peer interviews
As said earlier, other people are in a better position to assess the emotional intelligence of the candidates. You can involve people working in similar roles to interview the candidates. These people are already aware of what it is like to work in the role. They will be able to tell if the candidates have the ability to handle the job. 

Conclusion

Recruiting time management is tough, especially when you want to invest the time to find high performers who add value to your company. Finding individuals with high emotional intelligence is paramount. While it can be tricky, the above assessment methods and hiring strategies can help you find and hire such individuals.