The recruitment process for a job can be a tiring and expensive process. Take a look at these effective methods that will help you.
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Reference Checking Tips: Top 10 Pointers for a Smoother Process
“Diligence is the mother of good fortune.”
- Benjamine Disraeli, Former United Kingdom Prime Minister
Intro to Reference Checking Tips
Before we get into the top tips, let’s look at what reference checking entails. It is the process of verifying information about a candidate during the hiring process. While it can be conducted over a phone call or an email, in recent times, employers have taken to other, more modern processes such as online survey forms, automated reference checking services and so on. The purpose of this is to make a more informed decision about the candidate before hiring them. One of the major challenges with the modern hiring market is that every open position gets hundreds of applicants in a given time frame.
Checking all their references can be a time-consuming and often complicated process. In this blog, we will give you the run-down of top reference checking tips that can lend themselves to a smoother reference checking process. However, before we get down to the reference checking tips, let’s briefly go over how one should go over a run-of-the-mill reference check.
Reference Checking Tips: How to Conduct a Reference Check
The first thing to do when attempting to conduct a reference check is to identify yourself, your affiliations (which company you’re calling from) and the person who listed them as a reference. Start the conversation by asking the reference if now is a good time to talk. Next, you will want to assure them that all the answers and questions will remain confidential. Once you get the green light to proceed and they seem willing and ready, you move to phase two.
Start by verifying the basic details like the dates of employment and termination, employment history up until that point and so on. You also want to dive into the candidate’s capabilities such as knowledge base, work-relevant skills and so on. Ask the reference if they think the candidate in question would be a good fit for the role. Above all else, give the reference room to breathe and answer in their own time. Don’t take them down the road to the easy answer, nor should you keep interrupting them. Give them time and have them answer directly.
Having reference checking as a mandatory part of hiring will thin the crowd of applicants, and give you the candidates you want.
Top 10 Reference Checking Tips
In the above paragraphs, we talked about the reference checking process in regards to the reference, now, we will take a more balanced perspective. Let’s look at how you should handle reference checks with regards to the candidates as well as the references.
Tip #1: Be Upfront About Reference Checks
Remember earlier when we said how each position can get hundreds of applicants? Well, this may be a good way of weeding out the honest candidates from the mountain of resumes. be upfront about the fact that you do thorough reference checks. This will highlight candidates that have given less than ideal references or other related issues. Before you know it, you may find your candidacy list shirking by itself. The result will be a pool of candidates that will be more ideal in terms of what you are looking for and most importantly, honest.
Tip #2: Avoid Delegating Reference Check Responsibilities
If we are being honest, some days at the office can get a little hectic, especially when you’re in the midst of a hiring process with many candidates. However, you should try your best to avoid passing the baton of referencing checking a candidate. If you do, you could potentially miss something huge with that candidate. As the hiring manager or employer, you know exactly what to look for and what you need. No one else will see it the same way, nor will they ask the right questions.
These slip-ups could be as small as a passing remark made by the reference that could have revealed something big that clashes with your company culture. Something you might have likely missed since the job was passed onto someone else. This particular point is therefore one of the most important reference checking tips.
"Diligence leads to competence."
- Jeffrey Benjamin, Author
Tip #3: Be Thorough
When you have to deal with more than one reference per candidate there is a challenge and an advantage to that. The challenge is that you have to keep track of a lot of information for correlation. To make the best hiring decision, you need to take lots of notes and double-check when you’re unsure.
If you miss a step, you might miss by a mile in terms of candidate evaluation. Now, in terms of the advantage, there are around two or three references for a given candidate. This means that you can cross-check information and see how authentic that candidate’s profile is. Getting that third reference to confirm can make all the difference.
Tip #4: Conduct the Reference Check Over the Phone
If you have the choice between doing it via email or phone, rather do it over the phone. There are a lot of nuances that you can pick up in a live conversation. Little things like inflections in their voice, tone, subtle passing comments, etc. All things that can reveal a lot about a candidate. The same doesn’t translate well into the written word and they are less likely to reveal something negative directly for fear of liability issues.
