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As someone who's worked for many years in recruitment roles be it as a recruitment consultant for a recruitment agency or as an in house recruiter for an employer, I thought I could share some of the useful tips I've picked up over the years to make your recruiting drive easier for you.

1) One of the most important things to remember when recruiting is to have a job and person spec. You can't say "I need a Software Engineer/Receptionist/Accounts Assistant/etc" without having a good idea of the responsibilities you want them to take on and also what sort of person you want for the job. E.g. for an Accounts Assistant you might want a quiet and serious character but for a Receptionist you might want a bubbly and out-going person. For a Software Engineer you might want someone with a MSc in Computing and solid experience in Java programming. You have to decide all these things before you start your recruitment drive or you'll end up wasting valuable time sifting through 100s of CVs which don't even come close to the mark.

2) Know what package you can offer. If you have a specific salary range in mind even if it's quite a wide range, make sure potential candidates are aware of this. If you are offering 20,000-30,000 for a role, you won't want someone who's used to earning 50,000 applying for the role as you won't be able to afford them and again, you'll be wasting time possibly getting to interview stage and then being told that they won't work for less than 50k. You should have a minimum and maximum salary range in mind and know what level you are pitching at.

3) Plan the interview beforehand. Don't go into an interview blind be prepared. Have a standard list of questions prepared to ask your candidates so it's a fair elimination process and so you don't sit there twiddling your thumbs thinking of questions to ask them. Make sure your questions do not have anything discriminatory in them. E.g. in the UK you can't ask a person their age at interview or ask a candidate if they plan to have kids soon (this is something you'd associate more with a recently married woman). It always makes you look more professional if you explain the interview process briefly to the candidate, e.g. telling them how the interview will be structured, how long it will last and that they will have a chance to ask their own questions at the end of the interview. Ask questions related to the job specifically and if there is travel involved in the role, obviously ask if the candidate is able

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