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Aim for the best recruit

You’ve identified the vacancy you need to fill. Now it’s time to work out what the role involves in more detail. How can you attract the right person for the job if you don’t know what you’ll expect them to do? This is where creating a clear job description and person specification will ensure you find and keep a strong recruit.

Begin your search

  • Look at the team the new recruit will be working within. What's missing? What are you hoping the recruit will bring?
  • You’ll need to decide how experienced your new recruit should be. Use the SCQF Levelling Tool to match your vacancy with a Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF) level. This will give an idea of the knowledge, qualifications and and skills your recruit will need.
  • Remember: you may have an ideal candidate in your head but you must not discriminate. Read more about equality and diversity.

Is your ideal candidate standing in front of you?

Check among your permanent, casual and temporary staff to see if you can recruit internally through a promotion or transfer. Preparing your employees for more challenging roles and growing the future leaders of your business involves a good succession plan. The benefits are:

  • You’ll keep your present employees motivated and loyal while showing other employees there are chances to progress.
  • They’ll shoulder more responsibility but also demonstrate their commitment to the business and their own self-improvement.
  • You’ll improve an employee’s living and working conditions through higher wages or an exciting new challenge.

Get an A grade in qualifications

With so many qualifications, frameworks and training types available, knowing what's needed can be hard. Visit our page on understanding Scottish qualifications for a range of resources to make things simpler.

What's next

Write your job ad

Figure out what to include and how to speak to your target market. Your advert is a potential recruit's first contact with your business. Make it count.

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Where to advertise

Is an online ad your best option or a trade journal? Decide who your target audience is and then tailor your marketing in the right direction.

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The interview stage

Follow our top tips on what questions to ask and the ones to avoid at this critical point of the selection process.

Find out more