Most of the agencies, organizations, and businesses are leaning towards outsourcing some of the work. The primary consideration is to hire a freelancer who knows what they are doing and will be able to work on a contractual basis. Contrary to popular belief, one needs to look not only at the skills but also many minor qualities that are overlooked at the time of hiring.
Most of the qualities will vary based on the business approach, but some remain common across organizations for proper business planning. Platforms like IThire can help you in shortlisting eligible candidates. Here are some other important details that you can overlook while hiring freelancers:
1. Professionalism
Each candidate being hired will be working in a professional capacity. Before hiring a freelancer, you need to understand their level of professionalism and whether or not you are on the same page about your work approach.
Even if one is working in a freelancing position, you need to focus on how they carry themselves. This is because the moment they are hired, even if on a contractual basis, freelancers are representing your organization. You want to come off on a good foot before your clients, so presentation and professionalism are important.
2. Attitude Towards Work
During an interview, a candidate will try their best to get hired, but you need to be more vigilant about their attitude towards work. It is one thing to try and make it work and another thing altogether to exceed expectations. It would be best if you had a freelancer for your organization who will try to do their best to give you good results.
You cannot expect 100% company loyalty from a freelancer, but dedication towards completing the work on time is what you can expect. A freelancer who is open to new ideas and will try to work as your business approach is a great fit. It will tell you a lot about their attitude and whether or not they are flexible with your working environment.
3. Good Communication
In interpersonal and professional relationships, good communication goes a long way. When you are hiring a freelancer, there will be some cross-questioning as per the working conditions and the expectations you have of them. Try to look for a person who is not hesitant in putting their thoughts forward.
The management of the projects given to a particular candidate depends entirely on their approach to work. The easier they can communicate, the clearer the guidelines and operations would be. If your freelancer is going to be in contact with your clients, you need good communication skills.
4. Time Management
Time management is an important quality that you should always look for in any employee you are hiring. The more organized a candidate is, the better they will be at time management. Given the nature of the work, there will be times when you are operating with strict deadlines.
You need the freelancer to value your time as much as you do. Poor time management skills will not benefit in the long run, no matter how impressive the skill set of the freelancer is. Try to ask pointed questions about deadlines and workload to reduce whether the candidate is equipped to handle your work approach.
5. Flexibility and Compatibility
Flexibility is important in relation to the business as well as your work culture. You want a candidate who fits well into your office space without creating any distractions. Flexibility also relates to the ability of a candidate to take up job responsibilities as per the project needs.
The more flexible a candidate is in their personality and work approach, the more compatible they will be to work in your company. You will be better equipped to assess the compatibility of a particular candidate after you compare them with other applicants. While understanding the level of flexibility of a candidate is important, you also need to assess how the work culture operates within your organization.
6. Accountability
Any employee, when hired, is allotted a level of responsibility. There are different duties given to different employees on the basis of their skill sets. In a professional environment, you always have to be ready for possible miscommunication and mistakes. This is where our accountability comes in.
The candidate you are hiring should be aware of the responsibility on their shoulders and the gravity of the work given to them. In case there is any misgiving, accountability should be assumed by the employer without the employer having to point it out. A candidate’s approach to their mistake will tell you a lot about their personality and how they will handle themselves in a negative situation.
7. Passion
After you have gone through all the qualities mentioned above, make sure not to miss out on the sale of a person. The more enthusiastic a candidate is to work with you, the more hard work you can expect from them to stay associated with you. Passion towards the job cannot be ignored while making hiring decisions.
Consider it like this: Would you rather have an employee happy to be there or any employee who is doing the needful and waiting for the time to log off? The passion of a person will tell you a lot about their personality and approach to work. You have to be susceptible to a person’s perspective to understand their passion. Most freelancers are doing their work because they are enthusiastic about it. Try to find those candidates rather than those who are just looking to make an extra buck.
The Takeaway
It does not matter whether you are hiring a freelancer for a big or small project. Your company deserves the best candidate there is as per the required job profile. It is your responsibility to assess the personality and work approach of different candidates. Try to be more open to new ideas and accept that the expectations from a freelancer would be different from that of a permanent employee.
