Last updated: April 22nd, 2024
Over 22% of Australian professionals changed jobs in 2022, which means employers need to step up their talent acquisition efforts and implement proven strategies for recruitment.
Below, I outline 7 critical strategies for recruitment to help your company attract top talent in the midst of the so-called Great Resignation.
Above: Employers have reported reduced recruitment difficulty, with 49% experiencing difficulties in early 2024 (down from 75% in July 2022).
7 Guerilla Strategies For Recruiting The Best Candidates.
A successful hiring process allows your organisation to attract the best new hires with in-demand skill sets while reducing cost and time. Consider adopting the below.
1. Cover The Basics.
Start by perfecting the simple elements when preparing job descriptions:
- Who is your ideal candidate? Ensure perfect role fit by considering the educational background, experience, qualifications and values that your company seeks in a candidate.
- Where will you find candidates? You should post your job ads where they will get the most exposure to the right type of candidate – platforms depend on each industry.
- Are you utilising recruitment tools? Recruitment software with built-in applicant tracking is a must. Consider using video interview platforms – especially if you’re volume hiring.
Expert Tip.
Consider holding industry meet-ups at local co-working spaces to network with potential employees – this can be quarterly or biannually. Other companies should be involved to diversify your market reach.
Hiring managers should also be aware of your EVP – Employee Value Proposition. What does your company offer that is enticing to potential candidates: culture, rewards, flexibility? Include these in the job description.
2. Optimise The Career Page.
Your career page may be a candidate’s first impression of your company; be sure to make it count. As a minimum, include the following:
- Navigation Menu.
- Company Values/Vision.
- Employment Awards.
- Diversity Statistics.
- FAQ Section.
- Current Roles.
- AI Chatbot – to answer real-time questions (AI recruitment is sure to be a standard recruiting process in years to come).
- Expressions of Interest form so that talent can apply, whether or not there is a specific role on offer. You should save these into an ongoing talent pool.
Important!
Don’t forget to look for opportunitities to hire internally.
3. Optimise Your Job Ads.
Ranking on the first page of Google search results is challenging, but it attracts a wide range of applicants for advertised roles. Consider the below:
- Google Job Search: Optimise job posts for search using this tool which lists jobs for candidates depending on their Google searches.
- Competitors: Target competitor keywords to attract suitable candidates for your roles. When someone searches for positions in a competing company, they’ll also see results from your business.
- Keywords: Consider creating target job title keywords, such as ‘accounting jobs’, which will attract specific candidates to your page.
Discover tips for hiring in more challenging circumstances, such as high turnover rates or geographically isolated businesses.
(Related: How To Write A Job Description That Attracts Top Talent).
4. Utilise Employer-Branded Content.
Branded content is an excellent way to reach new employees. It is also more cost-effective – 92% of employees say they would switch to a company with a well-managed brand reputation.
A strong employer brand can also reduce the cost per hire by as much as 50%.
You should offer insightful and digestible material across multiple platforms. These include:
- Recruitment videos housed on web, socials, and TV (especially for younger markets.)
- Transcribing audio from video content into Instagram or LinkedIn captions.
- Long-form content distilled into different formats, such as in-depth educational blogs.
- Timely news reports or articles reshared to Twitter.
- A company-branded podcast to boost the colleague experience to the public.
Expert Tip.
You can encourage existing employees to champion a spotlight blog section – or have employees submit their work to leverage the brand reach.
Employer branding comes with several benefits, including:
- Talent acquisition: Branding your business as an employer with excellent prospects and opportunities for professional development will help you attract high-performing talent.
- Reduced cost: When a job vacancy is live, having a solid catalogue of qualified candidates to interview means money is saved on running campaigns to attract them.
- Retention: Branding reduces employee turnover and helps create a deeper team connection plus dedication.
(Related: Redundancy Process: Guide For Employers).
5. Use Social Media (If You Aren’t Already).
Social media is changing the way companies work and hire.
LinkedIn is a great way to search for potential candidates and a valuable resource for networking with others in the industry. Over 40 million people use LinkedIn to search for jobs each week.
