Expanding your business is an exciting prospect, but one of the hardest parts of this can be finding new members of staff. Not only do you need to find employees trained in relevant treatments, they need to fit in with your company goals and business ethos. Our Lead Make Up Artist & National Training Manager, Rebecca Cathcart, shares her top tips for choosing the best candidates to work in your salon.
Advertising your vacancy
Increasing numbers of people are now using social media to advertise job vacancies. Posting organically on the salon’s own Instagram is a great way to advertise because the people who see the post are those with a genuine interest, as they are following the account already.
Instagram is also a great way to ensure you’re attracting the right employee by checking out the applicant’s Instagram profile. By doing this you can see examples of their work abilities and style as well as their personality, to see if they fit the salon’s culture.
What the look for during the interview
During the interview, you should be looking for industry qualifications and what membership associations they have for example, The Guild. Ask about their continual professional development (CPD). From my experience, if the candidate is interested in industry, they will have put themselves through this. It’s important to establish what experience they’ve got in the industry as well as what transferable skills they have from other previous roles, for example, if they’ve been a social worker they would likely have great people skills.
Personally, I’m looking for 3 things in an ideal employee: personality, passion and skills. Personality is important to ensure they fit in with an established team. Passion is something you can’t teach or train, so this needs to shine through naturally. Skills are essential for the salon’s success so these are imperative. On top of this, if you get a good gut feeling that’s always a good sign.
Interviewing tips
My go to tips are to trust your instincts and try to get a second opinion. When offering contracts, be sure to include a probationary period so the employee can ensure the job is the right fit for them, as much as they are a good fit for you.
My favourite questions to ask are: what can they bring to the team, then I ask them to reflect on a situation they’ve been in before, followed by general questions about their personality. Wherever possible, I also get them to do some kind of trade test.
Keeping staff on board
To retain someone, you need to have good communication, a development plan, ongoing CPD and to maintain a positive relationship. You need to show them that you care. Holding regular one-to-ones with each employee is important. You can also give incentives to keep them driven.
What are your top tips for finding the right people to work in your salon? Share them in the comments below.
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