The Quick Guide to an Effective Recruitment Process

Create an Employee Referral Program

Create an employee referral program to involve your employees in the recruitment process. They’ll be more motivated to spread the word about the opening, and they’ll likely lead you to more qualified candidates for the job. Organizations that use their employees’ networks can have a ten times larger talent pool to recruit from.

Develop a Clear Employer Brand

Recruitment is a two-way street. Just as candidates invest time to impress potential employers by sharing their experience and skills, your business should do the same in attracting talent by illustrating why people should work for you. Think about the mission and values of the company. Are they displayed effectively across your website and social media pages? Since your candidates will most likely research your company online, it’s crucial to establish a strong digital brand.

What Are the Benefits of Having an Effective Recruitment and Selection Process?

Investing time to create and implement an effective recruitment process can provide the following benefits:

• Lower hiring costs – Being proactive in hiring new employees increases the profitability and performance of your business. You can help your departments by providing the necessary resources and manpower to fulfill their responsibilities along with financially helping your organization by reducing cost-per-hire.
• Better quality of new hires – By fast-tracking high-quality candidates, you’ll be more likely to retain their interest. A slower process may leave them disappointed and tempted to look at other companies. A survey of more than 3,000 job seekers and 100 employers found that 92 percent of companies “make an offer within a week of the interview process.”
• Increases employee productivity – An effective recruitment process can free up space for HR teams to invest time in training new and existing employees. By focusing on learning and development, you can foster employee engagement and performance that will bring lasting results.

Steps to the Recruitment Process

Now that you know what a good recruitment process looks like, how do you create one for your business? We’ve broken things down into simple and actionable recruitment process steps:

1. Identify Your Needs

Create a list of needs before you create a job posting. It may seem easy to identify the hiring need when you’re replacing an employee who just left, but the task gets more difficult if you’re creating a new position or changing the responsibilities of a role.

2. Prepare the Job Description

Creating a good job description is a vital piece in crafting an effective recruitment strategy. Once you understand your business and department’s needs, you should determine the duties and responsibilities of the role and write them out.

Job descriptions help communicate the organization’s needs and expectations to a potential candidate. It’s essential to be as specific as possible in the job description to attract and meet candidates who can sufficiently meet the demands of the role.

3. Create a Recruitment Plan

Save time and energy by creating a recruitment plan. Strategize the best ways to get the word out about the job. Determine who will be reviewing resumes, scheduling interviews, and deciding on the right candidate.

4. Start Searching

Use keyword recruitment tools to cut down on your search time during the recruitment process. This can be the most time-consuming part of recruiting, and keyword tools can weed out unqualified applicants.

5. Recruit Top-Tier Candidates

The best candidates likely have many options, and you’ll need to maintain timely communication or they’ll quickly move on to other opportunities. Use a mobile hiring app to review top candidates quickly, right on your smartphone, whether you’re in the office or on the go.

6. Conduct a Phone Screening

Once you have your eye on certain applicants, conduct a phone screening to narrow down the selection process and make sure you want to take the time to interview the candidate in person. Make a list of the best interview questions to ask before you get started.

7. Interview in Person

Interviews should be conducted soon after a phone screening—ideally within a week. The process shouldn’t stretch on too long, or candidates may lose interest. Communicate with the interviewee about where you are in the process and how long it will take to get back to them with your decision. And then be sure to follow up, even if you decide they’re not a good fit. Be sure to allot enough time so you can focus and give candidates your undivided attention.

8. Offering the Job

Just because you offer an employee a job doesn’t mean they’re going to accept. Take great care in this step of the process to present a desirable offer the candidate won’t want to pass up. Over 90 percent of people report being contacted by a manager can make them accept a job offer faster, so don’t be afraid to reach out. But expect the process to take time, and be ready to negotiate salary and benefits.

9. Onboarding a New Employee

Now that you’ve determined which candidate will be joining your team, the real work begins. Implement a new hire onboarding process so the candidate has a positive experience and can easily dive into the job you’ve hired them for.

The onboarding process shouldn’t simply focus on new hire paperwork—it should focus on processes and resources that will help new hires transition successfully into the company. For example, assigning a mentor or a buddy and setting up one-on-one time with managers can help expedite new hire proficiency.

Getting Started

By following these steps and guidelines, you’ll be on your way to finding a qualified candidate for your organization. The recruitment process may be tricky, but investing time in your strategy will be well worth the effort. Good luck!