OK, so few companies are doing a recruiting blitz right about now. But with an average price tag of $3,500 - $4,500 per hire, even adding an extra body or two can be a major investment.

You don’t want to stretch people too thin, either. Things can get even more expensive if employees burn out because they’re burnt out.

It may seem like an impossible line to walk. It isn’t. In fact, adding an extra safeguard can ensure managers aren’t firing up the hiring machine unless it’s absolutely necessary.

Here’s one policy you want to initiate from the top down: From now on, anytime someone wants to hire another person, have that manager explain two things:

1. Exactly why they need another body in their department. And press them for specifics. “Everyone’s just overworked” won’t cut it. Press managers on the actual duties that new hire would handle — and why his or her existing staff can’t take responsibility for those.
2. What they’d already done to streamline and tighten up in every way possible. That way managers understand that upping headcount is a last resort. Have policies and procedures been flowcharted to make sure there’s no room to tighten up? Have they managed to reduce expenses in any other areas? If a department is as lean as possible and it still needs the extra hands, then it’s probably justified in scouring the resume pile.

Remember, unless you’ve instituted a hiring freeze, you don’t want to bat down every request for help. But by making managers really think before they ask, you’ll see a significant decrease in requests, which can save you a bundle.

Tags: Avoiding burn-out, hiring, recruiting