It’s time to work smarter, not harder, especially when it comes to reducing recruiting time and improving recruiting ROI. The job market is topsy-turvy right now; there’s been a resignation tsunami since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, and there’s a lot of great talent available, but you’ll need to move fast before your competition snaps them up.
In a survey conducted by Dice, 72% of recruiters who responded said a lack of automation leads to a slow hiring process. And 44% indicated they missed hiring opportunities because of the lack of smart recruiting techniques available to them.
Spending hours every day searching for the perfect candidate won’t get the results. Instead, using technology and other tools can help any recruiter or hiring manager find talent faster. Here’s how.
Make Applications Easier
An astounding 71% of applicants say they’ve abandoned the application process. An online application is just like any website. If there are technical issues or it takes too long to load, people will move on to the next opportunity.
Many companies feel that they’re weeding out unqualified candidates by creating more barriers to the application process. But the process will also turn off qualified talent. Many job seekers are embracing one-touch applications. This, paired with applicant tracking systems and talent intelligence, can not only increase the candidate pool but make it easier to sort through resumes and applications to find the most qualified.
Boost Employee Referrals
Sometimes the best resource is your current team. Employee referrals are four times more likely to be hired than candidates through other recruiting channels. They can also save companies money, often more than $75,000 per hire. And 45% of employees hired through referrals stay with companies for more than four years, compared to 25% of traditionally recruited team members.
It’s easy to see that beefing up employee referral programs can help recruitment spend more time on the tasks that matter rather than continually sourcing candidates for open jobs. It also helps with employee retention as teams feel more connected when they’ve had an opportunity to help find talent.
Use Social Media
While social media has been on the rise for many years, many people increased their consumption during 2020. This means more job seekers are also on social media platforms, 61% to be exact. Resourceful recruiters will be where job seekers are to find and attract top talent, including passive candidates.
You can start with a few key strategies:
- Determine the best platform for your industry
- Improve your employer brand
- Use hashtags
- Create shareable content
- Respond to posts and messages quickly
- Ensure mobile compatibility of the content
Hire From Within
It costs far more to hire a new employee than to upskill and promote a current team member. A SHRM report indicated that it took companies 42 days to fill an open position and had over $4000 in recruiting costs in the process. There is also lost revenue for the days the job goes unfilled to account for, and more.
On the other hand, upskilling is essential and will help keep your team engaged, improving retention. It’s much easier to source and recruit entry-level positions than hiring for upper-level positions. And the new employee may bring bad habits to the table. Instead, upskilling current staff means they already know the business.
AI for Recruiting
Technology hasn’t just enhanced our access to social media or the ability to upskill employees. The use of artificial intelligence can positively impact the entire recruiting industry. By working with talent intelligence to source candidates fast and efficiently, recruiters can spend more time talking to pre-vetted and qualified individuals.
Ethical AI is essential. There have been a few examples where AI learned the same biases humans sometimes brought to the table. By constantly evaluating and updating information and complying with legislation and regulations that provide better oversight in AI recruiting.