Your New Employee Looked Brilliant at Interview – So Why Isn’t It Working Out?

Consensus HR | Outsourced HR Support for SMEs

Recruitment can be expensive.

But recruiting the wrong person can be considerably more expensive.

Advertising costs, management time, interviews, onboarding, training and reduced productivity can all add up.

Then there is the disruption of starting the recruitment process all over again.

So when a new employee is struggling, businesses should ask an important question:

Did we recruit the wrong person – or did we fail to give the right person the right start?

Recruitment Doesn’t Finish When the Contract Is Signed

A successful recruitment process should flow directly into:

Recruitment → Offer → Contract → Induction → Objectives → Training → Probation → Review

When one of those stages is missing, problems can appear later.

A candidate may have had the right experience and performed extremely well at interview, but if nobody clearly explains what success looks like once they start, how can they confidently deliver it?

What Does Good Look Like?

Managers often assume employees know what is expected.

That assumption can cause problems.

A new employee should understand:

• Their key responsibilities
• Performance standards
• Who they report to
• Their objectives
• Required behaviours
• Company policies and procedures
• Training requirements
• How performance will be measured
• When probation reviews will take place
• Where to go when they need help

ACAS describes induction – sometimes called onboarding – as the process of welcoming somebody into an organisation or role and notes that a well-structured induction helps people understand what is expected of them.

The First Few Weeks Matter

Think about the difference between these two approaches.

Business A

“Welcome aboard. There’s your desk. Sarah will show you the system. Shout if you need anything.”

Business B

Provides a planned induction, Job Description, clear responsibilities, training programme, objectives, regular manager check-ins and documented probation reviews.

Which business is more likely to know whether its recruitment decision was successful?

Comment from Matthew Chilcott – Owner, Consensus HR

Businesses often tell me that somebody “just hasn’t worked out”.

My first question is usually: What process was followed?

Was there a clear Job Description?

Were expectations discussed?

Was there a proper induction?

Were SMART objectives agreed?

Did the manager hold probation reviews?

Were concerns raised when they first occurred?

Was everything documented?

If the answer to most of those questions is no, the problem may not simply be the employee.

Good recruitment needs good management afterwards.

Recruitment and Performance Are Connected

ACAS’s latest probation guidance makes an interesting point: if an organisation regularly has employees failing probation, there may be an issue with its recruitment process.

That is why businesses should not treat recruitment, induction, probation and performance management as separate HR activities.

They are all part of the same employee journey.

Is Your Recruitment Process Protecting Your Business?

Consensus HR works with SMEs across Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to create practical, legally informed recruitment and people-management processes.

We can support you with:

• Job Descriptions
• Recruitment adverts
• Structured interview processes
• Contracts of Employment
• Starter documentation
• Induction
• SMART objectives
• Probation management
• Performance reviews
• Management development
• Employee Handbooks and policies

Recruit professionally. Manage proactively. Document properly.

📞 01438 576750
✉️ [email protected]

🌐 www.consensushr.com

Consensus HR – Your Outsourced HR Department.

Useful Resources

ACAS – Inductions
https://www.acas.org.uk/inductions

ACAS – Probation Periods
https://www.acas.org.uk/probation-periods

Consensus HR
https://www.consensushr.com/