Tips for hiring new employees to run your small business

When it comes to running a small business, the need to hire new employees to help you run it is a good thing - it means you have a steady stream of business and profits. However, there are a number of things you need to keep in mind to make sure you hire the right employees.

The following are some tips you should follow when hiring new employees to run your small business:

Know when to hire
It's important to you don't hire too many employees too early; otherwise, you'll end up spending all of your profits on payroll and other fees and licensing. Some of the ways you can tell if you need to hire new employees include:
- You can no longer complete everything by yourself or with your current employees. If you find yourself working late hours and weekends just to fill orders or complete tasks, or if you and your employees are constantly behind, you will need to hire additional help.
- Your sales are dropping. If you find your sales dropping because you can't fill orders, or if there is the potential you will lose customers because orders and services can't be provided in time, you will need to hire help.
- You need an area of expertise. Sometimes, there are certain jobs your small business will need that you won't be capable of doing yourself. In this case, you will want to hire more someone to do it for you.

Decide how you will fill the positions.
There are a number of ways you can go about hiring new employees. You can offer the job to people you already know, such as family members or friends (common with small businesses), or you can advertise for the position, conduct an interview, and hire someone that way.

If you are hiring someone through advertising in an Employment section or through online job databases, make sure you write a detailed description of not only the position, but the potential employee's responsibilities as well.

Check references
It's crucial that you check references of your potential employees, no matter how impressed you were with them in the interview. You will also want to match their dates of employment with that on their resume, as well as check to make sure they have completed the levels of education they say they have. This is important for preventing further problems down the road.

Know legalities
There are a number of things you will need to do when you hire new employees, including tax information and permits, if necessary, such as food handler's permits or liquor licensing. You will also need:

- Proof of eligibility for employment. Each new employee must be legally eligible to work in the United States.
- New hire reporting. You will be required to report any new employee to a designated state new hire registry.
- Income tax withholding. Each of your new employees will have to fill out the latest IRS Form W-4.
- Name and social security number. Record each new employee's name and number from his or her social security card for identification purposes. Some employers will take a birth certificate in place of a social security card.

The above tips will help you to hire the most eligible new employees to run your small business.