Our tips:
- Recruit candidates by posting the job vacancy on your brand’s social media – you’ll reach the eyes of people who already love and engage with the brand.
- Utilise Facebook and Linkedin job sections, as well as post company updates.
- Boost job vacancies and paid ads to reach your chosen audience.
- Post consistently, and consider apps like Later to automate the process.
- Engage with your audiences to build a community around the brand.
- Track metrics like reach and engagement to double down on the content that works.
Expert Tip.
Consider engaging influencers online to promote the business’s values – you can then target paid ads around the job vacancy to their audiences.
6. Incorporate A Referral Program.
Allowing current employees to search for talent is a win-win.
- By proving qualified candidates from their widespread network, you’ll save time on searching.
- Employees will be incentivised and financially rewarded for finding a match.
Important!
Some companies are known to hire up to 40% of their employees through referrals.
Referral programs also:
- Save time: Over 46% of recruitment professionals say they complete the process in a month or less when they use an employee referral program.
- Save money: Referrals help cut down on fees incurred by third-party recruiters and job boards.
- Match values: Your employees are familiar with your business goals and are well-placed to refer talented professionals who they know are aligned.
An Indeed survey indicated that over 75% of referred candidates are highly qualified. In this presentation, you can learn how to scale your talent acquisition process using referrals:
7. Improve Your Interview Process.
Your interviews must be cohesive and well-organised, whether conducted offline or online.
Ensure the process is effective by:
- Interviewing swiftly: You should screen each applicant quickly and set up automated emails to simplify the process. Then book a time.
- Leverage video interviews: The most innovative recruiters use video to connect with candidates. Different software such as Vidcruiter and MyInterview save travel costs, money, and time.
- Communicate the hiring methodology: To source successful candidates, you must have a hiring strategy planned. You should communicate this throughout the entire process.
- Discuss finances: Discuss salary during the interview, so everyone is on the same page. You should ask applicants about their salary expectations.
- Offer or decline the role: Make sure to reach out to the applicant with a decision as soon as possible after the interview — and provide feedback if they request.
Important!
The interview process should be approachable and judgement-free. Clarify any questions a candidate has and make yourself available to them.
The below recruitment metrics will allow you to reflect internally on the process once complete. You can then implement approvals before the next hire. Consider:
- Time to hire.
- Cost per hire.
- Applicants per hire.
- Source of hire.
- Hiring diversity.
- Candidate experience.
(Related: Four Day Workweek: The Ultimate Employee Perk?)
How To Leverage Employee Reviews.
Your current employees offer huge potential to spread the company messaging beyond the recruitment process; this is an ongoing effort. You can incentivise reviews or design a structure with multiple reward levels:
- Reviews: Ask employees to leave positive reviews on rating sites such as Glassdoor.
- Posts: Encourage employees to share insights from their day and company culture posts to Linkedin.
- Social Media: Ask employees to share appropriate content and job vacancies with their networks.
Important!
Be sure employees know the boundaries to share company information online and hold a training session on the best practice.
Bottom Line On Developing Your Recruiting Strategy.
Recruiting is an ever-changing and complex process specific to each business. You should refine this process and consult current employees for feedback each time.
Using the above strategies, you can source excellent candidates well-matched to your organisation. Once you have recruited, prepare for a successful interview with our guide here.
Irene
Saranne Segal says:
Great article on handling workplace conflict! One factor I think should deepen the discussion further is the role of cultural differences within workplace conflicts. Many times what seems like a value conflict may actually turn out to be a cultural misunderstanding, especially in very diverse teams. Acknowledging and respecting these cultural nuances can really mean the difference between resolution and disputes and establishing an inclusive environment.
Additionally, it may help to mention the value of psychological safety. When employees feel they can speak up without repercussion, that alone can end low-level conflicts and foster more open channels of communication. This, of course, fits right in with your notes of how respect and empathy are key parts of conflict management. Thanks for illuminating an important topic and sharing your insight.
Steven McConnell says:
Thanks Saranne, you make valid points.