What is a hiring plan?

A hiring plan is a strategic document that outlines your business’s staffing needs, hiring timeline, job roles, recruitment budget, and responsibilities for managing the hiring process. For small businesses, it serves as a roadmap to ensure you’re hiring the right people, at the right time, for the right roles.

Even if you don’t have a formal HR department, having a hiring plan helps you stay proactive instead of reactive—especially during periods of growth, seasonal shifts, or turnover. With Homebase, you can bring structure to your hiring process and align your hiring plan with tools for job posting, candidate tracking, and onboarding.

Why small businesses need a hiring plan

When you’re managing schedules, customers, and day-to-day operations, it’s easy to put off hiring until someone quits or business suddenly picks up. But hiring on the fly leads to rushed decisions, poor job fit, and higher turnover.

A hiring plan helps you:

• Forecast staffing needs before they become urgent
• Budget for wages, training, and recruiting expenses
• Create consistent job descriptions for every role
• Delegate hiring tasks across your team
• Ensure compliance with labor laws and documentation
• Build a talent pipeline, not just fill one-off gaps

Whether you're hiring one new team member or scaling to multiple locations, a hiring plan puts structure behind every step.

Key components of a hiring plan

Here’s what a basic hiring plan should include:

1. Staffing forecast

Estimate how many employees you’ll need over the next 3–12 months. Base this on:

• Seasonal business trends
• Historical sales data
• Team productivity and capacity
• Upcoming expansions or new locations
• Employee turnover history

2. Role definitions

List the roles you need to fill and clarify:

• Job title
• Job duties and responsibilities
• Full-time, part-time, or seasonal
• Required skills or certifications
• Reporting structure

Standardizing this step helps with job postings, training, and team clarity.

3. Hiring timeline

Establish when you want to post, interview, and onboard each new hire. Leave enough time for sourcing, interviewing, background checks, and paperwork—especially during busy seasons.

4. Recruitment methods

Determine how and where you’ll attract candidates:

• Job boards like Indeed or ZipRecruiter
• Social media and community groups
• Local events or schools
• Referral programs
• Staffing agencies (if needed)

This is also where you define who will handle posting jobs, reviewing resumes, and conducting interviews.

5. Hiring budget

Outline how much you’ll spend on:

• Job board posting fees
• Referral bonuses
• Interview time (especially if you’re paying managers or candidates)
• Onboarding materials and training costs
• Technology tools (like Homebase)

This prevents overspending and helps you measure ROI.

6. Evaluation criteria

Standardize how you’ll assess applicants to avoid bias and ensure a good fit. You can use:

• Interview scorecards
• Trial shifts
• Work samples or skills tests
• Reference checks

Hiring plan example for a small business

Imagine you run a local coffee shop and expect business to spike in the summer. Your hiring plan might look like:

• Forecast: Need 3 part-time baristas and 1 shift supervisor between May–August
• Roles: Baristas handle POS, prep, and customer service; Shift supervisor manages scheduling and inventory
• Timeline: Post jobs in March, start interviews in April, onboard by mid-May
• Recruitment: Use Homebase to post on job boards, plus local university job centers
• Budget: $300 for postings, $100 for referral bonuses, $200 for training
• Evaluation: Use trial shifts and team input to finalize hiring

When to revisit or update your hiring plan

A hiring plan isn’t a one-and-done document. You should update it regularly based on:

• Changes in business demand
• Turnover or staffing gaps
• Employee feedback
• Budget shifts or new regulations
• Expansion plans

Even just reviewing it quarterly helps ensure you’re hiring with intention, not just reacting to emergencies.

How Homebase helps support your hiring plan

Homebase gives small businesses the tools they need to turn their hiring plan into action. From posting jobs to onboarding new hires, Homebase helps you move faster, stay compliant, and reduce the stress of hiring manually.

With Homebase, you can:

• Post jobs to top job boards with one click
• Track applicants by role and hiring stage
• Customize job descriptions and application questions
• Schedule interviews and collect feedback
• Digitally onboard new employees with tax forms and training

Explore Homebase Hiring and Onboarding to simplify your hiring process—and build a team that’s ready to grow with you.