Tip #5: Start With Easy Questions
As most conversations go, start it off on the lighter side. Start the reference checking process with easy questions like: How long did they work for you? This presents a much higher chance of eliciting the responses that matter rather than jumping straight into the deep questions. Also, keep in mind that you should try to phrase your questions in a positive light.
Cross-referencing is the most important aspect of the reference checking process.
Tip #6: Confirm Employment Dates
This may seem like an obvious one, but the fact is there can be minor discrepancies between the candidate’s stated dates of employment and the reality. This makes this point one of the most important references checking tips on this list. At the end of the day, you’re looking for a candidate of a certain experience, it doesn’t help you if this turns out to be false, so make sure before you hire them.
Tip #7: Avoid Close-Ended Questions
As far as reference checking tips go, this is another important one. The last thing you want as an outcome from the process is a whole bunch of vague, open-ended answers. Ask references questions in a way that will lead them to give you specific answers. For example, you might want to ask the reference: So, the candidate got along with their co-workers, correct? This would be preferred as opposed to asking a question like: How well did the candidate get along with their co-workers?
"Everything yields to diligence."
- Antiphanes, Ancient Greek Author
Tip #8: Gain Insights via Social Media
In this digital age, the social media realm offers lots of insights into who a person is. The same applies to candidates. When doing your due diligence this is a good place to look. While you may not be checking references in the traditional sense, checking a candidate’s public Facebook posts or Twitter feed can offer a lot of insight. This is especially true of their LinkedIn profile. This can quickly highlight not only their past work experiences and career orientation but also any discrepancies on their resumes.
Tip #9: Give Assurance of Confidentiality
If you have ever done a reference check in the past, you might have come across ex-employers who seem hesitant to answer some of your questions. Many times, references will hold back on answers out of fear of liability issues arising as a result. The best move you can make in these situations is to assure them that everything they say will remain confidential where applicable.
Tip #10: Watch Out for Fake References
It’s not unusual to have a candidate give you a fake reference as they may have had a falling out with their previous employer, or know that they have nothing good to say about the candidate. Hence, it is important to keep an eye on the authenticity of the references. As far as reference checking tips go, this one is cardinal, it gives legitimacy to the whole process. Verify the reference’s title, company name, their full name, dates of employment and if they were the candidate’s supervisor.
So, there you have it, some of the best reference checking tips that we think will help smooth out your recruitment process. However, if you still think that you might not have the time to sort through mountains of applications, there is an alternative: automated reference checking. Something that we here at Credibled specialize in! So, consider it and good luck!
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Roll Out an Efficient Recruitment Process in 2022
Roll Out an Efficient Recruitment Process in 2022
“Efficiency and focus are the keys to success.”
- Robert Crais, American Author
The world of recruitment and hiring has become rather erratic and unpredictable over the past few years. This was especially highlighted by the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. When recruiters need to hire these days, they usually need to do it quickly. Now, the pandemic does play a part in this, but as we said it is only one part. The other is due to the rapid digitization of the market. As a whole, candidates are getting more and more accustomed to a more efficient and higher quality recruitment process. According to a whitepaper published by the Robert Walters Group, around 65% of candidates are put off by lengthy recruitment.
Another paper published by Deloitte states that around 83% of candidates who have a negative recruitment experience can often change their minds about a role or a company that they once liked. What these numbers tell us is that a long and awkward recruitment process will do more harm than good. This is not just speaking in terms of your candidate pool, but also your employer brand. Having said that, in this blog, we will have a look at a few different ways to improve your recruitment process strategy in 2022.
How Do You Define Efficiency in the Recruitment Process
Efficiency in the recruitment process is both fast and easy for all parties involved. This means it should be a seamless experience between and for the candidate and hiring manager. If you were to define it further, an efficient process would be one where automation takes care of the manual tasks and saves on administrative time. An efficient process is also one that has the right timing. It collects the necessary information at the required time so no one wastes theirs.
At the end of the day, there might be a million different ways to make the recruitment process more efficient. However, the truth of the matter is, it all begins with having the right technology.
