With the right people hired, a company can go places. The right blend of skills, experience, dedication and creativity can help to bring value and success to an organization. But, these invaluable components don't just appear like magic. It requires smart recruiting to find what and who you need. And the pressure is on.
Finding real talent is more complex than ever, with an average of 118 applicants for a single job. Factor in the costly and time-consuming nature of recruitment. The money spent optimizing your recruitment process, finding and then training your chosen candidate. The quest of recruiting the right someone has never been more challenging.
But, this article seeks to help you avoid all these missteps. We will explore how you can best identify and activate proper interest in your roles. And the criteria you should focus on so that you find the talent your organization needs. We will look at how you can ensure you make the right investment in the right candidate by:
- A thorough skills analysis. You are identifying what your company requires from a role and a candidate. So to tailor your recruitment approach in line with these specific demands.
- The utilization of referral systems. Your employees help to bring attractive candidates to you.
- Not limiting yourself, casting the recruitment net wide and far in your search for real talent.
- What signs to look for during the recruitment and application process
- Avoid the standard interview, what you should be asking instead and what you should be looking out for from your candidates.
Pre-game, what do you need?
Before any job postings or interviews, a business must know the demands of the role. A job skills analysis can help. In addition, it will help to identify the gaps in your workforce and help you bridge them.
Why is it important?
By 2022, 54% of all workers will need to have updated or replaced their skills. The world is changing; with the growing urgency for technically savvy employees and the digitalization of the workplace, having the right people with the optimum skills will help businesses flourish.
Therefore, knowing the elements you need can offer you the best chance of success and longevity through a skills analysis. As well as provide a head start on your competitors. You have the edge when it comes to recruiting as you have precise knowledge of what you require.
How to organize the search
To identify the requirements of a particular role, a company should discuss what they need with its current teams and employees. They can help with:
- Explaining what skills would be practical for the role
- How to organize your search, where to find the suitable candidates, they may know of someone
- What kind of personality is needed? What type of person could contribute to the culture of the workplace
An inclusive attitude to recruiting allows businesses and employees to work hand in hand. Opinions sought, insight respected and ultimately, to the company's benefit. You will find the individual with the suitable characteristics, and their hiring can hopefully improve productivity and performance in the workplace.
With your criteria on what your candidate should be and have, it is far more likely you will find them through a specific job description. Defining a desired candidate's persona may be time-consuming but will help your recruitment process be more efficient. And ensure you hire the right person who has all the traits to make the job successful and stay long-term.
"I know someone who might be great", the importance of referrals.
Again, the employee's input comes to the fore. Having worked at the company, experienced its day-to-day life, and the people and culture of the workspace, these individuals are ideally placed to see what may be needed or how the right person can make a positive impact.
And they may have someone in mind, for example, through a previous working relationship or someone working at a company with a relationship with yours who may be interested in a new adventure. So your employees may have what you want.
The candidate whisperer
People want to know the truth about businesses. So before they apply, 75% of candidates research a firm's reputation and employer brand. To see if it will make a good fit and understand the nuts and bolts of the role and the company.
And who is better placed to give a positive portrayal of your business than your current employees? These brand ambassadors can help to sell the vision. And based on their previous relationship with the prospective candidate, there is trust that what they hear is reality. 👋
What are the benefits of referrals for a business
This internal method for finding talent can have many benefits, including:
It can be faster
A candidate recommended means less time spent going through the recruitment process. Finding, selecting, interviewing are all massive strains on busy schedules as it is. And thus, a referral can mean more time spent building relationships with the new employee, helping them settle and feel comfortable.
Less costly
51% of companies with a referral system have seen their cost-per-hire fall significantly compared to other recruiting sources. Save money on a lengthy recruitment process.
A better quality of hire, better employee retention.
Candidates with experience in the company provide a valuable outside perspective on its processes. Furthermore, those with already established relationships within the company are more likely to find their transition to a new environment far easier. They have people they know and like, meaning they feel more at ease, which will hopefully, in turn, result in them staying longer at the company.
Employees are involved = Employees feel appreciated
Being appreciated and your opinions sought can increase motivation and the happiness of the workforce. This can also boost their retention; as a result, they feel at home as a part of the organization.
So, utilize your available resources! And use your workforce to find the game-changing talent out there who could be interested in joining your business.
Don't limit yourself! Go big in your search for talent.
It is essential not to restrict oneself. The talent is there, but it may not be where you are looking or thought to orient your search. And you never know, you may find someone who can bring other invaluable qualities to the table. Equally as important.
A diverse approach to recruitment
37% of recruiters regard hiring more diverse candidates as a top recruiting trend today and in the future. And ensuring your business looks to expand the diversity of the workforce can have benefits both from a financial and reputational standpoint.
A company that can draw from different outlooks upon creativity, innovation and problem solving will be hugely strengthened. A more diverse workforce can:
- highlight things that might not have been noticed by a group of employees belonging mainly to the same demographic
- providing a variety of voices and opinions
- offer new ways of working that will enable a business to find the right solutions and improve processes.
