Decide what vacancy you have and create a job description . This will not only help you to decide what you need, it also provides a useful summary of the job for potential applicants, agencies, job centres etc. See our guide to writing a job description .

Decide what skills, experience, qualifications and attributes someone will need to do the job. Create a person specification - this helps you to clarify who you need to do the job. See our guide to writing a person specification .

There are a variety of ways in which you may do this:

• The Internet - an increasingly popular choice.
• Your local Job Centre - a big advantage here is that there's no cost and it can be very effective.
• An internal advert or notice aimed at current employees who may be keen to apply.
• An advert in local or national press or professional/industry publications.
• A file of any previous applicants.
• A notice in your window or that of a local shop or library.
• Schools or colleges.

When advertising, remember to:

• Make the job and the organisation sound interesting - but also don't oversell the job - be realistic.
• Include key factors - location, job title, salary, overview of the role.
• include key essential skills from the person specification to avoid having applicants from candidates who do not meet the essential requirements - wasting their time and yours.
• Ask questions instead of making statements. Are you keen to work with employees? Do you thrive in an environment of rapid growth? Would you like to put your PC skills to full advantage? etc.
• Exclude any stipulations which could be seen as discriminatory eg applying an age restriction which is not necessary. Don't use words which could be considered discriminatory eg "lively, enthusiastic" could imply "young"; "mature and experienced" could imply "older".
• Include, when possible, the closing date plus the date of interview.

See our guide to writing job adverts .

Make a shortlist. Use a matrix containing the essential and desirable elements of your person specification and consider each application against this to establish who should be interviewed. Consider each applicant against these elements. Candidates who don't have all the essential criteria should not be shortlisted - unless training could be given in a relatively short timeframe.

Ideally get applicants to complete an application form (even if you have their CVs) as it ensures that you get the same information in the same format from each candidate. This reduces the possibility of bias and discrimination - ensure that you select for interview those who match the specifications, regardless of their age, sex , race , sexual orientation , religion or belief , or disability etc, and that the specifications are not themselves discriminatory.

If you are inundated with suitable candidates and cannot possibly interview them all, the fairest way to select for interview is randomly, eg select every fourth application from the pile.

You may wish to inform the candidates who did not make the short-list, or you may wish to leave this until the interviews are complete.

Interview your short-listed candidates. Remember that your job is not only to assess the best candidate for the job, but also to create a great impression of your organisation. Try to set aside time to interview all of your candidates on one day to ensure you have a fair comparison. Follow our step by step guide to interviewing.

The interview will provide you with some information but check it out before offering a job. Ways in which you could do this include:

• Taking up references .
  You must have the specific permission of the applicant to do so, particularly if you wish to contact their current employer. If you need them quickly, try phoning.
• Get others to see your preferred candidate/s. This could be done informally, eg someone could show them around, or talk to them about their job, or more formally at another interview. In these circumstances ensure that this process is clearly part of the interview process - inform the candidates; ask those involved to assess the candidates against agreed criteria. Use the process to cover in more depth parts of the job description /person specification . Know what you are trying to achieve from each interaction and make sure the feedback is given in a structured way.
• Ask the candidate to do a presentation, a case study, some tests or a full assessment. Ensure that these are relevant to the job and enable them to demonstrate skills or abilities which are genuinely required.

Select your candidate. Be objective and unbiased. Choose the person who best fits your person specification .

Inform ALL candidates of the outcome. It is extremely discourteous to not bother telling those who have been unsuccessful. Each recruitment exercise is also a PR exercise for your business. Inform candidates of the outcome quickly and, if practical, offer each unsuccessful candidate feedback on their performance.

Reject the unsuccessful candidates who did not make the short-list, and reject the candidates who did interview, but were unsuccessful.

Follow our step by step guide to making a job offer for your chosen candidate.

Keep details of your rejected employees for at least six months so that you have them should you receive a discrimination claim and need to justify your selection decision. You may wish to keep some details longer if they could be of interest when another vacancy arises, but bear in mind the requirements of the Data Protection Act and ensure that the candidate has been informed that you are retaining the details for future consideration for other vacancies.

For your successful candidate:

• prepare and send the appropriate documentation
• make up the employee's personnel file and
• arrange the induction plan .

• If someone leaves, take the opportunity to decide what you really want to do next. It is an obvious option to go for a like for like replacement but the best option could be to restructure, redistribute or automate tasks.
  
  
• Consider how you could give opportunities to your current team members when you have a vacancy. They may require some training, but this could be a better option all round than bringing in someone new to do the job, and if staff can see the opportunities for career progression this will assist your retention.
  
  
• Give applicants a balanced and accurate picture. Point out the terrific things about the job and its less attractive features. Creating a realistic expectation will help you to retain employees and not break the psychological contract .
  
  
• Do consider paying travel expenses.
  
  

Bear in mind that there are many legal considerations which apply to recruitment. We suggest you review the following if you are not fully informed on these issues:

• recruitment - discrimination considerations
• criminal records and CRB checks
• data protection
• equal pay
• fixed-term contracts
• foreign nationals
• national minimum wage
• part-timers
• pensions
• young people and children .