Making job offers

After a thorough search and deliberation, you’ve decided who to hire. This section of the guide details what happens next.

The verbal offer

In most situations, it’s good practice to phone (or email) the successful candidate as soon as possible after the hiring decision has been made. You can offer the job to the candidate over the phone, but be sure that the offer is conditional (ie. subject to reference checks etc.) rather than unconditional. This means that there’s no binding contract and you can withdraw the offer later on.

The written offer

Legally speaking, a verbal job offer (if it’s unconditional) constitutes a binding contract, but it’s always wise to send across a job offer in writing to make things clear.

You can keep the formal offer letter relatively short, but it’s best to cover the following:

• Job title
• Salary/wage
• Working hours
• Annual leave entitlement
• Offer conditions (reference checks, right to work in the UK, proof of qualifications/certifications where applicable)

Send the letter by first class post as soon as you can, and chase the candidate if you haven’t heard a response within a few days of receipt.

Here's a template for an offer letter to help you get started.

Pre-employment checks

Pre-employment checks vary depending on your industry and the role you’re looking to fill.

However, all UK employers must check that employees have the right to work in the UK. To do this, you need to ask employees for original documents such as their passport, check the document’s validity in the presence of the employee, and make a copy of the document. Some companies choose to do this at the interview stage instead of when the offer is made. You can see a full list of the various documents you can accept here [PDF].

It’s also a good idea to check the candidate’s references before proceeding — just in case there’s something the candidate hasn’t been completely honest about...

You might also want to carry out additional checks like criminal record checks and medical checks (where the law allows it), and other document and qualification checks to ensure the candidate is actually qualified for the role.

The employment contract

Once the pre-employment checks are complete, it’s time to send across the contract. It’s not actually a legal requirement to issue a full employment contract in writing, but you must make sure you send across a written statement of employment particulars within the first two months of employment.

You can send this across in advance of their employment, or wait until they’ve started work.

This written statement contains many basic contract terms that you might have already including in your job offer letter, but doesn’t need to contain info on most company policies and procedures (like sick pay, social media etc.). Nonetheless, it’s wise to send new employees this info as soon as you can.

Communicating with unsuccessful candidates

Receiving no response to a job application is extremely dispiriting for job seekers, but if, as an employer, you receive dozens (if not hundreds) of applications, it’s difficult to respond to every unsuccessful candidate.

But at the very least it’s worth your while to get in touch with candidates who made it to the interview stage but didn’t land the job.

Send a short letter informing them of your decision, and do your best to include some personalised feedback.

Your goal here is to reject the candidate without turning them off your brand for good — you may want them to apply for another role in the future, or at least talk about your business fondly for years to come.

Here’s a letter template you can send to unsuccessful applicants.