Why technical skill alone is not enough when you have an apprentice
If you already have an apprentice on your team, the tradesperson you hire will directly shape that apprentice's experience and development. A highly skilled tradesperson who moves fast and loses patience when others cannot keep up is not just a personality issue: they create a situation where your apprentice cannot learn and may not stay.
Greg describes this as the "brilliant jerk" problem. The business owner in that situation had a tradesperson customers loved, whose workmanship was excellent and who helped win and complete more work. But the apprentices could not stand working with them because they had no patience for anyone who did not match their pace. The business owner was stuck, unable to resolve it cleanly.
What should you actually be screening for?
When you are hiring someone who will work alongside or be responsible for an apprentice, add patience and willingness to help up-and-coming trades people to your screening criteria. It is not enough to find someone who can do the job well on their own terms.
Ask yourself whether this person will get along with the people already on your team. For a first hire this is straightforward. For later hires you are also managing team dynamics across multiple people, which adds complexity to every decision.
How do you move quickly once you have applicants?
The best candidates are often not actively looking for work: they get poached. Once you screen someone and they feel like the right fit, move within 24 hours to book them in for an interview. Ask applicants directly whether they are applying elsewhere and how long they have before they might accept another offer. That tells you how much time you actually have.
Screen everyone you have the time for. If you have five applicants, screen all five. Bring a minimum of three through to formal interview because comparing two people gives you little to work with, and comparing three adds a proper dimension to your decision.
How should you structure pay so you stay protected?
Start with the relevant award rate for your trade and make sure everything you offer meets or exceeds it, including overtime rates. Paying above award on the base rate does not give you permission to dip below the award on overtime, so check the specific conditions in your award for overtime, call-out fees and penalty rates.
Keep bonuses and incentives completely separate from the base hourly rate. If you bake a productivity or commission component into the hourly rate you cannot remove it when the business has a quiet patch, even if the business overall is not performing. Set bonus structures separately, define clear measurable metrics (turnaround time, repeat customers, completion on budget, five-star reviews) and include a clause that makes clear the bonus program can be changed or removed at the business's discretion.
Allowances and vehicle use should also sit separately. Bundling everything into one hourly rate creates confusion and potential compliance issues.
How do you write an honest job ad when you are a small or first-hire business?
Do not try to sound like a large business with a big team and a culture of Friday lunches if that is not who you are. You will attract a different type of person to the one you actually want and need. Be straightforward about who you are: a hard-working business that cares about quality craftsmanship and looking after the local community is a genuine and appealing pitch to the right candidate.
If you want to attract someone with a specific qualification, put that in the ad as desirable rather than essential, and be specific about what support you will offer. Instead of a vague line like "future training available", name the actual qualification or certificate you will help them work towards. A specific certificate feels tangible to a candidate in a way that generic training promises do not.
If pay depends on experience or additional qualifications, say the rate is based on experience rather than listing qualifications as the variable. A candidate can hold qualifications without experience, but experience tends to carry the relevant qualifications with it.