Simplifying the recruitment process is one of the best ways to make things more efficient.
#1 Maintain a Common Core for Your Information
Let’s be honest, the usual way that recruitment processes unfold is by having candidates apply through a job site. As the hiring manager, you download their information, shortlist them and add them to a spreadsheet. Once all that is done you feed it into the screening software you use. In this day and age, this is too clunky. It leaves candidate information everywhere and becomes a chaotic mess that you need a whole team of people to track at times.
A good place to start is by integrating some form of Applicant Tracking System (ATS). Think of it like a storage core where you keep all your candidate information. It’s like a one-stop-shop. This way, you eliminate the need for multiple excel sheets and keep things streamlined for yourself and the candidate. No information will be lost, candidates won’t miss crucial emails and you can close unwanted candidates off from the process with higher efficiency.
You can judge the quality of the ATS based on how well it integrates with other recruitment technologies like your automated reference checking software.
#2 Accept the Power of Automation
Automation is a modern luxury that allows recruiters to work smarter and not harder. They can put their skills to use where it matters rather than spending hours phone-screening candidates. Once you have the right automation technology on your side, you will be able to shortlist candidates more efficiently. This means you don’t have to spend days or even weeks working your way through a thousand different applications and resumes.
Rather, you just need to call the candidates who were shortlisted and select the best from that crowd. Easier shortlisting means less time to hire and better quality of candidates seeing as the recruiter is free to use their talents where it matters most. Once again, as we mentioned before this should ideally integrate with your ATS as well.
"Efficiency is doing better what is already being done."
Peter Drucker, Austrian-American Educator
#3 Check Scalability and Compatibility of Technologies
So far, we have talked about the implementation of technology. This point is more about making sure you implement the right technology. With the arrival of the pandemic and everyone shifting to remote work, practically overnight, it was a big change. Companies grabbed the first recruitment automation solution they could get their hands on. However, with remote work looking like it will be a possible constant in the future, it’s time to adopt technologies that will scale up with your business.
Ask yourself if the technology adds value to the process and what ROI you get from it. What are its limitations? Is it available 24/7? Can you integrate it with your existing systems or expand it as necessary? These questions will help determine if you are choosing the right product for your specific business needs. If you suddenly have to hire a huge influx of candidates you don’t want to be left stranded because you need to update your strategy or tech stack.
#4 Keep Experimenting
Experimenting doesn’t just mean checking all your processes all the time. It means to change things up a little! If you usually recruit at the end of the process, try doing it at the beginning! This is a great way to shortlist a group of strong candidates and it saves a ton of time. It can also help you lock down top talent fast as the due diligence will be done early on in the process.
Another thing you could do is pre-screen all your eligible candidates at the beginning of the recruitment process. It will allow you to evaluate more candidates in half the time. This means that you get to work with a wider talent pool and more data efficiently. There is also the added benefit of reduced human bias.
Constantly testing and experimenting will help you improve your overall recruitment process and candidacy funnel. Remember, you don’t have to reinvent the wheel or anything, just small changes can go a long way. Following these steps can help make the process easier and of higher quality, which is what you need in the modern job market as an employer.
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Interview Bias: A How-To Guide on Minimizing It
Interview Bias: A How-To Guide on Minimizing It
“Woe to the man who tries to remain objective and to maintain a wide perspective: everyone will label him as an enemy.”
- Paul Tournier, Swiss physician
When it comes to reference checking or even the recruitment process in general, we often talk about what the candidate needs to bring to the table. We so often forget that the interview process is a two-way street and the role the interviewer plays is just as significant to consider. In this case, what does the recruiter bring to the table? Are they objective or inherently biased? If it’s that latter, what’s the solution? These are some of the questions we will attempt to tackle in today’s article.
Understanding the Issue of Interview Bias
When it comes down to the interview process, as a stranger, candidates get the raw end of the deal. This issue mainly boils down to how they are assessed by another stranger. When the candidate is someone the hiring manager is somewhat familiar with, then those people are assessed based on their past performances for the most part.
