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How Council can move from ad hoc to standardised recruitment

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Many local governments lack standardised recruitment because their processes are full of ad hoc tools, checklists, and templates that team members have developed over time. Hiring managers each have their own procedures and questions they like to ask. Here’s how to implement best practice. 

This lack of standardisation dramatically slows down the hiring process and prevents local government from securing great talent. It leads to qualified candidates being unavailable or uninterested when it comes time to schedule interviews—which can be months after they submit their resumes.

The good news is, it’s possible to standardise your recruitment processes in an easy, straightforward and cost-effective way through recruitment technology. The right recruitment technology allows you and your teams to deliver a consistent, positive candidate experience and build a positive brand image.

Here are some ways you can build consistency into your recruitment process.

Use branded templates to communicate with candidates 

We are strong proponents of candidate care. Candidate care is a crucial long-term strategy to consistently attracting great talent and building a positive brand image. The foundation of candidate care is good communication and feedback, and this doesn’t have to be time-consuming or complicated.

Recruitment technology allows you to build standardised email templates personalised with your copy, branding and signature to send to candidates with the click of a button. Deliver unsuccessful feedback, invite candidates to be interviewed and progress them to the next stages.

Book interviews through tech 

Scheduling interviews can be challenging without the right tools. It can be hard to catch candidates over the phone, and back and forth emailing takes time. Use recruitment technology to send bulk invitations and allow candidates to select from a range of times that suit them.

Use behavioural-based interview questions 

Different roles require different interview questions. So, how can Council standardise this process? Behavioural interview questions will give you far greater insights into your candidates than hypothetical or personal questions. By asking candidates about their experience, you allow them to demonstrate the capabilities you are looking for.

It’s a great idea to deliver these questions with context.

For example, “In this role, you will need to demonstrate excellent attention to detail. Can you tell me about a time where you’ve had to work with a high degree of accuracy?” 

(For more tips about best practice interviewing, schedule a discussion with our knowledgable Shortlisting and Selection Specialists.

Conduct video interviews 

60% of hiring managers and recruiters are using video interviewing technology to shorten their time to hire and streamline their processes. Incorporate video screening as part of the first round of interviews you conduct with candidates, record and share them with hiring managers to save time and better inform your face-to-face interview stage.

Use templates for contracts and onboarding 

Onboarding is a crucial opportunity to make a great first impression on your new hire. Streamlining your onboarding process will drastically improve your new hire’s perception of your workplace as you introduce them to your organisation.

Use recruitment technology to send your contracts and letters of offer digitally, and allow your new hires to accept them online.

Ad hoc recruitment is stressful and time-consuming, so standardising your recruitment processes makes life easier for you, your hiring managers and your candidates. Use recruitment technology and specialist support to gain confidence in your procedures, knowing that you’re using best practice and obtaining the best recruitment results.

For more information about how recruitment technology and specialist support can help you, submit an enquiry or speak to one of our knowledgable specialists on 1300 366 573. 

Preventing burnout in NFP and healthcare 

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The NFP and healthcare sectors are some of the most at-risk occupations of burnout. Here are the main causes and some strategies for preventing burnout to protect your team members, improve workplace happiness, increase productivity and retain great talent. 

According to Safe Work Australia, social, health and welfare support workers are the most at-risk occupations for mental health issues. When hiring and nurturing employees, it is important to prioritise their mental health to retain them over the long-term; not to mention, attract more great talent in the future. 

Burnout is characterised by emotional exhaustion, cynicism and ineffectiveness in the workplace and chronic negative responses to stressful workplace conditions. 

While not considered a mental illness, burnout can be considered a mental health issue. 

Here are some of the top reasons why NFP and Healthcare workers can experience this problem and ways of preventing burnout. 

Burnout is more likely when employees:

  • expect too much of themselves
  • feel as if they work they are doing is not good enough
  • feel inadequate or incompetent
  • feel unappreciated for their efforts in the workplace
  • have unreasonable demands placed upon them
  • are in roles that are not a good fit.

Recognise the signs and symptoms 

Could you recognise the above symptoms in your team members? While prevention is the most powerful solution, it’s important to recognise reduced energy and enthusiasm, lack of motivation and increased errors. Other symptoms can include irritability and increased absenteeism. 

Left unaddressed, burnt out team members can deteriorate into decreased productivity, increase risk of accidents, low workplace morale and increase turnover. 

Offer counselling and support services 

Offer your team members outlets to gain emotional support (i.e. by offering an external counselling service or support groups) or running physical or creative activities specifically designed for stress release. 

