Business in the retail and hospitality sectors is challenging to run for its leaders and owners. As it is service-based, which means people are running them and getting the right people is key to its success. The costs of hiring the wrong person can amount to between two and five times the person’s salary. Understanding and minimising the true cost of hiring wrong people is important.Financial costsThe most visible cost of hiring the wrong people is financial. Recruitment and training costs being the main ones. Every new hire comes with recruitment expenses, advertising, interviewing and onboarding.When a new person leaves or we ask them to leave before we have realised the benefits of that person, the investment is lost and the cost repeated.In retail and hospitality, efficiency is key. People who are not a good fit may struggle to perform their job leading to reduced productivity. This can slow down operations, increase workload and impact customer ratings.Poor hires often leads to higher turnover rates. High turnover can be costly as it means constant recruiting, hiring and training which is common in this industry. This means there is a feeling of ‘survival’ at times just to deliver the service rather than move into a feeling of ‘thriving’ where you are making more profit. Reputation costsIn retail and hospitality, customer experience is what makes and breaks a business. People are the face of the business who shape customer perceptions. Poor hires can impact many areas.People who lack the right skills, attitude or training give poor customer service. This might mean failing to care for customers which may lead to negative reviews and a damaged reputation.Consistency is key in building a trusted brand. People who do not act with the business values can create terrible customer experiences. Cultural costs The wrong people can significantly affect the culture and the morale of your business. When a person is not performing well or fits poorly within the team, they not only affect their output but also affect the morale and output of other people in the team. The saying ‘one bad apple spoils the cart’ is true when it comes to people. High performing people can get demotivated if they have to do extra hours and manage workload for the people that underperform. This leads to a decrease in productivity and worse case, the high performers leave who are harder and more expensive to replace.Every business has its own culture. People who do not fit well within this culture cause more conflict which can create a toxic work environment.Opportunity costs Hiring the wrong people can also have issues that affect the vision you are trying to achieve.Wrong people slow the growth of the business. For example, a low performing manager can impact the retention of people who report to them, which means that it takes longer for you to realise the growth of your business.Poor hires lack skills to find or act on new business opportunities. This result in the business falling behind competitors who are better positioned with the right people. Strategies in getting the right people.Slow down the hiring processes: Hire for attitude and train for skill. Do not rush through the hiring process because you are busy, especially for key roles such as management.Ongoing training: Even though training is expensive, what is the cost of not training and people impacting your culture? Keep investing in training so your people are getting the repeated message on what you are trying to achieve.Positive culture: A strong culture can help retain top people and create a place of work where people want to work and recommend that place to others also.Performance management: If you do not have the right people in place, move them out fast from your business. Manage non-performance early and set the standards for the right behaviours early on.By focusing on these strategies, retail and hospitality businesses can minimise the costs of hiring the wrong people and create a more productive and positive work environment. And the right people in the right jobs can make a big impact on your bottom line.