February 15, 2025
When it comes to employee recruiting and hiring… Who are we kidding? It’s basically a jungle out there.
The fact is that hiring “the right person” for the job has always been an involved task, but recent years have seen this process become not only difficult and overwhelming, but sometimes unending and ungratifying as well.
In an ideal world recruiting turns into hiring, hiring leads to training, training leads to retention, and retention plus performance is rewarded with promotion. For too many businesses that ideal scenario has been too frequently interrupted in its early stages. This makes it inevitable that costs will be cut in training, which not only leads to a less knowledgeable and skilled workforce, but aggravates the already tenuous problem of low employee retention.
Any seasoned manager can tell you the problems of low retention: poor employee morale, a drop in productivity, loss of company culture, etc. What they may not know is the solution to those problems.
The very nature of Business Process Outsourcing has led us down the path of addressing the solutions to those problems long before they begin. One of the many commitments we make to our partners is that they will not have to deal with the strain and stress of hiring, training, and managing GLC personnel. By shouldering this burden, and enveloping it in our commitment to excellence, we can take great care over the process of recruiting, and ensure that we are hiring with intent the first time around. By doing this, we keep our retention rate well above average, which keeps that ideal flow from hiring to promoting moving forward smoothly.
Our own specialist in recruiting, and member of our HR Team, Ryan Westbrook, says “Hiring the wrong employee is more than just an inconvenience, as it comes with a range of hidden costs that can significantly impact a company’s bottom line.” Ryan outlines three main points of loss as a result from poor recruiting: Turnover, Productivity, and Reputation.
Turnover
Ryan says on this topic, “One of the most immediate and measurable consequences is turnover. When a bad hire doesn’t work out, organizations must invest time and money into rehiring, onboarding, and training a replacement. An article by Regina Dyerly published through SHRM suggests that replacing an employee can cost anywhere from 50% to 200% of their annual salary, making poor recruiting an expensive mistake.”
Businesses see this when they hire the wrong candidate, they often leave (or are let go) within a short time. This leads to a cycle of continuous hiring, which strains company resources and increases operational costs. Additionally, severance packages, unemployment claims, and lost productivity during transitions further impact the bottom line.
Productivity and Morale
Ryan outlines that, “Beyond financial costs, poor hiring decisions also lead to lost productivity. An employee who isn’t the right fit for the job will likely struggle to perform at their best, slowing down workflows and forcing colleagues to compensate for their ineffectiveness. This extra burden can decrease team morale and engagement, leading to a cycle of frustration and burnout. A toxic hire can further damage workplace culture, creating tension among employees and lowering overall job satisfaction. When team members feel overworked or undervalued due to a poor hiring decision, it often results in decreased motivation and even more turnover.”
When draining employees also often fail to meet performance expectations there is an inevitable decrease in output and work quality. This can be particularly costly in client-facing roles, where mistakes or inefficiencies can damage relationships and business reputation.
Reputation
Ryan emphasises that “A bad hire can damage a company’s brand and reputation. In customer-facing roles, such as retail-related positions, an unqualified or disengaged employee can provide subpar service, harming client relationships and diminishing trust in the company. Mistakes caused by poor performance can also lead to financial losses or public relations issues, especially in industries where reputation is everything. In some cases, poor hiring practices can even create legal and compliance risks. Failing to properly vet candidates could lead to compliance violations or lawsuits, all of which come with significant financial and reputational costs”
A poor hiring decision doesn’t just affect the individual employee—it impacts the entire team. When a disengaged employee joins a team, they slow down projects, require constant supervision, and decrease overall efficiency. Other employees have to pick up the slack, leading to burnout and frustration from otherwise good employees.
With our experience in hiring and staffing, we’ve seen every level of putting reliable teams into place. For some businesses, we handle only the recruiting aspect of hiring. Once that is acceptably “Considered Done” the hired team melds with the rest of the business and their operations. For other companies we continue to manage the hired team, keeping them on the GLC payroll, training schedule, and under our HR umbrella.
In all cases, we know that the stakes are high for bringing in the right people. When productivity suffers, our leadership team at GLC feels the weight of that impact. How else can we correct and adjust to improve on it before the rest of the team falls behind as well? To prevent this from happening, at the very first level of hiring we take into consideration factors such as the culture of the business we are hiring for and the personality of potential candidates. We know that skills can be taught, but a bad attitude is much harder to adjust on the job. We want to make sure that we are starting out strong, giving our team the best possible factors to thrive and grow. Our experts are skilled at seeking out those people who will be assets to our team, and to our partners’ companies.
The hidden costs of poor recruiting go far beyond the initial expense of hiring. From financial losses to decreased morale and reputational damage, a bad hire can have lasting negative effects on a company. To avoid these pitfalls, we invest in thorough hiring processes, prioritize cultural fit, and implement recruitment strategies that focus on long-term success. A strong hiring process not only saves money but also builds a productive, engaged, and high-performing workforce.