As you are probably well aware, recruiting talent these days is tough! There’s a skills gap, record-low unemployment, and an increased number of workers turning to the gig economy to become their own bosses. Because of these challenges, recruiters must be more creative in the ways they source top talent. To overcome these challenges, there are five trends you should be aware of, in order to stand out among the competition and recruit top talent today.
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CareerBuilder recently conducted its annual hiring survey, which featured responses from over 1,000 hiring managers and human resource managers and 1,000 full-time U.S. workers across industries and company sizes in the private sector. Using information from this survey, CareerBuilder was able to determine five recruiting trends, as outlined below.
1. The Candidate Experience Is Paramount
HR managers (36%) cite improved user experiences for candidates, employees, and hiring managers as a top priority for recruitment and HR management. As we’ve previously reported, when a candidate has a poor experience with your company, you run the risk of losing business to not only the candidate but his or her friends and family as well.
However, on the flip side of things, a great first experience with your company can leave a candidate excited about working there and more productive once he or she is hired. A few ways you can improve the candidate experience is by openly communicating with candidates at every stage, offering a speedy hiring process, and showcasing your great company culture.
2. Efficiency Is Critical
HR managers also say helping recruiters to be more efficient in filling roles faster with higher quality candidates (29%) and expediting background checks (24%) are seen as top priorities for recruitment and HR management.
To be more efficient, recruiters and hiring managers should turn to technology to reduce mundane tasks, like scheduling interviews and screening candidates. Having a great applicant tracking system is also useful in creating an efficient hiring process.
3. Streamlined Communication
Twenty-two percent of HR managers believe technology will be most beneficial in helping manage and maintain regular communication with job candidates during the application process.
In order to streamline communications, reach out to candidates by their preferred channels. Most people communicate via text these days, so instead of calling candidates, try sending them a text or e-mail. Not only will candidates be able to respond whenever and wherever it’s convenient for them, they’ll also be more apt to respond, period.
Another way to communicate with candidates is through chatbots. Chatbots can be set up to answer applicant questions before they’ve even submitted their application. This can potentially remove barriers in the process and improve candidate engagement. And chatbots can be available 24/7. However, be sure to weight the pros and cons before using this technology.
4. Speak the Same Language
Recruiters speak one language and candidates speak another; it’s no wonder 39% of HR managers say technology would be most beneficial in helping with sorting through applicants to identify top candidates and remove candidates that are not qualified.
For example, CareerBuilder has crossed the language barrier with the use of artificial intelligence and semantic search to halve the applicant to hire ratio.
5. Perfecting the Process
And finally, bad hires can negatively affect companies, and the main ways they impacted employers in 2018 were: less productivity (28%), negative impact on employee morale (25%), and higher recruiting and training costs for other workers (24%). Additionally, employers who have had a bad hire affect their business, estimate the average cost was more than $18,700.
When it comes to filling the void, you should never settle on a particular candidate just because the req needs to be filled. Instead, take the time to screen each candidate accordingly. According to Jeff Hyman—author of Recruit Rockstars and RecruitCon 2019 opening keynote—one way to do this is by taking your candidates for a test drive.
Once you’ve narrowed down your choices, have the final two candidates demonstrate how they would solve a specific problem, or complete a certain task. By seeing how each candidate operates, you’ll be able to better determine which one is a better fit for the role.
Additionally, don’t discount a candidate because he or she doesn’t have all the necessary skills you’re looking for. On-the-job training can be offered to candidates as an additional perk and this will allow you to upskill them for the roll.
“While a skills gap has created an environment where employers are having trouble finding qualified talent, employees’ and companies’ mutual dedication towards competency-based training indicates we have made leaps and bounds toward eliminating these obstacles,” says Irina Novoselsky, CEO of CareerBuilder—in a press release.
“We’ve found that 59 percent of employers plan to train and hire workers who may not be 100 percent qualified but have potential,” Novoselsky says. “Technological innovation will continue to be a driving force in defining the labor market for both in demand jobs and how companies recruit for open roles.”
Keep the above trends in mind when in recruiting in 2019 and you’ll be guaranteed to land that purple squirrel in no time.