In addition, ethically and gender-diverse companies are likely to have 35% and 15% higher financial performance over the industry mean. So, it is in your interest to embrace diversity.
The world's talent within your grasp
With remote working in all likelihood here to stay, with 74% of professionals expecting remote work to become standard across many industries, businesses are no longer limited to searching for the newest workforce members within one geographic region.
Therefore, with the relaxing of attitudes towards whether employees need to be present in the office each day and improvements within the technology field, companies can widen the search for great talent.
Therefore, you may find your next business leaders, innovators and hard-working team members in places you never previously considered looking. So keep an open mind, and as long as they can maintain a stable internet connection, you can truly embrace a global workforce.
Where potential talent can find your job postings
You should aim to spread your company's message and its jobs near and wide. You do not just contain your story and success within the same old job sites.
Meet your future candidates and talent halfway. Learn where your target audience looks for their roles, what websites do they use, social media? Select the places where you can bring your jobs closer to the candidates you wish to hire. Pique their interest and compel them with how great the job/company is to want to engage.
The heightened exposure is also a great tool to advertise your company. Future candidates may see the posts and start their initial research into who your company is and the work they do. The online meeting lays the seed for future fruitful success.
What to keep an eye on during the application process:
You have received numerous applications for your job posting—all with their own merits. But, you aren't just looking for good; your business deserves and needs excellence.
When it comes to the application process, here's what you should be looking out for from your candidates:
- Grammatically perfect. No typos. Simple.
- The candidate follows the instructions you set. It's easy to write what you think businesses want to hear rather than answering the questions. Following instructions shows the candidate's ability to follow instructions and offers an honest depiction of themselves.
- An insightful, detailed application where the personality of the candidate shines through. They highlight their skills, provide supporting evidence, and explain why they are attracted to this role, your company, and your mission.
- The connection to your mission shows that the candidate has done their research, they know what you seek, and their values align with yours.
- A week or so later, you may receive a follow-up call or email from an interested candidate. With a request for further information or just a check-in to ensure their application was received. Chat with them; these active candidates want to put themselves in your eye line. They are serious about their interests and want to be remembered. These types of candidates should be your focus.
What you should consider during the interview stage
You've rounded up your chosen candidates. And now is the time to get to know them better, both professionally and personally. The interview is the perfect stage from which to do this.
But, keeping your interactions with the candidates within a small, stale room won't suffice. It's predictable what will occur. Everyone knows the types of questions they'll be asked and can prepare answers that candidates think you want to hear. It's safe, easy and soulless. Unfortunately, you are no closer to finding your ideal talent.
It is crucial to think beyond this outdated interview process vision and consider it a chance to acquire a window into who the candidates are. Incorporating different parts into your interview process, you should look to:
Put candidates in a work situation.
Trial days or shifts. If you hire a copywriter, get them to write an article. A receptionist, see how they react as the first point of contact in an office. A software developer, how they deal with some tricky code. So, the candidate can understand what the job and company are like, and you can see how the candidate may fit within your ecosystem. And if they can do the job outlined.
What do your teams think?
Alongside this, put them into the department and sit with their potential colleagues. Have your existing teams walk candidates through a working day. It's a good idea to listen to your team's opinions of candidates. They will be the one's working together, important that there is a base there for a solid working relationship.
How do the candidate's interact with others?
39% of candidates get rejected due to their confidence level, voice quality or lack of smile. Offer a tour around the office, introduce them to different teams and watch their interactions. It's okay if there is some nervousness, but do the candidates still ask questions and show interest in the people they meet and the jobs they do? It may be a given, but a candidate who shows common courtesy, is polite and is respectful tends to be the type of talent you want around.
How does the candidate fit socially?
Have the candidates eat lunch with you and your colleagues. See how they act in a social setting. Can you imagine doing this more often or grabbing a drink at the end of a long week? The culture of a company is a delicate organism, important that the correct elements are introduced. Do these candidates fit the bill?
How can my business identify the natural talent for our roles?
All businesses want the best people to join them in their workplaces. But, unfortunately, this vying for great talent has led to increased competition among local and international companies to access the right candidates. So, for small businesses rivaling global giants, how can they compete to find the people to bring value to their organization?
Well, they can. But businesses need to be innovative in their approach and think outside of the box. Therefore, before and during the hiring process, companies must consider these elements to access suitable candidates:
- Who and what do you need in a recruit. What type of employee do you require? What skills and personalities will fit seamlessly into the existing structure of the company
- The use of different approaches to recruiting. Using referrals or the expansion of your search may bring to your attention candidates who may not have accessed your jobs in the previously standardized recruitment process. To help find the talent that can truly make the difference.
- The interactions between yourselves and the candidates. How do they come across during the application process and the interview stage? Are these the types of people you feel comfortable around socially and recognize the hard-working, dedicated individual who wishes to join your organization?
The real talent is out there and looking for a home or a new exciting challenge; with this article in mind, you will be best placed to engage and welcome them into your workforce.