Assess workloads and establish reasonable expectations  

For not-for-profit and healthcare organisations, more often than not, there will be competing priorities and limited resources. Can you assess what activities require the highest standards and when is it okay to lower the bar and still meet organisational requirements? 

Use good communication to establish workloads and ensure your team members feel comfortable with their delivery. Use conversations are a chance to check-in and ensure your team members are not expecting unreasonable workloads of themselves. Encourage regular breaks and ensure you are not expecting team members to consistently work overtime. Establish boundaries and enforce reasonable work hours if necessary. 

Encourage social support, respect and physical activity

Fostering a sense of community and inclusivity in your workplace will increase retention over the long term. Support and respect in and between teams will improve happiness and productivity. Promoting physical activity in the workplace has been proven to lower the risk of chronic disease and increase employee engagement and productivity.  Provide training and resources 

Train your leadership team to assess for symptoms of burnout and know how to provide support to your team members. (Also, it may be worth providing training to your leaders to help them understand how harmful behaviour can have negative consequences on co-workers). 

Provide professional development and ongoing training to ensure all your team members feel competent and comfortable in their roles.\

Offer reward and recognition

Do you currently offer your people reward and recognition through things such as awards nights, events or social posts to celebrate small wins? Reward and recognition solves the problem of your people feeling as if their work is unappreciated or unnoticed. 

Communicate with your team members to help them understand how their work plays a valuable role in delivering your overarching purpose. 

While strategies, such as encouraging social support and physical activity, are powerful and effective, they cannot be treated as a bandaid solution to unreasonable workloads and expectations. Train your leadership team to recognise the symptoms of burnout and provide support. Provide training and offer your people reward and recognition so they feel appreciated understand the value of their work. 

Preventing burnout will improve the happiness and satisfaction of your current team members, increase retention and empower you to attract more great talent to your organisation over the long term. 

Schedule a discussion with our Recruitment Specialists here, call us on 1300 366 573 or email info@employmentoffice.com.au.

Retain great talent: Strategies to foster employee loyalty

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When you’re running a recruitment campaign, candidate attraction is most likely at the forefront of your thinking. Don’t let employee retention become an afterthought. Here are three simple strategies to improve employee retention and increase employee loyalty. 

Employee retention isn’t something you start working on during a recruitment campaign or when you’ve hired a candidate. Fostering employee loyalty should be continuous! Retaining great talent is the foundation of organisational success, because after all, you recruit great talent to retain great talent. So, here are three great employee retention strategies you can implement today.

Invest in your teams

Your first thought about investing might be money – but it’s much more than that. It’s also about time. Invest time in developing your teams, using team building to foster teamwork and productivity.

If you already invest time and resources into your existing teams, share this through your recruitment advertisements to attract great candidates. Top talent wants to see how their work may be valued and how they can develop in your organisation.

It’s no wonder that when your teams are disengaged, productivity decreases. Research reveals that 70% of employees aren’t engaged in their roles which creates an estimated cost of $450 billion to $550 billion in lost productivity per year. Investing time into your team will increase productivity and overall work happiness, saving your organisation money and giving you the ability to retain great people

Empower your teams

Empowering your team is a great way to demonstrate trust. According to Forbes, employees who feel empowered or have a level of autonomy within their roles feel more engaged in their jobs than those who do not.

“Employees who felt a low level of empowerment were rated with engagement at the 24th percentile, whereas those with a high level of empowerment were at the 79th percentile. Clearly, empowerment counts.”

So how can you empower your team? Share their successes on your social media channels and provide incentives as a reward for meeting targets.

Sharing how you appreciate their effort and hard work in day-to-day conversations too.

For example, one of your team members may not have performed so well in a quarter. Express that you fully appreciate their efforts and expect they will learn from this result. Offer them support in areas they may need it and consider if any workplace or personal problems may have impacted their results. Great leadership fosters employee loyalty over the long-term. Employees should feel valued and empowered to improve even after a tough conversation about KPIs and results.

Provide excellent leadership and support

Leadership is arguably one of the most important elements of candidate retention. Employees remain loyal to great leaders. Continue to develop and improve your leadership skills, offer support, and understand on a deep level what your employees want from leaders.

In addition to this, consider offering additional support to candidates and new hires too. The recruitment process can be stressful for candidates, so offering your support during the onboarding process and demonstrating great leadership while they navigate their initial few weeks is essential to making a great impression. Continue this support as they become more autonomous in their decision making is vital.

