Contact Us

Your Team Is A Reflection Of Your Leadership Skills – Learn How To Hire The Best!

  • By Andrea Schlapia
  • |
  • April 14, 2012

Hiring exceptional talent is a significant component to the overall success of your firm.  Hiring the best people for your firm should always be your goal even when the economic culture is not ideal.

As a leader of your firm, your team of employees is a direct reflection of your leadership skills.  The quality of your team is measured by several benchmarks including accomplishments, adaptability, flexibility, innovation, teamwork, accountability, and overall quality. 

Begin with outlining your hiring business process.  When outlining your process, start with the end in mind and create a written recruitment plan that includes a strategy and an outline of your hiring process.  Creating a written plan will help you indentify the profile of your ideal new hire.  Engage talent through use of email, telephone and mail and screen potential candidates.  In the selection process consider involving multiple members of your team.

Talent matching has to become an integral part of the hiring process.   Ironstone can assist you during your hiring process with tools and support decisions that are critical to the overall success of your business.  Matching technologies will aide you in identifying top candidates that meet specific criteria. Results of matching or assessment tools should not be used to label, evaluate, or limit an applicant but used a measurement preference rather than aptitude.  Ironstone will help you administer screening processes and determine who your most compatible applicants are.

Skills and experience will always catch your attention, but the “fit” is often overlooked during the hiring process.  Align the best people to the position in your firm with a combination of the skill, experience and passions of your applicant.

Once you have selected your ideal candidate make sure that you follow through with an onboarding process.  Onboarding is as essential to your firm as it is to your new employee.  Orienting employees to the workplace and their specific role in your firm is one of the most neglected functions in many firms.

Developing an onboarding process for your firm should include more than an initial “new hire orientation.”  Onboarding of a new employee should continue through the first full year of employment.  Possible components of your process include (but are not limited to):

  • Ironstone’s hiring 10-step process (contact us for details)
  • An offer letter
  • New hire packet
  • Orientation & training sessions
  • Meet & greet with co-workers
  • Overview of your firms culture
  • Pre-scheduled meetings with managers & mentors
  • Early performance reviews

Your firm will reap the benefits of a well organized on-boarding strategy including increased morale, reduced turnover, increased production and reduced costs.  A documented process will make a new employee feel welcome and comfortable.

Contact Ironstone for assistance in your hiring & onboarding development.  We have numerous tools and aides available for you.

Follow us as we explore each of Ironstone’s Fundamental 4™! 

  • Strategic Planning
  • Business Development
  • Operational Effectiveness
  • The Human Element

You won’t want to miss our next in the series:  Strategic Planning & Your Business Plan

Are you just getting by or are you getting better? Get started today!

Author Bio

Andrea Schlapia, RCC™, HCS, sHRBP, is the Founder and CEO of Ironstone, which represents the culmination of her 20+ year career within the financial services industry. Her experience began as a financial advisor evolving into a consultant coach for advisors entering the field. This ignited her passion to support others through learning and development of best practices in order to achieve substantial results. To this end, she followed her desire into positions of senior-level practice management specialists for Dreyfus, Prudential, and DWS Investments prior to the realization of Ironstone.  Andrea’s focus is on practice management strategies to enhance and improve both business and personal life. Andrea identifies 4 key performance areas known as the Fundamental 4™, which are required to design, develop, and sustain a successful business. Through coaching sessions and speaking engagements, she captivates her audience with interactive, high-energy presentations which are built with “how-to” strategies resulting in real-world implementation for significant impact. Andrea has been featured in multiple publications and audio broadcasts as a specialist and distinguished spokeswoman in the financial industry.

AndreaSchlapia