Recruiting has gotten tougher over the past several months. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, unemployment is below 5 percent for the first time since 2008. This means that we are essentially at full employment; it is no longer a buyer’s market. For that reason, we have started to explain to clients that finding great employees is going to be harder.
While recruiting isn’t an exact science, and there isn’t a specific recipe we can give that will guarantee you hire the perfect person, here are a few tips that will help you in your search.
1. Determine what you are seeking.
This is always the first step. You can’t write an ad before you decide what you need. Focus on behaviors. Often, you can train someone to use your software if he/she is smart and hard-working. So, we say, “Hire behaviors, train skills.”
2. Write a compelling ad.
Be different. Posting an ad that looks and feels like everyone else’s won’t get you noticed. You need to stand out from the crowd. Most ads include a list of job responsibilities and qualifications or a few lines about the company. You should include these, but give the prospective candidate more.
3. List your compensation level.
We believe you should list compensation if possible. Susan Heathfield in The Balance, argues that this is especially important if you’re expecting the applicant to fill out an on-line application. Writing “TBD” (to be determined) in the compensation spot doesn’t help applicants decide if the job is at the appropriate career level for them.
4. Post in multiple places.
We find that some of our best candidates come from Indeed, Craigslist and college career sites. Indeed is a pay-per-click site where you set the budget. We find that with the right ad, we average between 25 and 50 candidates for each $150 spent — not too bad. Craiglist is free or charges a nominal cost depending on the city. Most college career sites are free. The process is mostly copy/paste and takes only a few minutes per site once you’re registered.
5. Post at the right time.
First, let’s talk about time of year. We have found that recruiting new college graduates before they have graduated is difficult. You might think that college seniors would be job-hunting in the spring before graduation. Unfortunately, our experience tells us they are focused on graduating instead.
6. Organize your applicants.
You can quickly become overwhelmed as the resumes arrive in your email. Create email subdirectories for the job. Move the emails from your inbox to the subdirectory as they arrive.
7. Screen the applicants.
Schedule a time to review resumes approximately three to five days after you’ve posted. You should have a pile of them by now in your email folder. Our technique is to create three more subdirectories under the job folder titled: “Yes, No and Maybe.”
Solid recruitment is essential to great hiring. You can’t hire the perfect candidate if they don’t apply. Use the tips above to increase the number and quality of your applicants.
Read the full article from Entrepreneur: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/282894
