By MFC Team
Finding employees is not as easy as you may think. Its actually getting harder. In 2013, 50% of HR professionals reported problems in recruiting top talent. This year it is up to 68% of HR professionals struggling to fill open positions.
While there’s no guarantee that you’ll always get the highest caliber talent applying for your open positions, you definitely are able to increase your chances by developing a recruiting strategy that appeals to them. Let’s look at a few ideas that may work for your recruiting team.
Know your stage
It is important to hire the right person to match the stage your company is at. While startups get all the glamor, they are not the best places for those who enjoy structure and process. The ‘fly by the seat of your pants wearing many hats’ does not work for everyone. For startups, build your relationships with freelancers and ramp up that engagement to build a lasting fit. The ultimate goal here is to hire talent that will thrive with each new stage your company lifecycle will enter.
Listen to your inner voice
Some of the best hires haven’t always been the ‘best in class’ top candidates on paper. At some point during the interview your intuition told you this person is the right one to bring on board as you talk about life experiences and find that connection.
A shared passion
This one cannot be faked. You know when you see talent that is clearly passionate about what they do. If you see that passion as strong as your company culture represents, that will go much further than just hard skills on a resume. Remember, skills can be trained, passion cannot.
The role and satisfaction need to match
Avoid hiring to fail. If the candidate is not experienced enough, they will not be happy in the role. Conversely if the candidate is over qualified, dig a bit deeper to understand why they applied for the role. Finding the perfect match so that your new hire is content in their new role is always one of your major goals.
Diversity is key
Diversity provides your company with team members of differing backgrounds and genders that can provide a wide range of input and thought processes that produces the best product or service results across a variety of industries, most significantly in tech.
Looking internally is a good thing
Proving to potential candidates that you care about your employees is to show how you promote internally as well. If you are in a larger organization, top talent is attracted to coming on board in order to climb the corporate ladder to success. If you can easily demonstrate that you have regularly promoted from within, the best talent will be attracted as they know it can be a solid path upwards for them as well.
Find talent proactively
Avoid hiring to fail. If the candidate is not experienced enough, they will not be happy in the role. Conversely if the candidate is over qualified, dig a bit deeper to understand why they applied for the role. Finding the perfect match so that your new hire is content in their new role is always one of your major goals.
Job Search Engines
Make use of job search engines (e.g. Indeed, Zip Recruiter) as they aggregate job listings from other job boards and employer websites. They reach a greater audience and the odds of top talent reaching you is now much greater itself.
Keep job descriptions up to date
Though it does get to be a labor of un-love, updating your job descriptions will definitelyattract the right talent for your company. You don’t want anyone avoiding your roles because your job description is asking for Windows XP or photo-copying experience. Your best chance to match the newly opened position with great talent is to ensure the job description is current and in complete alignment with the open role requirements.
Social Media
You company’s online presence is your advantage. Share opportunities online through your social media pages (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram etc) to expand your pool of potential applicants. Not only will you increase your audience of those familiar with your company, you give your own employees the ability to share your open positions with their social networks.
How about emailing your employees a ‘copy and paste-able’ version of the job listing that they can post to their on social accounts (that are not one of the major social media giants). They may even choose to use SMS to get the posting sent out instead.
Think Mobile
The prevalence of mobile connectivity is at its highest as it had ever been. Work with your company to ensure you have a mobile presence available to apply online. A vast majority of job seekers will do so on their mobiles during breaks at work or while commuting. This is the perfect opportunity for potential candidates to apply to your mobile friendly careers’ website.
Referrals
One of the most valuable yet underused applicant source are referrals. Your own professional connections are equally matched by your current employees. Your co-workers are already familiar with the company, its culture and for the most part, who would make a potential fit. Get a referral program up and running to reward your teammates for suggesting potential talent who get hired.
Summary
The old saying of ‘hire like you sell’ works well here. Build the process, set goals and holding individuals accountable will pave the way to successfully gaining great talent. Search for your prospects, qualify them, follow-up quickly and regularly, define the process to them and track your results. Implementing any number of the tips above will result in positive change to your organization whether large or small, new or looking to refresh. The choice is yours now!