However, strangers are more or less judged on their motivation to get the job, some general competency standards, technical knowledge and their first impression. Now, don’t get us wrong, these are good measures to have when assessing a candidate, but not when it’s done through a biased lens. Let’s take a stranger who makes a good first impression, on some level the hiring manager will look for facts to justify their strengths. If it was a bad impression, they might subconsciously look for reasons to exclude them from the job.
The caveat here is, both sides can be factually backed up if you look hard enough. So, as you can see, interviewer bias has many layers to it, and it’s never really a clear-cut thing. Having said that, there are some ways in which one can reduce interview bias and keep the process relatively fair.
The first impressions play a huge role in the interview process. Try to hold off final decisions based on that alone.
Top 10 Ways to Reduce Interview Bias
Before we dive into the list of ways in which you can reduce interviewer bias, we need to make note of one simple fact. Bias can only ever be reduced or managed. As a rule of thumb, human beings are biased on some level, consciously or subconsciously. It’s in our nature, be it for the better or worse. Having said that, these tactics will help you manage the bias.
Tip #1: Define the Job Requirements, Not the Person
When you put out an ad for a job, you will of course provide a job description. This is usually where the bias can start. More specifically, you need to define the description as a set of things that need to be done by a person. Oftentimes you might find that it is a list of things that the person needs to have.
If during an interview the candidate proves that they have previously done such work, it means that they have the skills to get the job done. However, this can contradict what was listed in the job description. Once you redefine the work for performance objectives rather than candidate requirements, you open up the talent pool. This not only brings in diversity, but also reduces bias as you would be comparing their past experiences, and not their first impressions.
Tip #2: Do an Initial Phone Interview
One sure-fire way to reduce bias is to make the process a little less personal, at least initially. Before you even have an interview with the person, consider a normal phone call. This reduces bias by removing visual cues that could influence us. Instead, we would be going purely off their resume, track record and so on. Establishing a decent connection based purely on their performance history will set the pace for the rest of the interview. This way, the first onsite impression, be it good or bad, won’t matter, because you already know what they are capable of.
"You have to attempt to be objective about yourself"
- Charles Dance, Actor
Tip #3: Panel Interviews Can Help
Having a panel of interviewers, as opposed to one person, lessens the odds of there being any bias in the room. This is especially helpful if all the interviewers are assigned specific roles. Having this diversity and a controlled proceeding will give the interview a good balance.
Tip #4: Scripting Can Reduce Interview Bias
Scripting the interview, be it fully or partially can help reduce the interview bias as well. Giving the candidate the pre-scripted questions ahead of time brings down the chances of any deviations during the interview. This tip is pretty connected to the previous one, so perhaps consider combining them both in certain instances.
Tip #5: Take Time to Decide
Now, we don’t mean you need to be slow in deciding, but rather take your time and think it through. A good rule of thumb is to wait 30 minutes before you make any yes or no decisions. In the meantime, make sure to ask all the candidates the same set of questions, regardless of if you have a positive or negative reaction.
Tip #6: Taken Everything into Account
Much like how a courtroom operates, you need to take into consideration all the evidence, i.e., the facts, before settling on any one decision. To make the closest thing to a balanced decision, you need to have all the information in your hand. Once you have all this you can make a more informed and balanced decision that is fair to everyone involved.
The interviewer's mindset is perhaps one of the biggest influencers of the interview outcome, regardless of the candidate.
Tip #7: Reverse Psychology Is a Great Tool for Reducing Interview Bias
Remember the point we mentioned earlier about looking for facts that back up how we perceive a candidate? Well, this is a good way to combat that issue. Once you, the interviewer, have been through the recruitment process a few times, you will notice the pattern. Use this information to do work in opposition to what you perceive. Let’s use the earlier example of how we look for facts that back up how we perceive the candidates’ first impression.
Now, in such a case, force yourself to look for reasons that contradict how you perceive them. If they give a negative first impression, look for positive facts and vice versa. Think about it as looking for the other half of the puzzle.
