Great candidates are not that hard to find – if you’re a smart recruiter, that is.
Achieving success in hiring great talent in a competitive job market comes from well-thought out recruiting strategies. Top recruiters spend time formulating sound recruitment tactics that is both efficient and effective in getting the best and the brightest employees.
Here are six best tips to develop your talent pool and hire great candidates:
1. Make sure your job description has the exact requirements of the position.
It’s good to develop a job description that delineates the key responsibilities and requirements of the position. Additionally, define the behavioral characteristics of the person, you feel is your ideal candidate.
List the top 5 to 10 key responsibilities and characteristics that you want to include in the job ad. Use these points to screen resumes, conduct phone screenings and eventually, establish the questions for the candidates you interview.
This way, you’ll have a much better idea about the characteristics of the ideal candidate you want to attract for your company.
2. Boost your employee referral program.
Your current employees are in a prime position to help you look for superior candidates in their networks of friends and associates.
In this era of online social and professional networking, the chances are, you and your employees are instantly connected to hundreds, and even thousands, of potential candidates. Tap into this potential audience on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter, to name just a few.
In some companies, employee referrals, especially for hard-to-fill positions, are even rewarded with cash bonuses. Posting all open positions, announcing openings at the company meetings and sharing growth plans with company members will help spread your message.
3. Build your industry contacts.
You may think it’s an unnecessary expense to pay for your employees to participate in networking conferences and trade shows. It’s definitely not the case. Apart from providing your current employee a free learning opportunity, you can also use it to get them to build industry contacts that can be potential hires.
Use trade show booth time to meet and get to know potential candidates as well as customers. Encourage employees to gather business cards, and develop relationships with, high potential possible employees.
Develop a plan for contacting these people systematically and regularly. Be prepared to share your job description with them through the mail, email, on the Internet and by fax. Follow up on every good lead.
4. Take advantage of you company website
Your website is a great place to highlight the vision, mission, values and culture of your company. Create a “Jobs” page, listing all your available positions and provide an easy way for potential candidates to submit their application.
You can also add a space for interested candidates to subscribe to the company newsletter and follow your social media accounts.
5. Improve your company brand.
The reason why top companies like Google or Apple get thousands of applications at any given period is that they have built a strong company brand that candidates would like to be associated with. Being an employer of choice is a reputation you build in your industry that is a powerful tool in attracting top talent.
Think about what a potential employee considers before agreeing to join your organization or business. Are you stable, making money and growing? Are you employee-friendly? Does your mission catch the mind share and/or the heartstrings of the people you most want to recruit?
Improve your company brand by taking into consideration possible employee concerns and addressing them in your PR communications.
6. Use industry-specific job boards and professional groups.
Take advantage of industry-specific job boards and professional association websites. Post open positions on these websites to ensure that you are attracting the people that most likely have the necessary skills and experience that you are looking for.
For example, if you are looking to fill a humanitarian position, you can use websites like ReliefWeb and UNJobs to find your next hire. These websites have an option to advertise for free, but if you want to boost your post, they also have a paid service.
You can also tap professional groups on Facebook and LinkedIn and post your job ad there.
Recruiting top candidates is endlessly challenging, but the time and effort you invest are worth it when they result in top talent for your organization.
Do you have other tips on hiring the best candidates? Share them in the comments below.
