As college campuses across the nation prepare for graduation, employers are gearing up to welcome these newly minted graduates into their workforces. However, if you drag out the hiring process, you risk losing out on top talent.
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According to talent acquisition software provider, Yello’s latest recruiting survey report, “Recruiting needs to move quickly for entry-level positions. Nearly one in five Generation Z candidates thinks the ideal interview process length—the time between the phone screen and final decision—is five days.”
“If you want to impress a generation reared on instant gratification, you need to pick up the pace of your campus recruiting and make hiring decisions faster than ever before,” suggests the Yello report: Meet Generation Z: The New High-Tech and High-Touch Generation of Talent.
While the school year may be ending, that doesn’t mean recruiting this generation stops with it. Career fairs and job expos are a great way to attract all types of talent, and fortunately, these events take place throughout the year. If you plan on attending these events, Yello suggests 7 tips that will speed up your hiring process.
1. Use Digital Check-In at Your Career Fair Booth
Eliminate long lines at your career fair event with candidate check-in and résumé upload at tablet kiosks, advises Yello. You can also create a custom QR code jobseekers can scan as he or she is browsing the career fair. These codes can then be redirected back to your company’s website for more information. Or you can have the code link directly back to an online application form, which allows the candidate to apply right on the spot.
2. Review Candidate Data Instantly
Once candidates enter their information, your on-site team can use mobile devices to take notes and evaluate résumés and prescreening details immediately. If the candidate appears to be an ideal fit, you’ll be able to interview him or her instantly, rather than going back and forth trying to schedule an interview time that works best for the candidate.
3. Use Prerecorded Video Interviews to Screen
Don’t worry about working prescreen conversations or phone calls from your crowded career fair booth, advises Yello. Invite your best candidates to complete prerecorded video interviews at their convenience.
If you’re worried that the candidate will forget about your company after the career fair has ended, try offering branded swag—such as stress balls or thumb drives—with your career site URL front and center. Offering branded swag will remind candidates who didn’t want to do an on-site interview during the expo that the opportunity is still there.
4. Get Hiring Managers Involved Sooner
If you want to speed up the hiring process, what better way than to get your hiring manager involved as soon as possible. Yello suggests getting your hiring managers to review students’ video interviews as soon as they’re ready. This will allow the most promising candidates to move to the next stage faster.
5. Schedule Live Video Interviews
If prerecorded video interviews aren’t an option, try doing live Skype or video interviews instead. Yello says that this helps avoid the headaches involved when trying to schedule a face-to-face interview. This can also help cut down on travel costs if the top candidate does not live where your company is headquartered.
6. Make Prompt Evaluations
No matter which interview option you undertake during a career fair, after the interview, Yello suggests using evaluation software to collect feedback from all interviewers and stakeholders. Yello adds that you should assign evaluation tasks and automate follow-up reminders to interviewers to ensure they complete all reviews on time.
7. Decide and Offer
What may sound like an obvious step, Yello proposes a prompt review of top candidate interviews, which will ultimately speed up the hiring process. “Fast evaluations enable fast decisions,” says Yello. “Once everyone agrees on the candidate they want, extend an offer right away.”
If you want to attract Gen Z talent through a speedy hiring process, keep these seven tips in mind. To learn more about the Yello report, click here.