Tip #8: Treat Candidates Like They Are Experts
When we interview people who are viewed as experts in their field, we tend to give them the benefit of the doubt. It is highly recommended that you treat every candidate as an expert too. If you give all your candidates the same courtesy, the truth will become obvious, whether you like them or not. This is a good way to objectively approach the recruitment process.
Tip #9: Use a Scoring System
When it comes down to personal opinions there will always be bias involved to some degree. This is good in certain instances where you have to use your intuition to judge the quality of the candidate. However, if you’re trying to reduce interview bias in the process, consider using a scoring system to back up your opinions. Perhaps something along the lines of a scorecard.
Tip #10: First Impressions Should Be Considered Last
When all is said and done about the bias of first impressions, there is still a use for first impressions. They can reveal a lot about the character of the candidate, which is essential for assessing workplace compatibility. Having said that, reserve all judgements on first impressions and only consider them towards the end of the interview process. This will allow you to get a reasonably objective view of them as you won’t be that deterred or wooed by said impression. You will have facts and reasons to measure it against.
While all these steps are great individual tools, it would be better if some aspect of these guidelines were involved throughout the recruitment process. It drives up the overall quality of your recruitment process while driving down the chances of interview bias.
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Hiring Metrics You Should be Tracking in 2022
Hiring Metrics You Should be Tracking in 2022
“It is much more difficult to measure nonperformance than performance.”
- Harold S. Geneen, Ex-President of ITT Corporation
Attracting high-quality candidates seems to be one of the biggest challenges that hiring managers face these days. To help drive the odds in their favour, one would measure and track certain hiring metrics. These metrics serve the purpose of acting as indicators. They show you where you stand in terms of success. They also show how much you have to grow and the changes you need to make to get there. Keep in mind that there are plenty of hiring metrics to track when attempting to capture the cream of the crop. However, some metrics are more important than others.
Determining which ones are more important depends to how your business defines success. Having said that, for growing businesses, it can be tough to know which metrics to prioritize. Hence, we have put together a list of hiring metrics for you that you need in 2022. Regardless of the direction your business might go in, these indicators can be applied to a variety of scenarios!
Hiring Metrics #1: Hires per Month
Hires per month and headcount growth is some of the most universal metrics when it comes to recruitment. Tracking your hires per month is essential. It tells you how many people your company hires on an average monthly basis. On the other hand, the headcount growth is a figure that you can aim for over a period of time- sort of like a recruitment goal.
By having these two metrics measured and tracked side-by-side you can have hard facts that tell you how well you are performing. You could have just one of those metrics, but having both works together is ideal. This is especially good for a business that plans to consistently hire and expand. However, you need to make sure that the growth targets are realistic. Take into account the size and capacity of the hiring team, the market trends, the nature of the role and so on.
The time it takes to interview can be an indicator to different things like candidate quality, time to hire, etc.
Hiring Metrics #2: Cost per Hire
While you track how often you hire people and how many you hire, it’s also important to measure the cost to the business. Remember, labour is not free and quality talent will make a dent in your budget. Now the cost to hire goes beyond just your employee’s salary. You have to take into consideration things like how much you’re paying a hiring agency (if applicable), the cost to be listed on a job board, membership fees for certain networks and so on. In some cases, you might even have to take into consideration the recruit’s relocation costs. All this will tell you how efficient your overall recruitment process is.
Hiring Metrics #3: Average Time per Interview
This metric is often mixed up with time to hire. The truth of the matter is, in the modern hiring landscape, the time to hire is too broad a concept. For example, the time to hire someone as a waiter will not be the same as the time it takes to hire an IT professional. These are two vastly different occupations with different hiring criteria and need to be handled as such. Therefore, having an average measure of time to hire, from the date of advertising the position to filling it, is unrealistic!
A better way to go about it is to measure the average time to interview candidates. This in itself will give you a measure of the time a candidate spends interviewing with your company. It will also give you additional data such as the candidate’s interviewing experience as well as your overall time to hire an individual. It’s a more compartmentalized approach, yet it works quite well for all intents and purposes.
