How To Improve Recruitment Processes? (Inhouse+ Agency Recruitment)

Finding the right employees for your organization is critical to the success of your business. An effective recruitment process is likely to lead to a great team of employees to take your organization to a new level. In this article, we discuss the recruitment process and give you ways to improve the process of bringing in new employees.

What is the recruitment process?

The recruitment process refers to the steps that an organization takes to identify vacant job positions, analyze requirements for the position, receive and review applications, shortlist the outstanding candidates and choose the new hire. A good recruitment process reduces the time involved in searching, interviewing, hiring, and training prospective employees. A thorough recruitment process reduces staff turnover and saves money that could have been used to train new hires.

How to improve the recruitment processes

Getting the best employees to match your organization's needs is critical. That is why a well-defined recruitment process should be a strategic component of the organization's objectives. Your recruitment processes will benefit immensely from applying the following strategies:

1. Provide details of the vacant role

If you are not providing precise details about the open position, you are likely missing out on great candidates. Every job candidate wants to be sure what kind of work they will be doing in your organization. To attract the best candidate, be clear on the job description of the vacant position and the qualities you are looking for in a candidate. You might consider having a brief list of must-have qualities and the most important responsibilities of the position.

2. Be clear on the job title

It might seem like it doesn't count for a lot, but candidates take notice of job titles before responding to a job advert. Be clear about the position you are seeking to fill.

3. Say something about your company culture

Your organizational culture is the personality of your organization. If used correctly, your company brand and culture are great selling points for candidates. As you draft job adverts, do not forget to say something about the company and what makes it stand out in the market. You may mention the milestones the company has achieved, any awards won and plans for the future. Also, outline the company perks and why you are the best employer. This way, you are likely to attract a great pool of candidates interested in working in your organization.

4. Mind the language in your job posting

The wording of your job advert has an impact on the kind of candidates you are likely to attract. Avoid using jargon and language that prospective candidates may not understand.

5. Make use of social media

Millions of people are now using social media to get the latest industry news and search for jobs. Post open positions to where you are likely to get the best fit for your organization. Take advantage of your social media presence to post job vacancies and broaden the pool of candidates. As the post is shared with your networks, more candidates are likely to respond to the job posting and increase your chances of landing a great employee.

6. Seek referrals

Obtain referrals from the management and employees on people who are likely to fit perfectly in your organization. Create a referral program complete with incentives to get high-quality hires for your company. Use professional organizations and learning institutions to get referrals for candidates with immense potential.

7. Have an interview plan

The interview process is critical in the recruitment process. Before inviting candidates for the interview, create a checklist of the qualities you are looking for in the candidates. Carefully select the interviewer or panelists who will interview candidates for a particular position. Also, discuss the modalities of scoring the candidates. Devise a post-interview evaluation strategy free of bias that will help you choose the best candidate.

8. Identify and remove recruitment bottlenecks

Like any other organizational activity, the recruitment process is also prone to inefficiencies, biases, and office politics. Proactively identify and insulate the process from these bottlenecks. For instance, you might consider having a policy outlining how employees will be recruited and promoted to avoid ad hoc approaches.

9. Make data-driven decisions

Data technology could be used to predict behaviors and enable more intuitive recruitment decisions. Move away from pattern-based decisions to data-driven decisions. Make use of predictive models and big data to know which channels lead to the best hires, the attributes of the best candidates, and whether your organization can retain its talent.

10. Make the process all-inclusive

It is the responsibility of the hiring manager or the human resource manager to undertake the recruitment process. For the best results, the recruiters must involve other managers and employees in the recruitment process. Including others in the process can help identify whether a candidate is a good fit for the organization.

11. Test the candidate for competence

Candidates invest a great deal of time and effort in making their resume stand out and attract the recruiter's attention. As the hiring manager, go beyond an attractive resume and test the candidates' competence in their area of expertise. This will help you gauge whether a candidate has the stated skills or whether they can perform under pressure.

12. Ensure the process is fair and consistent

The recruitment process is multifaceted and involves several activities. To get the best candidate for your organization, ensure candidates for a similar job go through the same process, such as the same interview questions, similar skills test, and evaluation. This allows you to make the process fair, consistent and transparent.

13. Look out for potential

Whereas hiring the most skilled candidate makes more sense, this approach may not always give you value for money and time. An alternative approach might be to hire employees based on their attitude and ethics. Hiring for attitude allows you to access a wider talent pool for candidates with a learning mindset and who may end up contributing immensely to the organization's future.

14. Automate the process

The recruitment process might prolong beyond the initial plan if you use manual methods of sorting the applications. Moreover, relying on manual processing may lead to human errors and overlooking outstanding candidates. Consider automating processes such as artificial intelligence to screen applications or chatbots to engage with the candidates. You not only save time and money but also minimize errors by landing qualified candidates.

15. Consider promoting from inside

The talent you are seeking from outside might already be in your organization. Before posting the open position externally, you might consider promoting from within your existing employees. An inside hire mitigates the onboarding process for outside candidates since they are already familiar with the business operations.

16. Use events to source for candidates

Make use of industry events to meet potential candidates for your organization. Events also offer an excellent opportunity for networking with like-minded organizations, which may lead to strategic partnerships in many areas, including talent acquisition. By using events to source for candidates, you cut the cost of recruitment and reduce the time required to get the new hires on board.

17. Have a talent pipeline in place

Connect with passive candidates to improve your recruitment process. Passive candidates allow you to have a continuous source of candidates who may be called upon to fill a vacancy at short notice. Building a pipeline of talent is especially crucial in filling positions with a history of high turnover.

18. Simplify the application process

A significant number of candidates abandon the job application process midstream due to various reasons. Among the reasons is the complexity of the application process. The application abandonment may be costing your organization valuable talent. To prevent this scenario, identify the pain points and make it easy for candidates to go the full cycle.

19. Optimize the onboarding process

Selecting a successful candidate is not the end of the recruitment process. Make the most of the onboarding process to ensure the new hire settles in and adapt to the new work environment.

20. Streamline the screening process

Candidate screening can be expensive and time-consuming, yet it is a step that cannot be overlooked. To avoid unnecessary delay in the recruitment process without compromising the quality of selection, you may choose to only screen the shortlisted candidates. Moreover, you can make the screening efficient by tailoring the background checks to the position.

21. Have a timeline for the recruitment process

Proper planning of the recruitment process is essential. A key aspect of recruitment planning includes having a timeline within which the recruitment should be concluded. A lengthy recruitment process is more costly and may lead to a hemorrhage of talent. Sufficient resources should also be set aside for recruitment, such as investing in an applicant tracking system and AI software to hasten the process.

22. Rediscover past candidates

Expedite the recruitment process by going through resumes received in past recruitment drives. You might find some candidates who did not qualify for previous positions but are highly qualified for the current openings. Contact the candidates to find out whether they are still available and interested. Rediscovering past candidates saves money and time and allows you to fill positions fast.

23. Don't be too fixated on cultural fit

Most companies regard cultural fit as an indispensable attribute that a candidate must possess. Highly qualified candidates who do not meet the threshold are, therefore, discarded. The consequence of this strategy is that it stifles innovation and affects company growth in the long term. To enhance your recruitment process, hire for diversity, and do not shy away from hiring maverick candidates.