How to Secure Candidates in High Demand

 

The recruitment landscape is no longer an even playing field. In certain industries, the tables are turned and it seems you need your next hire more than they need you.

An attractive pay slip helps, but it’s not the be all and end all. To secure high demand candidates, your end-to-end recruitment process must be a cut above the rest.

What can you do to secure top talent in the most competitive industries for recruiters? Read on to learn the key things you need to focus on to fill that empty desk and keep your hip pocket happy.

Nail your recruitment advertising

Candidates in high demand are exposed to significantly more job listings than the average job seeker. This means your job ads need to be outstanding.

Ensure your key stand-outs are the first thing job seekers see when they cast their eyes over your listing. In a few short sentences, describe why would someone from this particular industry want to work for you?

“Don’t assume that simply having a job ad means people will apply. You need to work for great candidates by being engaging. Put yourself in candidates’ shoes and think about what they want to know. Try not to leave questions unanswered and use language they’re comfortable with,” says our Recruitment Advertising Specialist, Jessica Harkin.

Offer candidates what they want

In a competitive recruitment landscape, you will need to offer an appropriate remuneration and articulate this on your job listing. “Recruitment advertising campaigns that include a salary or salary range receive significantly more applications,” says Amber Dique-Bellette, our Global Shortlisting Leader.  

But it’s not just an attractive salary package that will entice applicants; in fact, an Employment Office study found that 1 in 4 people consider a great workplace culture to be the most important factor when considering an employer.

Realise the value of your candidates and quickly highlight the opportunities within your organisation that they care about – what type of working environment and benefits do you offer? How can your organisation develop them within their particular industry? For example, if recruiting a graduate software developer, mention the possibilities for growth in this field and leadership roles down the track.  

/*-By emphasising your offering and understanding what candidates want, you’ll be better equipped to attract quality applications and secure the very best talent.  

Don’t make your candidates wait

Candidates in high demand are more likely to quit your recruitment process early – they’re high risk and you’ll need to treat them as such. Harness the power of recruitment software which allows you to send mass, automated, yet personalised emails and SMS that keep your candidates in the know every step of the way. Communicating with candidates across a range of platforms ensures important messages are received promptly, and your opportunity isn’t lost.

Did you know that creating a positive experience for your candidates will encourage them to be advocates of your organisation before they even join you? Employment Office’s Shortlisting & Selection Specialists are experts when it comes to candidate care. They can guide you through the process or even provide sophisticated, easy to use recruitment software which allows you to practice high-quality candidate care.  

Make a good impression

Creating a positive impression of your organisation as an employer of choice is all about nurturing your employer brand.

Remember, candidates in high demand are typically going through the recruitment process with a number of similar organisations – your competitors! They’re comparing their interactions with each organisation, consciously and subconsciously, to determine the more attractive employer. So, it’s imperative you understand your employee value proposition (EVP) and articulate it as soon as possible.

However, defining your employer brand and EVP is something that is best left to experts if you’re after the best results. “A benefit of engaging an experienced, specialist team is that we’re completely objective in our approach. We’re able to research, analyse, strategise and develop powerful messaging without bias. We also find employees we interview as part of our research are always willing to share more with us than they would their direct employer,” shares Mark Puncher, Head of Employer Branding.     

Your employer brand presents a huge opportunity when it comes to securing high-demand candidates. Combined with effective recruitment advertising, outstanding candidate care and offering candidates what they want most, you can start successfully securing top talent in tight markets.     

Editor’s note: Partner with the recruitment experts who deliver the very best talent to your business. Employment Office provides a suite of recruitment services tailored to your organisation; where you lose the stress but always keep control. Talk to us today!

 

Your New (Financial) Year Resolutions

Your New (Financial) Year Resolutions
By Susanne Mather, Executive Director of Employment Office Group

It’s that time of year again. For many of us, the end of the financial year means extra coffees, a little more paperwork and, of course, a party to celebrate!

But don’t let the financial year slip by without reviewing your recruitment results to date. It can be easy to settle into bad recruitment habits, so it’s important to take a step back and assess what is and isn’t working for you. Now is the perfect time to assess where you could improve when it comes to your recruitment efforts, and set yourself up for a successful new financial year.

