Unfortunately, this is the reality of a tight labor market and as an HR professional, you need to start getting creative in how you find and connect with candidates. The following are 4 different strategies you can use to find and hire top talent.
Understand Candidate Motivation
Offering candidates a high salary or cash bonus is not always enough to recruit talented professionals away from their current positions to join your team. You have to first understand what motivates your ideal candidate and how your company can offer them something that they’re not getting at their current company. For example, if you’re targeting Millennial candidates, they are 2 times more likely to value career growth and learning over salary in accepting a job. In that case, you should promote any mentorship programs offered at your company or talk about how your company likes to promote from within. Also, when initially vetting candidates, you should ask them their top priorities to see if your company fits the description and there are no surprises down the line.
Connect With Talent Where They Are
Once you understand the motivation of your ideal candidates, you can then start to figure out where to reach them. Not all industries use LinkedIn actively and may have other sites they use to seek out jobs or connect with other people in their profession. For example, many developers use Stack Overflow, a question-and-answer site specifically for programmers, and there are many niche job boards that cater specifically to sales and marketing professionals.
Also, when it comes to social media, don’t be afraid to try new channels and platforms. If you’re not successful using Twitter, try Snapchat or answering questions on Quora. The worst thing you can do is stick to a platform where you’re not having any success.
Speed Up Your Hiring Process
After you’ve engaged with a potential candidate and start setting up initial interviews, it’s important to keep the hiring process moving efficiently and quickly. Today, the hiring process is taking longer than ever and top candidates aren’t going to wait around for a lengthy interview process. Whether it’s simply a matter of scheduling multi-stage interviews closer together or revamping your entire recruiting process, having a tight recruiting process can be the difference between hiring your ideal candidate and losing out on them to a competitor.
Ask Your Current Employees for Referrals
One of the easiest ways to get direct access to top candidates is to ask your current employees for referrals. You can start a referrals program and offer your staff incentives for successful hires. Your team will want to refer people who are talented and experienced professionals because not only would they receive a bonus if they’re hired, but the candidate is also a reflection on them.
Using these strategies will help you to better understand and connect with potential candidates in order to make more successful hires.