Focusing on these three elements will nurture a positive workplace environment for loyal employees to thrive.

The overarching theme of retention is empowering your people. If your people feel empowered in their role and the organisation, they are more likely to stay loyal to the brand and become advocates. This makes talent attraction much easier over the long term. Investing in your team, building trust and providing support where required will create an empowered and loyal workforce who are in it for the long run.

Schedule a discussion with our Recruitment Specialists, call us on 1300 366 573 or email info@employmentoffice.com.au.

Release poor performers fast through a no-fault divorce approach

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So, you have a robust shortlisting process in place and you’re confident you’re only hiring the best talent. But let’s get real. Mistakes happen. What if you onboard a poor performer? Here’s an effective approach to release poor performers that can work for your organisation. 

While it’s expensive to recruit and train new hires, it’s even more costly to permit mis-hires to sit in a position for lengthy periods of time due to the damage they can create.

Of course, it takes time for new people to learn, gain confidence in their new role, and hit KPIs. However, if they display soft skills or other qualities that are clearly misaligned with your organisation’s goals or culture (e.g. unenthusiastic, rude, poor team player, lack of willingness to learn, bad attitude), this represents a clear problem that will not be resolved with more time or training!

According to Recruitment Strategist Dr John Sullivan, “Today’s sparse talent pool increases your chances of a hiring mistake. But a no-fault divorce approach allows you to release mis-hires quickly. And despite the lack of available talent to choose from, the pressure from hiring managers to “get me, anybody, I need butts in chairs” is immense.”

Average hiring error rates sit at 46%. 

From this perspective, it’s not surprising that hiring mistakes are increasingly common. Which is why you need to get comfortable to release poor performers.

“Unfortunately. because the standard performance management process is so painfully slow and ineffective, it’s a leap of faith to expect it to weed out poor-performing new hires. What organisations need is quicker and less disruptive alternative, which I call a “new hire no-fault divorce” approach. This intuitive approach allows you to quickly release new hires that are not working out while minimising conflict and avoiding the threat of legal action.”

Weak performers do not get better with more time or training. You can train skills, but you cannot train attitude.

What is a “new hire no-fault divorce” release mechanism? 

A “no-fault divorce” concept is tried and proven.

Data from multinational technology conglomerate Cisco revealed that, “after six months on the job, there was little probability that the already weak performance of a new hire, would significantly improve over the next six months.”

Yes you read it here, weak performers do not get better.

Here’s how a “no-fault” process might work for your organisation.

Schedule regular check-ins and a six-month assessment 

Sullivan recommends that the process to remove poor hires begins at the six-month mark. This is because in order to let someone go, you need to have signficant volume of data and evidence that they are not performing according to set standards.

Typically, due to lack of performance data, HR and talent departments rely on convincing poor hires to voluntarily resign.

“The no-fault mechanism begins at the six-month point, where it identifies weak performing hires. HR then projects the estimated performance trajectory of weak new hires for the remainder of their first year. HR then targets those whose performance is projected at year-end to be below the acceptable standard for release.”

Avoid legal issues

Instead of the traditional approach, set targets for your new hires to meet and encourage them to resign to avoid legal issues. Approach hires anticipated to have continued poor performance and share statistics around their chances of success by year-end, which may be slim. During this conversation, you could offer them to option to stay on board, or leave immediately.

“If they agree to leave now, you can offer them between two- and five-months’ severance pay. And, because their continued weak performance is only projected, they get to leave with a positive job reference. As part of the severance package, they also agree to keep their termination quiet and to sign an agreement not to take legal action. Now some may argue that your organisation would be “rewarding for poor performance.” However, the cost of the projected severance payment (even at five months) is usually much less than the value that will be added if the weak current hire is replaced with a top-performing new hire.”

Offering low and high-risk options 

“The carrot and stick approach gives the new hire a low and a high-risk choice. If they don’t want to accept the immediate severance, they still have the option to choose to stay on the job for the remainder of the year.”

If their projected weak performance level turns out to be accurate, you will now have enough performance data to terminate them formally. Therefore, they lose the severance option and leave with a now fully justified negative reference.

“This carrot and stick approach encourages more than the majority to take the early exit option.

61% of new hires are unhappy because they feel that they had been misled during the hiring process (Harris Interactive). 

What if it was your fault? 

In cases where you have oversold your role or misled candidates with inaccurate position descriptions and your new hire ends up disillusioned and confused, this will affect their performance.

As such, the performance deficit and unhappiness of your new hire may not be their fault.

