spa_interviewing_techniques

Spa Interviewing Techniques

A large responsibility of any spa manager is hiring staff. It can also be a frustrating one. Many publications in our industry have informational articles on the subject, lending suggestions on the recruiting and hiring process, listing potential questions that could be asked during the interview and what positive character traits are to be looked for in potential candidates. This type of information can be helpful in some cases; however, I have realized that this information is very black and white and excludes the grey area, which can be the very frustrating part. Over my years of experience with the hiring process, I had to create a system that went even further than the basic list of interview questions and practical interviews to not only find individuals with positive attitudes, but I needed to find a system that would ensure a strong and unified team.

Building a Strong and Unified Team

A team is made up of individuals who are to work together to accomplish a goal. The thing with individuals is that they each have their own thoughts, ideas and goals. The individual’s way of thinking may not necessarily match that of a particular company’s way of thinking or that the company that hires them might not be able to assist them in their goals as an individual. At an interview a candidate is going to be on their best behavior as they want to get hired because they need to make money to support their thoughts, ideas and goals. A lot of candidates don’t realize that they also need to be interviewing the company that they are interviewing with. Getting a career position should be a win-win situation for both the interviewer and the interviewee. The individual must be able to identify with the company’s goals and must want similar goals for themselves. They must want to be a part of the tribe or culture of the company that they work for. When this happens, an employee will feel part of a family and their job will be a career move that has created a good match for both the company and the employee. The employee will feel more connected, stay in the job position longer and will be a stronger player on the team. Strong individuals create a unified team.

The Hiring Process

So what type of hiring process should managers follow to secure strong individuals to create a unified team? First, as a spa director or manager, recognize that it is a process, a process that should not be done quickly. During my interview process, there is a series of 4 interviews which can take up to a month or longer.

1. Telephone Pre-Screen Interview
2. One Hour Face-to-Face Interview
3. Practical Interview
4. Class Hands-On Interview

The Telephone Interview

During the phone interview, you need to ask all of the routine questions to determine if they have a positive attitude, are they friendly, confident, etc. The main goal of the telephone interview, however, is to find out if the potential candidate knows what his/her individual career goals are. Then you, as the manager/director, who already know what the spa’s goals and culture are, should be able to see if this candidate will be a fit for the spa and your team.

For example, if your spa has Vichy shower treatment rooms and you require your therapists to perform these types of body treatments as well as skin care treatments, the therapist should have it as a goal for their career to perform such treatments and must really enjoy doing so. Another example is that if your spa requires therapists to sell a great deal of retail product on a daily basis, than the candidate must feel that that they are not only capable in doing this, but they must also feel extremely confident and dedicated to retail sales.

It has been my experience in some cases, that an interviewee will tend to exaggerate his or her skill level or interest in performing all services required in an attempt to secure a job position, only to find out that once hired, the therapist for some reason cannot perform all duties that are expected of him or her. The spa then is left short handed. This can be a frustrating part of the hiring process and the gray area that I had referred to earlier. During the phone interview however, while screening the potential candidate, if you feel that the interviewee’s goals and standards might be a match to the company, then you should invite the candidate in for a face-to-face interview sometime during the same week as the telephone interview.

The One Hour Face-to-Face Interview

To begin the face-to-face meeting, I suggest to first give a spa tour to the interviewee even if the interviewee has had a service at the spa previously. It is not just a tour to show just how beautiful the spa is, but an opportunity to introduce the philosophy and culture of the spa from an employee’s perspective. During the tour, it is very important that you begin to paint a picture as to the type of culture that the spa exhibits. You need to begin to paint a picture of what it would be like for the interviewee to work for your company. Are you a holistic spa? If so, what makes the spa uniquely holistic compared to other holistic spas? What is the focus of treatments in relation to the equipment that the therapists use? Are the treatments more clinically based where client’s expect to see changes in the skin or are they there mainly for relaxation, or is it both? Are the therapists expected to work in multiple treatment rooms or multiple spa locations? Make sure to look for the interviewee’s reactions during the tour. Is he or she asking questions and making genuine comments where they can relate to what your spa’s focus is?

For the next part of the face-to-face interview, it is now time to go out of the spa to a neutral place, like a quiet coffee shop. Getting away from the office will reduce distractions and the potential employee will relax a bit more so that you can get an idea of who they really are. You should also take a copy of the interviewee’s resume, a spa menu of services or any other collateral materials that exhibit your spas culture and a business card. The first part of your discussion should fully let the candidate know the history of the company and where the company is intended to go in the future. Once again, paint a picture as to what the culture of the company is all about as dictated by the owner or the President of the company. Secondly, let the candidate know all about you as the department head, your education, and work experience and how you are following the spas philosophy and culture. It is now time to allow the potential employee to have the floor. Ask him or her to speak about themselves, their education, work history and what their goals and philosophies are for their career. You may periodically ask deeper questions. At the end, discuss all the benefits for employees working at the company and answer any questions that they may have. If at the end of the hour discussion you feel that the candidate once again may be a match to the philosophy and culture of the company and have goals in place for their career, you may ask them to move onto the Practical Interview or the Class Hands-On Interview.

The Practical and Class Hands-On Interviews

Either or these interviews can be conducted next, but both need to be done as part of the interviewing process.

Practical Interview: The purpose of the practical interview is to get an idea of the candidates touch, including rhythm, speed and pressure, attention to detail, knowledge of ingredients and products, types of massage capable of being performed, etc. I actually do not find it necessary, nor do I have the time for a full facial to be given, so I have the therapist perform a facial cleansing and massage routine ending with toner and moisturizer application. This tells me all that I need to know. The other thing that I am looking for is the level of education that the candidate has had. What do I need to work with the therapist on to raise them to a higher standard of treatment service that matches the spa’s philosophy? Is the therapist even capable and open to learning new routines and accepting them as their own?

Class Hands-On Interview: Usually when interviewing for a position, there are multiple candidates that will be going through the process. I find it very helpful in making a choice as to whom I will hire by having them all attend a three hour class together at one time. This gives the candidates a more informed decision as to whether the spa is a great place for them to be as well. We get to interview each other once again in a relaxed environment and the skills that are learned will be important for them to know in the event that they do get hired. I look for how well they work with others. Does he or she take the lead or are they shy in a group environment? How much do they already know? Do they learn quickly? Etc.

I am excited to share the recruiting techniques that have worked well for me over the past few years. I sincerely hope that you can find some value in them and that they might assist you in your hiring process. I believe that it is very possible to find terrific, strong people to create a strong, unified spa team. (See our article on Are You An Effective Spa Leader?)