Recruitment means more than publishing an advert and choosing the most convincing CV. The recruitment process starts with a business need and ends with successfully integrating someone able to meet it. In between, define the role, compare candidates using relevant criteria and prepare their working conditions.
For an SME or a first hire, a simple method is often enough. It helps avoid three expensive mistakes: searching for an unclear profile, deciding on a good impression and leaving a new employee to manage alone after arrival.
At a glance
- Define expected results and the full cost before advertising.
- Compare candidates through job-related criteria and concrete observations.
- Check applicable Swiss requirements and prepare onboarding before arrival.
Check the need before opening a position
Start with tasks and expected results. What is no longer being done properly? What prevents growth? Is the need lasting, seasonal or project-specific? A busy period does not automatically justify a permanent full-time position.
Examine alternatives: reorganising a process, outsourcing specialist work, increasing an existing employee’s hours or hiring part-time. The aim is to choose a suitable response.
Describe what should change after the person arrives
“We need administrative help” is too broad. “Invoices will be prepared weekly, documents filed and customer enquiries followed up within a defined time” lets you build a role and assess applications.
Write three to five results expected after three or six months. Distinguish what the person needs to know initially from what they can learn. A job simultaneously requiring accounting expertise, sales independence, technical mastery and extensive availability probably needs redefining.
If the missing capability is temporary advice or shared ownership rather than an employee role, compare the alternatives: an advisory board or a business partner.
Calculate the full hiring budget
Gross salary is not the employer’s total cost. Add applicable contributions and insurance, equipment, software, recruitment and training time. Include any agreed thirteenth-month salary in the annual budget.
Swiss social security costs depend on insurance, pension arrangements and the company’s circumstances. Avoid applying one blanket factor without examining its components.
Budget example
A fictional monthly salary of CHF 5,500 paid thirteen times gives CHF 71,500 in annual gross salary. If employer contributions and insurance are budgeted at a purely illustrative 12%, they add CHF 8,580. The subtotal is CHF 80,080, before equipment, recruitment and other costs.
The 12% figure is not a statutory overall rate. Replace it with amounts relevant to your compensation fund, insurance policies and employee. The example shows why budgeting cannot stop at the advertised monthly salary.
Then check cash flow: can you support this cost during training and if expected sales arrive late? Allow for the manager’s time to welcome and support the employee too.
Define the profile and prepare the advert
A useful job description covers purpose, main activities, reporting line, working percentage, location and success criteria. It becomes the reference for advertising, interviews and onboarding.
Separate essential from desirable criteria. A mandatory professional qualification differs from knowledge of software that can be learned. Removing unnecessary requirements widens the search without reducing expected quality.
Describe the actual work
Explain what the person will do, with whom and under what conditions. State relevant constraints: hours, travel, on-site presence, required languages or seasonality. “Dynamic, resilient and versatile” is no substitute for describing the job.
Present benefits you can deliver. In a small team, direct access to the owner, varied tasks or clearly defined autonomy may be attractive. Do not promise total freedom if every decision requires approval.
Explain how to apply, required documents and the main process stages. Request only information useful for assessment and hiring.
Advertise the vacancy and organise applications
Choose channels suited to the occupation: professional networks, specialist platforms, schools, industry associations or regional employment centres, known as RAV in German and ORP in French. Assess application quality, not just volume.
Before public advertising, check whether the vacancy must be reported to the regional employment centre. Certain occupations are covered; check the particular role and relevant period. Use official arbeit.swiss information and its vacancy reporting checker, then follow the applicable process before advertising elsewhere.
Prepare application handling
Assign who receives applications and who decides. Set review dates and realistic response times. Candidates should not wait weeks simply because nobody knows who must reply.
Use a shared framework to record relevant experience, essential skills, availability and points to explore. Separate facts from impressions. “Handled monthly closes for two years” is useful; “seems professional” needs evidence.
Restrict application access to those involved in recruitment. Do not share CVs in groups or with partners without a legitimate selection role.
Conduct a structured interview
A structured interview need not be rigid. It ensures candidates answer a core of comparable, job-related questions while leaving room to explore individual backgrounds.
Prepare the sequence: brief role introduction, experience, practical situation, candidate questions and next steps. Allow time to understand answers without dominating the conversation with a company presentation.
Ask about real situations
- “Describe a time when several deadlines coincided. How did you prioritise?”
- “Give an example of an error you identified. What did you do next?”
- “How do you explain technical information to someone unfamiliar with the subject?”
- “What do you do when a customer request goes beyond the agreed scope?”
- “Which part of this role would require you to develop your skills?”
Ask about context, personal action and outcome. General statements about what “the team” did may not reveal the candidate’s contribution. Specific examples help assess skills beyond verbal confidence.
