New Ideas for Business Recruitment
August 14, 2019Have you been noticing that your recruitment strategy may be somewhat behind the times? Still using traditional ways to fill your vacancies, such as newspaper ads, college recruiting, job fairs, and the same old job board? Although these recruiting channels will produce some hires, there are much more effective ways to find the best talent for your company. Here are some recruitment strategies that you might want to consider going forward.
Improve Your Employer Brand
Your employer branding is your business’s reputation as a place to work. It’s the way your company is perceived by your employees, not your customers. This is perhaps the most important element to consider if you want to attract, hire, and retain great talent. First-class employer branding is not easy to achieve because it requires significant investments of both time and money in your employees. However, it’s important to realize that today’s job seekers are not just looking for high salaries. They want a stimulating work environment and a great company culture.
Make Use of Data
There is a business maxim that says you can’t manage what you don’t measure – and when it comes to recruiting, there’s a lot to measure, including: candidate response rate; application completion rate; qualified candidate rate; time to hire; cost of hire; and more. Using these metrics, you can learn what’s going well and what needs to be improved.
Ditch CV Hiring
It takes a lot of time to read through hundreds of resumes and cover letters, and many applicants will have inflated their qualifications and experience. Instead, make it super easy for a candidate to apply online and then give them a short skills test or a series of tests. Software is available that will automatically pre-qualify candidates as they apply via the test.
Use Niche Job Boards
You have to sink your recruiting line into the right pond to catch good fish. Niche job boards specialize in specific fields. You’ll get fewer candidates than with larger, more general websites, but the candidates may be better qualified for your niche job.
Encourage an Employee Referral Program
Instead of searching through hundreds of applicants via job boards, you can recruit your own employees to do some searching for you. A referred employee is often a better quality hire because the person who has referred them has a good understanding of what qualities are needed to fill the vacancy. You should offer a reward if an employee brings someone great to your team. This incentive could be in the form of cash or extra days off.
- Host a Meetup – Another way to involve your current employees in the recruiting process is to host a meetup or get involved in a networking event that’s already been organized. Send out some representatives from your company and let them spread the good word about working for you. Include some free merchandise to give out to attendees.
Don’t Overlook Passive Candidates
If you don’t hire a top candidate quickly, they will be gone from the job market fast as another company snaps them up. However, the good news is that there is no shortage of passive candidates (i.e., people who aren’t actively looking for a new job). According to research, 85% of global employees would be happy to change their position for a better opportunity. Your mission as a recruiter is to get into your target audience’s line of sight via whatever means possible.
Reach Out to Previous Employees
Rehiring someone who has worked for you before may be a good idea. A prior employee may be the perfect candidate for a different role or a new role higher up the ladder. Look for past employees who have acquired new skills and gained work experience while working for other companies. You can benefit from the training and experience gained while they were away.
Don’t Forget the Perks
Although perks might not be top of the list for someone considering the employer branding of your company, perks do show that you care about your employees. Here are a few suggestions.
- Raising salaries once or twice a year when goals are met.
- Offering a significant number of paid vacation days.
- Opportunities to work remotely from home.
- Provision of a free laptop to take home.
- Offering retreats every year.
- Payment for gym or other sports club memberships.
- Reimbursement for new glasses or contact lenses.
- Free e-books on any work-related subject.
- Bring your dog to work day.
ELFI for Business Program
Our innovative program can help your company recruit and retain top talent. One feature of this program is a student loan solution for your employees. A high level of student debt is a big concern for young professionals. In fact, an ASA survey found that 86% of them are prepared to commit to a company for five years in return for some assistance in paying off their student loans. Click here for more information.
Improved recruitment practices lead to better quality hires, shorter time to hire, shorter onboarding, lower turnover rates, and less recruiting expenses. Contact us to learn more on how we can help you recruit and retain employees through the ELFI for Business Program!
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