INTERVIEW Stick with it What makes a company succeed? It's always the people - the rest will follow, says James Caan. So how do you hang onto the good ones? eople are at the heart of every business and every entrepreneur needs to understand the importance of having great people working for them,' says James Caan. 'Attracting and retaining talent in any business is absolutely fundamental to success and you're much more likely to do well if you have a motivated and talented team. Here are my five key steps to help you attract and recruit the best people in the market. If you get them all right you'll be much more effective at hiring the talented people who will make your business sing.' CARROT AND STICK It's really easy to focus on hiring and attracting new staff and forget to reward and nurture the existing ones you already have. Don't fall into this trap. Before you start the search for new employees, ask yourself how you're doing with your current team. Are you promoting them and training them accordingly? Are they happy and motivated in their role? Your existing team are your brand ambassadors to help attract new talent and help them feel excited about a new role with you. It's important to get your house in order before rushing to fill new roles. SPREAD THE WORD Communication is key when it comes to keeping your employees in touch with your business culture and becoming an 'employer of choice.' Use social media and your online business presence to project your company culture and branding and keep your target audience in mind. This can also happen through word of mouth and via the recruitment industry. Get your internal culture - and your business model - right and you'd be surprised just how quickly word gets around that your company is the place to work. 184 CLARITY IS KEY Writing a job spec can be tough if you're doing it for the first time, but it's really important to dedicate some time and thought to the job description. Be clear, accurate and focused on what you want - but also on what you are going to offer. Highlight the opportunities for training and progression and really sell the job and the culture of your company. If you want to attract a high calibre of candidates, then you'll need to ensure this comes across clearly in the job specification. SEEK THEM HERE There are so many tools at our fingertips to help place an ad or job post nowadays that it's difficult to know which one is most suited to your business. You need to target your candidates and think about where they will be searching for roles and ensure you're there. There are plenty of specialist organisations that can help you do this. Remember, a good ad in the wrong place is going to be pretty ineffective. QUALITY FACE TIME Assuming you've created and posted a really good advert and job description in the right place - one which attracts the right people who are motivated by what you say - then who are you going to get to do the interview? A poorly planned interview will send all the wrong signals to a good candidate and so you need to plan as carefully for the interview as you did for the job ad. Think about who is best to project the business culture. Put your best people in front of the candidates you want. They are selling your company by what they do and say and by how they act. If I'm confident and ambitious, I'm going to have other opportunities on the table, so you need to woo me. WORDS: JAMES CAAN | PHOTOGRAPHY: SHUTTERSTOCK 'P