How You Can Hire The Best IT Contractors, Still Not Sure? Use Our Free Interview Template.

You have identified that you need an IT contractor to quickly join your business to help you achieve a business objective. You have gone to market to find some potential candidates but now you need to be confident that you are engaging the best-suited contractor for your requirement. This how-to guide will help you identify and engage the right person for your business. It also includes interview template that you can download to make the process easy and straightforward.

NICK MIDDLETON – HOW TO HIRE THE BEST IT CONTRACTORS – 5 TOP INTERVIEW TIPS

 

  1. Have a clear picture of what it is you want the contractor to deliver for you

Before you start interviewing candidates (and ideally before you have even gone to the market to look for someone), make sure you understand, in very clear terms, what it is you want the person to come in and achieve for you, what challenges they will face and what skills they will need to overcome these challenges

You are likely going to be paying more for a contract resource than you would for a permanent team member. Often you are paying for a specific expertise that you don’t currently have or available to you, make sure you are bringing in the right skills and you are clear what you want them to achieve with those skills. Also, think about the challenges the contractor will have in delivering this goal for you, it is understanding the specific skills required to overcoming these challenges in your environment that will help you hire the best contractor

  1. Have an efficient interview process

If possible, make your interview process one stage, or use telephone or Skype interviews if more than one stage is absolutely essential. Aim to meet 3 candidates, 4 max

Contractors typically enter and leave the market very quickly. Understandably they want to secure their next engagement as quickly as possible to make sure they maintain consistent revenue into their business. Even if you have a great brand and are offering an interesting opportunity for a contractor, they will be unlikely to hold out for your engagement if the process is taking too long. That’s not to say you shouldn’t be thorough, or include multiple people from your business in the interview process, just aim to make it as efficient and flexible as possible.

  1. Have a consistent and objective interview format

Make sure you have a consistent interview process so you can better measure candidates against each other. Similarly, make it as objective as possible as this is key to hiring the most suited contractor.

  1. Focus on previous performance first, skills second and team fit third

Focus on asking them to provide specific examples where they have delivered previous objectives similar to your own. Probe for the details of what challenges they had to overcome and what was the outcome. It doesn’t need to be an identical situation that they will face in your role but you are looking for evidence that they met similar challenges and succeeded.

Then focus on whether they can prove their knowledge/ability across the skills you have deemed essential for this role. Stick to 5 top skills or less, if you have more skills that you think are important, challenge yourself to prioritise them and work with the top 5.

Then take a view on team fit and other elements of how their behaviours will play out within your business but don’t put the same weight on this as you would with a permanent role, they are going to be with you for a finite amount of time and you are better to focus on ability to deliver than how well everyone will get on with them.

  1. Download our contract interview template

We have taken the hard work for you by creating a PDF contractor interview template. Print off a copy for each interview and use it to create a consistent and objective interview process.

http://middletonsassured.com/interviewingcontractors 

To see how we can help you with your contract requirements, please contact us on 0113 416 6114 or interim@middletonsassured.com

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