Tools And Tactics For Hiring Job Candidates
Here’s how companies can improve attraction, retention, and diversity.
For most workers today, starting a new job means leaving a current one, but leaving a job — even one disliked — comes with inherent risks. Shannon Pritchett, head of marketing and community at hireEZ, shares tactics and tools for recruiters, to help talent make the switch.
Accepting a new job offer is usually thought of as a positive change. But even an exciting transition for one’s career often comes with unspoken challenges or concerns. The reality for many is, leaving a bad job for greener pastures is an opportunity that presents risks, such as financial insecurity due to a change in pay periods; a need for flexibility to care for children; or the chance a different work culture is as toxic as the last.
As “quiet quitting” and the great resignation roll on, many workers are not completely satisfied with their current job. Additionally, in some industries, mass layoffs have lowered confidence in job security for many skilled employees. For recruiters and hiring managers, this means there are plenty of people to fill open positions, but standing out from the competition could be a matter of helping them make what might not seem like such a big change — but is.
While some employers make moves to win the war for talent by throwing money at it, not every company can compete with flashy compensation or total rewards packages. Instead, those with more limited resources can improve attraction, retention, and diversity by better understanding and solving unique problems job seekers face, and combine tools and tactics to compete on a more personal level.
Here are some areas every company should examine to help job seekers leap.
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Belonging starts with whom you hire
Part of taking on a new job is the experience of being introduced to a new culture and adapting to the unfamiliar. To leave the comfort of an organization that is known in exchange for one that drums to a different beat, supports different values, and has a different personality, can be just as scary as it is thrilling. And the fear of not belonging can cause a great employee to step out the door or stop a great candidate from taking a step in.
Employers can help address this fear by working to create a welcoming environment and ensuring that the work to improve workplace culture is evident in the hiring process. Many companies have made progress to cultivate a sense of belonging through diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. Still, those strategies must be supported by technology that makes it possible to mitigate bias at the front end of the employee experience — starting with people that haven’t said yes to a new job yet.
One way for companies to reach more diverse talent, and understand individual needs, is through the use of AI-powered sourcing engines. Modern recruiting platforms can help recruiters tap into broader networks, to search specifically for underrepresented talent or filter results based on skills, as opposed to less inclusive criteria like education and experience. With traditional job boards, recruiters limit themselves to a very narrow range of available talent and risk their unconscious bias rooting out more diverse candidates from their selection process — which can actively work against diversity goals.
After optimizing the sourcing process for diversity, hiring teams can proactively ease candidates’ concerns about fitting in by leading with empathy. Ask employees what makes them feel most welcome at work. What makes them feel heard, appreciated, and respected?
By gleaning real cultural insights from the organization, recruiters and hiring managers can accurately depict the experience a candidate can expect. This helps the company share an authentic window into its culture and helps establish a level of familiarity with job candidates.
Don’t be the reason they quit, again
Making a hire is only part of the equation. After a candidate accepts a job offer, companies have to ensure the new job does not become just a bad job. To prevent fresh talent from quitting again, employers must consider all the small things that make up a new hire’s acclimation to the work environment.
Consider the experience from the first day at work: being introduced to unfamiliar faces, signing on to different systems to manage tasks, and feeling like an outsider as team members use a completely different vernacular. It’s a lot for anyone, but the stress of feeling alone in a new world can be managed with proper expectations.
Modern hiring platforms with built-in engagement features can help employers proactively manage those expectations. Seamlessly integrating candidate communications within the same platform used for sourcing, this technology can be leveraged to give new hires a heads-up on what’s to come every step of the way, even at scale.
Automated email templates and sequencing can help managers improve the onboarding experience by sharing valuable resources or tips. And if a candidate or new hire has questions or concerns ahead of their first day, scheduling tools can automatically sync calendars, find time to ease worries, and share best practices to set up a new employee for success.
When it comes to day 1, first impressions are crucial. Helping a new employee have a smooth transition isn’t hard. Small optimizations to onboarding can make a big difference.
Employers should consider having employees’ start days be the last day of the work week. Ensure the employee has calendar time blocked off to set up work accounts or familiarize themselves with new workflow systems. Ask team members to invite them to observe meetings, giving them a sense of how folks collaborate in a low-stress context.
Lastly, small gifts, such as a free coffee or lunch, can go a long way to help make a new employee feel appreciated and supported.
Spark proactive conversations
A big part of meeting the unique needs of new talent is to be extremely clear about what you can offer them. The first exposure to a job posting should be seen as a critical opportunity for a company to provide candidates with a strong understanding of what they receive in exchange for their value.
Will taking a new job move their paycheck from biweekly to monthly? If so, they may mentally prepare to change how they budget and time various bill payments. Will there be a disruption to their healthcare coverage due to benefits packages changing? If so, the job candidate may open up a conversation early about medical needs and what options they have to line up coverage.
The right recruiting platform can help hiring teams start the right conversations early. Employers should look for functionality that streamlines the intake process. Tools to add all stakeholders, outline job requirements, and set goals for recruiting processes can ensure hiring teams are on the same page and deliver a transparent experience to candidates across all recruiters. Additionally, tech that can parse job descriptions helps teams align on important keywords — based on desired skills criteria — to help recruiters look for the right people with every search.
When meaningful conversations can be had about the impact a new job will have on someone’s life, from the very beginning, companies will lose fewer candidates due to external factors.
Small changes can be big
Job candidates today have a lot of options, and they are making decisions fast. This means employers have less time to get their appeal right. Fortunately, a few minor tweaks to the hiring process can make big differences.
It’s one thing to lose out on talent to a competitor that can pay more, but hiring teams that do the work to understand the holistic needs of job seekers will experience fewer people turning down jobs at the last minute — or even post-hire. And the ones they lose in the process might just come back around.
How do you think employers can help job candidates make the switch by removing barriers to entry? Let us know on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
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