I have just started my own company around 6 months back and had hired 5 people after proper interviews. But 2 of them turned out to be DUMB. They do not understand when I explain things to them, they do not talk, they dont answer, in short they are DUMB!!! And being a small company, we cannot afford to have such people.Now Im afraid of hiring anyone! How do I ensure I get good people? Job portals dont help much and we get wierd resumes from there!.--Answer1:well u no they were suits glasses and look ugly.--Answer2:Kirstiie, your answer proves your dumb. Smart people can look like anything..--Answer3:you could make them do an iq test also put them on probation for first 3 months.--Answer4:First congratulations on starting your own company. Second, finding as you say "smart" hires requires knowing what you want and a method to determine if persons have these qualities. Write down what qualities you are looking for in prospective hires. Then write a list of questions to ask that you believe will determine if prospective hires have these qualities. You may want to think of a comment to use on your current employees. Have them write down what they believe it means or a response in order to get an idea of how each person is interpreting your statements. Then use the responses that you like as a guide to the answers you expect from prospective hires. Good luck..--Answer5:Who is conducting the interviews?If you have an interview with a person for at least 10 minutes, you can normaly see whether they are capable or not.Sorry if this sounds harsh, but are they smarter than the interviewer?If they actually passed the interview and got the job. What does that say?Agencies can only recommend people they have on their list, that seem to be qualified for that specific job. So, having said that, I think you might have to do your own advertising for that job yourself and specify all the qualifications you require and do the interview yourself to ensure you get the best person for the job.