Employers—is your recruitment stale?

In the candidate short market we’re now facing (and will do so for some time), competition is tough to get the best person you interviewed to accept your offer.

As an employer, you must do everything you can to shine and pitch your organisation as the one to work for.

The question for many employers is how to achieve this.

Chief Executive Officer of award-winning face2face Recruitment, Kate Prior, offers this inspiration for employers, based on her more than 28 years in the industry.

Learn to read between the lines on a resume

It’s critical to read between the lines on every resume. A candidate might be able to drive a car but that doesn’t make them an expert on fixing one, just as they might be able to write a resume but not be an expert at writing a cracker of a resume.

Professional recruiters can help you read between the lines and uncover a candidate’s real story, their expertise and how they excel. Some, like face2face, even have talent managers on board.

Look beyond the written resume

Check out a candidate’s LinkedIn profile, not just their resume. Also look at their social media presence for clues on who they really are, what their ethics are and even how they present themselves. Comparing LinkedIn content with resume content can also throw up important discrepancies.

Use a recruiter, but not just any recruiter

Recruitment companies can save you time, money and effort at all stages of hiring, but not all recruitment companies are created equal.

Some are stuck in their ways. They’ve bedded down processes and are comfortable sticking to them. As an employer investing in recruitment, however, you want a recruiter who has creative approaches, tailored to the position you need to fill.

Talk to recruiters about how they’re creative on your behalf. Test how they tap into online tools like websites and social media to advertise your roles. Also ask if they apply other innovative approaches.

Think laterally about skills

Traditionally, employers have focused on hard skills. If they need a specialist in xx, they only pay attention to resumes that explicitly state ‘specialist in xx’. These days, however, it’s just as important to look at soft and hard skills. This is because soft skills can be just as valuable—if not more so—than hard skills.

Also think about whether a candidate has transferable skills they can bring to your organisation or how long it would take to train them to get them up and running.

Don’t forget the importance of culture

You may have heard the saying: ‘Hire for cultural fit, train for skills.’ Switched-on employers understand the value of recruiting for cultural fit. They take time to understand it and weave it into their recruitment processes.

A professional recruiter is expert at looking at cultural fit. They add value to your recruitment by helping you develop questions that test cultural fit (without compromising on requisite skills). They’ll likely have ideas you haven’t thought of.

Follow these techniques for getting the best cultural fit …

Learn the top 10 reasons employees will stay with you

Thinking about what drives employees will help you promote the pluses of working for your organisation, besides money. Include pluses when promoting for the role and developing questions to ask candidates in interviews.

It’s important to think about attractions like growth opportunities, flexibility, recognition and benefits. Here are the top 10 reasons employees will stay with you besides money …

Remember mature workers

Mature workers offer many benefits in the workplace. Experience, age diversity, stability and leadership are just a few. So too are a strong work ethic and a clear vision.

Employers are therefore wise to broaden their horizons when recruiting. The Department of Education, Skills and Employment says, for example, that the net benefit to employers of a worker aged 45 and over (compared to the rest of the workforce) is $1,956 per year. On its website, the Department says that ‘for business, a work culture that supports older workers can lead to improved productivity, competitiveness and client satisfaction.’

Read about the value of engaging mature workers …

Think about work perks employees will love

Employee benefits are a major attraction for candidates, so it’s critical to understand the top ‘work perks’ or benefits they want these days, in addition to salary. If you don’t know what these are you won’t be in a position to proactively promote them through your recruitment processes.

Learn about the top work perks here …