Keep questions within the appropriate scope
Requested information must be relevant to suitability for the role. Questions about private life, pregnancy, health or criminal history are not routine: admissibility depends on specific job-related requirements. Focus on tasks, necessary availability and skills.
Describe the work honestly too. If processes are still informal, say so. Candidates need to decide whether the environment suits them; recruitment is a mutual choice.
Assess skills with a practical exercise
A short practical exercise can complement the interview. It should reflect an important part of the role with stated assessment criteria. For an administrative position, ask candidates to prioritise fictional requests or find inconsistencies in an anonymised document.
Set the duration and permitted resources. Use the same exercise or equivalent versions for comparison. Do not turn selection into unpaid productive work. If considering an actual working day, clarify the legal framework, pay and necessary insurance beforehand.
Example assessment framework for an administrative role
| Criterion | Observed task | Evidence to record |
|---|---|---|
| Accuracy | Finds errors in a fictional file | Errors detected and proposed checks |
| Organisation | Prioritises requests by urgency | Reasoning and dependencies |
| Communication | Drafts a customer reply | Clarity, precision and tone |
| Autonomy | Identifies what can be solved independently | Recognised limits and relevant questions |
| Learning | Explains a recently acquired skill | Method and ability to ask for help |
A score can summarise findings but should not imply false precision. Attach a concrete observation. If a criterion is decisive, explain why before comparing candidates.
Take references and make the decision
References can clarify responsibilities, collaboration, reliability or project context. They complement assessment and should not become a general investigation into someone’s life.
Obtain the candidate’s consent before contacting a former employer, and especially their current employer. Prepare a few job-related questions and distinguish facts from the referee’s opinions.
Compare candidates against the defined criteria
Review the job description, interview observations and exercise. Consider existing skills, gaps that can be addressed and conditions for success. The most experienced person is not automatically the best choice if the role does not match their expectations.
Be wary of “they are like us, so they will fit in”. Collaboration matters, but similar backgrounds or personalities do not prove competence. Different approaches can benefit a team with clear working arrangements.
Formalise hiring and prepare arrival
Make a clear offer: role, working percentage, salary, start date, location, hours and main conditions. Check rules for your industry and canton, including any collective employment agreement or minimum wage provisions. Confirm the person’s right to work for their circumstances.
A written employment contract clarifies commitments. Prepare registrations and insurance, payroll, equipment and access. Requirements vary by activity and employee; do not discover them on the first morning.
Organise the first thirty days
| When | Preparation | Expected outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Before arrival | Contract, workstation, access and programme | The person can start in suitable conditions |
| First day | Introductions, safety, tools and contacts | They know where to find information |
| First week | Training and supervised initial tasks | They learn methods and requirements |
| After two weeks | Discuss difficulties and questions | Misunderstandings are corrected promptly |
| At one month | Review initial achievements | Agree the next priorities |
Specify who provides training and when. Onboarding cannot rely solely on “ask if you have questions”. New employees do not always know what information they lack.
Inform unsuccessful applicants and apply a justified data retention period. Keeping candidates for future vacancies requires a clear framework, including appropriate consent and a defined duration.
Make recruitment a prepared decision
Recruitment is more reliable when the need, criteria and budget are clear before the first application. Interviews then become structured assessments, and onboarding follows through on what was promised.
Before advertising, have five things ready: a role, annual budget, assessment framework, timeline and onboarding owner. Improve the process using feedback from candidates and the new employee.
To manage the cost and administration of a first hire, connect recruitment with payroll and business accounting. A successful hire needs sustainable funding and support.
Frequently asked questions
What are the main recruitment stages?
Define the need and budget, prepare the profile, advertise, shortlist applications, conduct interviews, assess skills, decide and organise onboarding. Check applicable Swiss formalities at the relevant stages.
How many interviews should you hold?
There is no ideal number. For an SME, an initial structured conversation followed by a focused discussion may suffice, depending on the role. Each stage should add useful information without unnecessary delay.
Can you contact a candidate’s current employer?
Not without prior consent. Respect the confidentiality of their application. Agree which people may be contacted and which questions are relevant to the role.
Must every vacancy be reported to the regional employment centre?
No. The requirement covers certain occupations and defined situations. Check official arbeit.swiss information before public advertising and follow the applicable process.
How do you choose between two strong candidates?
Return to expected job outcomes, concrete observations and training needs. If an important point remains uncertain, assess it specifically. Avoid deciding solely on general impressions or personal affinity.
Sources and references
- Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner: recruitment and employment data (French).
- arbeit.swiss: vacancy reporting requirement (French).
- arbeit.swiss: employment centre services for employers (French).
The cost example is fictional. Establish contributions and conditions for the specific employment relationship.
Romain Prieur is a Swiss certified public accountant and the founder of Entreprendre.ch. With more than ten years of experience in auditing and supporting businesses in Switzerland, he advises entrepreneurs on company formation, accounting and taxation.
