So, you’ve grown your studio to the point where you need to hire… Congratulations! Not only is this a major milestone but a great employee will serve to lighten your load and boost the success of your studio.

Hiring can be daunting when you’re ill prepared or uncertain of how to convey your expectations. Here are four considerations to help you make the best choice for your studio.

Consideration #1 — Write down your expectations.

Before you begin your search, it’s crucial that you know exactly what you are looking for. Sometimes the brain can be a messy place. Organize your thoughts by writing them down. Start with a job description, and from there, describe the type of person that would be ideal for your studio; how do you want them to handle certain situations, and what kind of personality would blend well with your current staff and students. Maybe you aren’t going to find someone who possesses all of the qualities you are looking for, but knowing what you’re looking for will help you to ask the right questions and determine what qualities you absolutely can’t live without.

To get the most out of the interview process, ask open-ended questions. For instance, if you want to know how they would handle a student that is consistently late to class, you want to say something like, “This is a situation I’ve run into before. How have you handled similar situations in the past or how would you handle them if it were to happen.” The idea is not to give the applicant examples of other instructor’s responses, which hints to the kind of answer you are looking for, but instead, to allow them to answer on the spot, and as honestly as possible.

Consideration #2 — Use the same procedures with all employees.

One of the biggest mistakes you can make is being lax in your hiring process with someone that you know outside of the studio. It is not safe to assume that you will always get along or that you know the kind of employee that they will be before hiring them. You’ll be wise to have them undergo the same interview process as everyone else and use the same communicational procedures with them as you would with any other employee. Remember, you are a business owner first.

Consideration #3 — Prescreen applicants.

Meeting with potential employees in-person can eat away much of your valuable time, so always prescreen applicants. You will likely do this over the phone, through hiring sites such as indeed, or through references from colleagues. Compare your applicants to all non-negotiable qualifications before scheduling an interview, to save your time and theirs.

Consideration #4 — Hire professionals.

This may seem obvious, but it includes more than you might think. Naturally, you’re going to hire professional instructors because you’re a professional educator. But a studio isn’t run solely on teaching skills. There are also administrative tasks that must be carried out to a T, and all too often, in an attempt to be financially frugal, this position is given to a parent or friend of the studio that has the time to offer. Be careful. The excellent attention to detail that they receive in the process of being a part of your studio is equally as important to your clients as the excellent attention to detail they receive during class time.

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