With the unemployment rate at less than 4%, jobseekers are currently in the driver’s seat and are being more selective with their potential job opportunities. And now, employers must turn to more passive candidates and look at long-term goals and strategies if they’re interested in acquiring top talent.
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Here are some tips for recruiting top talent in an age of low unemployment rates.
Create a Unique Employer Brand
When working to attract candidates, create an employer brand that is separate from the corporate brand you typically present to clients and customers. While they should have common themes and elements, the two brands should be separate because they have two separate audiences.
Your unique employer brand should closely reflect your organization’s mission, values, and company culture; should appeal to employee prospects; and should be shared across social media outlets and online job board platforms.
Always Create a Positive Experience for Candidates
Because many top-notch candidates are only passively looking for employment, you’ll want to stick out from the crowd of potential employers by providing them with the best experiences possible when they interact with individuals from your company—everyone from recruiters to hiring managers.
Make sure your recruiters are promptly responding to prospects’ and candidates’ calls, e-mails, and questions and that each interview and the entire recruiting process is an enjoyable experience for every single prospect or candidate. If a candidate (even an unqualified one) has a bad experience with your company, he or she will tell others about it, including your most desirable candidates.
Build a Strong Talent Network
When searching for top talent in the current environment, avoid cold calling and cold e-mailing prospects, and come up with a strategy to continually discover and engage talent your organization desires. Work to build a strong talent pipeline and network instead.
Utilize social media outlets to engage prospects with your employer brand and to get them interested in what you do and who else works for your organization. If they consistently see positive things and interesting things from your organization, they might even end up reaching out to you or telling their network about positions and opportunities you’re advertising.
Implement a Mobile-Friendly Strategy
With more passive prospects and candidates, you’ll want to make it easy for them to engage with you and your employer brand, as well as submit applications and inquiries. Most jobseekers use mobile devices now during their employment searches, so make sure all information about your advertised positions and opportunities is mobile-friendly and that your organization’s website is easily accessible from a mobile device.
You should also consider using mobile apps for submitting routine application information and to create an easier and more user-friendly experience.
Recruit from Within, and Offer Top-Notch L&D Programs
The best way to gain top talent is to recruit from within your own organization. Develop and invest in your current staff and offer them learning and development opportunities for more challenging positions. They are already familiar with your organization and will most likely be excited about growth opportunities with the organization they’re already working for every day.
If you’re interested in recruiting top talent during an era of low unemployment rates, keep the tips laid out above in mind.