Hiring Metrics #4: Probation Pass Percentage
Hiring a candidate that doesn’t stick around is a drain on your company’s time and resources. It is therefore all the more surprising how few companies consider post-hiring performance as an effective hiring metric. This is where the probation period comes in handy. By measuring the percentage of candidates that pass the probation, you can efficiently identify whether you’re hiring the right candidate. It will also give you a better idea of what kind of candidate might best fit the company culture and the quality standards you expect.
Yes, the probation pass numbers are a reflection of the recruitment efforts of your team or the recruitment agency that you employ. However, it is also a measure of the candidate’s willingness and aptitude. If there is a high percentage of candidates that fail the probation period, it could be that you are not hiring the right people or their skills aren’t measuring up to your expectations. In which case, you need to set clearer expectations and communicate the same when hiring. This metric is a good indicator of how to best alter the recruitment strategy.
Hiring Metrics #5: Measure Percentage of Inbound Hires
This is an important one. As a business with a working recruitment strategy, you need to know the percentage of your inbound hires. That is to say, how many people are approaching you, through the ads or job postings that you have put out. When you track this, you will get an idea of whether your recruitment efforts are reaching the right candidates and job market. If the inbound hires are not up to your expectations, then that means that you’re spending more time reaching out to candidates than they approach you.
Having a huge ratio of outbound hires to inbound hires could mean that the majority of your strategy isn’t reaching the right audience. It could also mean that it is reaching them, but not converting into anything of significance. This hiring metric will tell you how to adjust your advertising strategy and drive your efforts from that point.
There are tons of different metrics to measure your success, but only a few will work for you. Focus only on those!
Hiring Metrics #6: Offer Acceptance Rate
This is one of the more obvious hiring metrics, but a necessary one nonetheless. Of course, you need to track the offer acceptance rate to identify how often you achieve the goal of securing talent. However, you should consider this metric as a primary indicator for other feedback points. If the offer acceptance rate is low, then the hiring experience might be poor, or you could be taking too long to process the candidate. Having said that, you shouldn’t aim for an unrealistic, ‘perfect’ acceptance rate score either. Doing that could take away from the attention you give to the quality of the candidate experience or the candidate themselves. Neither extreme is good for business. Maintaining a 75% to 85% acceptance rate is ideal in most cases.
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The Future of Work: Navigating the Hiring Crisis of the Post-Covid-19 Era
The Future of Work: Navigating the Hiring Crisis of the Post-Covid-19 Era
“The future of work consists of learning a living.”
- Marshall McLuhan, Canadian Philosopher
Imagine that you are in a situation where you have to rethink your entire way of doing business overnight. Despite your initial fears, it turns out that the new method shows promise for something more long-term. It acts as a blueprint of sorts for the days ahead. Believe it or not, this is what most workplace leaders discovered in the Covid-19 crisis. The future of work trends points to the fact that the hiring crisis of the post-Covid-19 era will haunt us for many days to come. However, that doesn’t mean that there aren’t ways to adapt. You could even thrive with the right strategy in place.
Let’s recap, in the wake of the pandemic, what did we see? We saw a mass global migration for pretty much all sectors across the majority of industries. This migration was one where everyone was either moving to the digital realm or upgrading their existing online infrastructure. The pandemic essentially forced our hands at improving our approach to business, the technologies therein, and even how we search for talent.
In this article, we will be looking at some key strategies that should help you better navigate the hiring crisis of the post-Covid-19 era. This will give you a better idea of how to approach the future of work.
The better your internal teams and external initiatives are aligned, the higher the quality of hires are.
The Future of Work: Set the Stage for the Best Results
One thing that you should keep in mind when going through the recruitment process is alignment. This refers to the alignment of your internal and external resources as well as the candidates with the values of the organisation. Let’s break it down. In today’s landscape, it goes far beyond just an interview. One has to make sure that the hiring leaders are fully aware of the changing market landscape. For this purpose, many companies have been proactively hiring external agencies to help skill up hiring leaders.
