Experienced VS Inexperienced Candidates. Who Should You Hire?
Hiring experienced workers versus inexperienced ones is often a dilemma that hirers face. With budget and time constraints being priorities for employers, how can hirers quickly assess and determine which jobseeker best suits the company’s needs?
The Experienced
Value-Adding
Workers with prior work experience possess the required skillset to value-add to the team. Hirers can thus do away with the time and money spent on the onboarding processes to train up new workers. The experienced worker also has valuable knowledge and skills which can aid the company in its growth, proving to be a great addition to the team.
Higher Costs
Experienced workers may demand higher salaries or added perks such as bonuses. If there is no long-term growth presented to experienced workers, they may not stay on long to help in grooming younger talents for the company. This will end up costing the company more, as opposed to training inexperienced workers.
Added Time
Experienced workers may have work habits or processes that are set in stone, and it may take some time for them to change or adapt. Issues such as different technological requirements than what they are used to, will require the company to put in resources to train experienced workers, in order to get them up to speed.
When should you hire based on experience?
When hiring for a leadership role
Candidate should have a track record in a leadership position. If he/she does not, it will pose many potential problems when it comes to managing a team.
If specialized knowledge is required
Experienced candidates will have the necessary skills and know-how for the technical apects of the job scope, which inexperienced workers may lack.
The Inexperienced
Open to Learning
Employers can choose to see fresh hires as blank canvases to work with. Inexperienced workers tend to be eager to learn, and open to teaching. One of the most important aspects of making sure that a fresh hire becomes an asset to the team is the onboarding.
A proper onboarding process gives the fresh hire proper mentorship, shadowing opportunities as well as clear communication on his/her roles, responsibilities and expectations.
When should you hire based on potential?
When adding to a team
There is no harm in adding an inexperienced worker into an existing team, where systems and structures are already in place. Here, the worker can concentrate on bringing new ideas to the table, without worrying about workflow and processes.
Hirers should not just aim to fill the job requirements; they should also ensure that they are looking out for the right people who will help the company grow.