Here are my top five suggestions for how you can make the new financial year your most successful year of recruitment yet:

Change the way you interview

This year, commit to basing your hiring decision on what candidates do, not only what they say. While one-on-one interviews will always be a necessary part of recruitment, group assessment days add incredible value and allow you to observe candidates in a professional context.

If you’re needing to hire in bulk, have a high turnover or want to better understand candidates’ interpersonal and communication skills, then group assessment days are right for you. Group interviews provide a more robust and tailored process than you might get using one-on-one interviews alone. You can observe candidates’ skills, decision making strengths, leadership qualities and teamwork abilities in action so you make the most informed hire.

Our team designs, executes and facilitates a range of bulk hiring processes tailored to any vacancy type and criteria. Click here to learn more about our assessment centres from some of our clients and our Global Shortlisting Leader, Amber Dique-Bellette.

Put your candidates to the test

How much do you really know about your shortlisted candidates? It’s easy for them to talk the talk, but without making them walk can you be sure you’re making the best hiring decision? If you want to put your top candidates to the test, you need to be using skills and behavioural testing.

Behavioural testing is the only way to effectively and accurately measure someone’s predicted job performance, temperament and fit within the role and organisation. Hiring people who don’t align with workplace culture is a common mistake made. But there is good news – behavioural testing is easy to include in your recruitment. Our Shortlisting and Selection Specialists can guide you through the entire process and even provide an interpretation of your candidates’ results.

When it comes to skills assessment, accurately measuring candidates’ abilities will put you ahead in the recruitment game. You’ll not only find that selecting the right candidate is easier, you’ll also find that once they join you in the workplace they will be able to hit the ground running.

Harness the power of recruitment software

Don’t let a poor candidate management system get in the way of securing the best talent. Streamlined recruitment technology can reduce time spent on recruitment administration by 50 percent. The right candidate management technology can decrease turnover, improve HR processes across the board, and ultimately save organisations thousands of dollars year on year.

Employment Office provides recruitment technology that enables hiring teams to easily access candidate information in one database, determine both unfit and outstanding candidates quickly with screening questions, conduct reporting, and deliver customised mass communication across a number of platforms including email and SMS. And that’s just to name a few!

What’s more, we even offer access to our sophisticated candidate management system for the duration of recruitment campaigns without the long-term investment, with Scout Talent: Select.

Uncover your employer brand

Did you know that companies with a strong employer brand are twice as likely to receive responses from candidates they contact? As predicted in our recruitment trends for 2017, the time for employer branding is now.

Our Head of Employer Branding, Mark Puncher, explains that “your employer brand is who you are. It’s the feeling your employees get when they walk through the door. It’s what comes to mind when job seekers see your brand.”

Your employer brand is embedded in your company culture and vision, so you can’t alter it overnight. But you can implement a clear approach to position yourself as an employer of choice. Partnering with external employer branding specialists who understand how to design and deliver an end-to-end research project and strategy is the best way to articulate who you are, what you stand for and the benefits of employment at your company. Make your employer brand a priority this financial year.

As a start, have you visited Glassdoor recently to see what your employees are saying about you?

Don’t go it alone

Whether you handle all your recruitment in-house or not, we know the challenges and frustrations that you face. That’s why we offer a suite of trusted products and services which give you the best of both worlds: an efficient, effective recruitment process where you lose the stress but keep full control.

This financial year, don’t go it alone in your recruitment journey. And more importantly, don’t settle for traditional recruitment models that overcharge and underdeliver. Partner with a leading recruitment provider at a flat fee for all your hiring needs. Save time and attract skilled candidates without the hard work, while keeping full control of the process and the outcome.

The start of a new financial year is the perfect time to check if your recruitment efforts are on track and if not, make changes now for the best results and high-quality candidates across the 2017/18 year. If you’d like to discuss how Employment Office can revolutionise the way you recruit, get in touch with us today.

Susanne Mather is the co-founder and Executive Director of Employment Office Group. With over 20 years’ experience in the recruitment industry, Susanne, along with Tudor Marsden-Huggins, leads a dedicated team of specialists who know how to get the best results for clients, every time.