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Monday 06 February 2017 8:59 am

Poor hiring decisions are costing businesses thousands of pounds

By: Hayley Kirton

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Bad hiring decisions are routinely leaving five digit holes in businesses' budgets, research out today has found.

In a survey by CV-Library, two-thirds (66.1 per cent) of recruiters confessed they had lost significant chunks of cash on a bad hiring calls.

Meanwhile, just less than one in five (19.5 per cent) admitted a hire that hadn't worked out had set their business back between £15,000 and £30,000, while 14.4 per cent said they had lost more than £30,000 through an unfortunate hiring decision.

Read more: Banking is the best-paid profession – but which bankers earn the most?

"To see in black and white just how much money bad recruitment is costing businesses is quite concerning," said Lee Biggins, founder and managing director of CV-Library. "Today's labour market is candidate led, and increased competition can often mean that businesses are rushing to snap up new hires, often missing out key stages of the vetting process in a bid to stay ahead of the competition."

However, it's not just the bottom line that bad hires hurt. Those surveyed also said poor hiring calls could lead to higher staff turnover (44.4 per cent), decreased productivity (16 per cent), low morale (8.3 per cent) and poor employer branding (6.9 per cent).

Read more: The 10 jobs where you can expect the biggest pay rise this year

"Understanding that certain hires can make or break your business is key and these mistakes can quickly be avoided if you are investing in the right tools to help you vet candidates, hire efficiently, and successfully onboard new starters," Biggins added.

Biggins isn't wrong about employees being more able to call the shots at the moment. According to the most recent figures from the Office for National Statistics, unemployment has been at an 11-year low since April 2016. 

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