This makes for a better alignment of the hiring leadership with the talent acquisition team. Once everyone is on the same page, you get better results. In terms of aligning your candidates with the values of the company, just be sure to have a clear idea in mind of the type of employee you are looking for. This should give you a good idea of what criteria a candidate has to meet to effectively carry out their duties. With that, your stage is set and you are ready to tackle the future of work.
The Future of Work: Attracting Candidates in a Tight Job Market
Look, with the onset of the pandemic and everything shifting to digital, first impressions have become all the more important. In this day and age, it isn’t just the candidates who have to impress the company, it’s a two-way street. Companies have to go out of their way to show candidates why they would want to work there over the competition. It’s the only way to stay afloat in this economy. Having said that, here are a few ways you can go about this.
"You have to value skills and not just degrees."
- Ginni Rometty, Chairman, President and CEO of IBM
#1 Make Candidate Experience a Priority in the Future of Work
The first step to any successful recruitment process is to design it in a way that puts people first. The future of work depends on the candidate’s experience. It is the most important thing that can come out of it. It should be constructed in such a way that the recruiter has time to connect with people during the hiring process. As we mentioned before, technology has seen massive improvements in the workplace, so use it to your benefit. Use technology and things like automated reference checks to take the admin work off your recruiter’s plate. Free them up to get to know the person behind the resume. It is crucial to understand how the work will fit into the candidate’s life and not the other way around.
The world and the future of work have changed drastically over the past few years and continue to evolve. We now find ourselves in a state where candidates are looking for work that offers them a holistic lifestyle as opposed to just another paycheck.
#2 Try for Candidates with Transferable Skills
Another way to attract top talent in these tough times is to look into transferable skills. A good way to think about this is to consider candidates from industries that have relevant or adjacent skillsets that can be adapted for your business. This provides you with the benefit of time saved on upskilling freshers, while still retaining an employee who can absorb new knowledge about the industry. Alternatively, you could also consider recruiting internally!
This is a great way to build employee loyalty and fill in the talent gap at the same time. Use what you have, that is the ultimate takeaway from this point.
You need to offer employees something that will make them want to work for you. It's a two-way street.
#3 Polish Up Your Employer Value Proposition for a Better Future of Work
As the needs of the job market shift, so too should your Employer Value Proposition (EVP) to accommodate the future of work. As mentioned above, candidates want a job that provides them with a degree of satisfaction. You need to carry yourself in such a way that you look desirable as an employer. People should want to work for you because of what you have to offer them. This could take the form of better work hours, more time off, a wide range of benefits or even a higher pay scale.
Make sure that whatever changes you implement in practice, are out there for the world to see. Revamp your website and social media platforms. Highlight what you stand for and what you can offer your employees.
#4 Referrals Are Your Best Friend
Glassdoor is a great example of referrals or peer-to-peer advocacy. People want to hear from people about the company. They want to know the employee’s perspective before they commit to your business. Referrals have always been a great vehicle for recruitment. It even plays a massive role in automated reference checking if you think about it. Word-of-mouth carries weight.
However, now you have the technology to back up your efforts, so use it! Get a dedicated team to jump on the phones, follow up with referrals and make the most of it. A positive word about your business practices can work wonders when trying to accommodate the future of work trends.
#5 Keep the Hope Alive to Navigate the Future of Work
This is not emphasized nearly as much as it should be. Frankly speaking, the Covid-19 pandemic has brought the world face-to-face with some of humanity’s darkest times. This applies both economically and socially. In such a case, it’s crucial to maintain a positive mindset. You, as an employer, need to take steps to boost employee morale. Because, at the end of the day, everything we mentioned so far, stems from a healthy outlook towards the business.
Take time to reflect on shortcomings, challenges and success. Celebrate the little things and the things you learnt. This will preserve your company’s values and just help things run a lot smoother in the long run. In a way, it brings us back to the first point. It’s all about people. People help you run your business, so put them first to the best of your ability. So, there you have it, some of the key ways in which you can adapt to the future of work in the post-Covid-19 era.
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