“Without having to assign blame, it makes sense to arrive at a “no-fault conclusion” and then offer the new hire the severance package with a positive reference. Obviously, recruiting leadership then needs to be made aware of any overselling.

Benefits of this approach 

Candidates know they have a safe option to “opt out”, which may help get candidates who are unsure over the line and improve your offer acceptance rate.

“Also, being able to leave with some money and a good reference might also directly help reduce some of the new hire’s anger after they find out the job wasn’t what was promised. Getting them to leave while happy could prevent the ex-employee from damaging the firm’s employer brand image on social media.”

This also benefits your organisation in that you can release poor performers far more quickly. By setting a 6-month benchmark, you cut release times in half, instead of waiting for yearly reviews.

“Getting rid of any new hire that doesn’t “fit” also reduces the damage they can do to the corporate culture. Having new hires leave reduces the team trauma quickly that would have occurred if you waited and lost a long-term employee. Weak employees also take up to 17% of a manager’s time (Robert Half), releasing them frees up managers to do other things. Finally, knowing they can much more easily release a new hire that doesn’t work out, hiring managers will take more risks on an exciting candidate with a few iffy characteristics.”

Other strategies to release poor performers early 

You can also consider using onboarding and training periods as an assessment prior to offer

“Some firms use an extended onboarding process to provide more time to identify their hiring mistakes. Facebook (6 weeks) and Zappos (4 weeks) use their extended onboarding process as a secondary assessment level. The initial training that is provided to new hires can also be used as an assessment level. Firms like Zappos (which pays $3,000) even offer all new hires a bonus to quit at the end of onboarding/training, if they realize this is ‘not the job for them.’”

You could even consider placing new hires into temporary-to-permanent contracts. That way you and your new hires have a few weeks to assess for fit.

“The hardest thing to accurately assess during even an extended interview period is cultural However, you can extend your cultural fit assessment time frame by putting all new hires under contract for “a cultural and job tryout.”

Standard performance management just doesn’t cut it these days, so take this approach to release poor performers.

“Most firms do rely on the standard performance management process to get rid of new hires. Unfortunately, almost without exception, I find corporate performance management processes to be ineffective. Utilising this process usually means you will have to wait an additional 6 to 18 months before you can terminate a weak new hire. And during that waiting time, the recent hire will continue to underperform and to take up a slot that could be filled by a better performing new hire.”

Do you need a recruitment campaign to attract the best candidates to your vacancy? Schedule a discussion with our Recruitment Advertising Specialists, call us on 1300 366 573 or email info@employmentoffice.com.au.

Alex Fraser and Hanson win CCAA Innovation Awards for Diversity & Inclusion 

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Congratulations to our valued clients, Alex Fraser and Hanson, who won this year’s CCAA Innovation Award for Diversity & Inclusion through the success of their Woman Driving Transport Careers program. Employment Office was so pleased to play a part in attracting and shortlisting the best talent for this fantastic initiative. 

With the future of work constantly evolving, a number of industries are facing tough recruitment challenges – particularly the driving and construction industry. But with smart recruitment advertising, attraction strategies, and screening processes, it’s possible to secure the best talent. 

Hanson Southern Region and Alex Fraser secured new talent through their Woman Driving Transport Careers program through a partnership with Transport Women Australia Limited and Volvo Group Australia and Wodonga TAFE’s Transport Division DECA.

Jeff Burns, HR Manager Hanson Southern Region and Alex Fraser Group, shared their reason for launching the program, and its success.

“We have 4000 employees and 1800 truck drivers, so our pipeline for drivers needs to be solid, particularly as the business grows and we add trucks to our transport fleets. So, we really had to understand what was changing in the transport driver marketplace.”

“Our Australian CEO for Hanson, Phil Schacht, has joined Male Champions of Change which enables male business leaders to champion gender diversity in their organisation. He felt we could do something in our driver workforce through our recruitment.”

Burns started conversations with Wodonga TAFE and DECA who mentioned their upcoming driver training programs. The WDTC program was, therefore, an opportunity for Alex Fraser and Hanson to secure eight new trained employees. Participants in the program receive support and training to prepare them for their driving tests. They also have the opportunity to drive the same trucks as they would be when employed.

Hanson and Alex Fraser engaged Employment Office as their trusted recruitment partner, to run recruitment advertisements on traditional job boards, complemented with targeted social media advertising campaigns. They promoted the campaign through their company’s social channels. 

“It was, by and large, a very positive and widely-shared social media post,” said Burns. “We were really surprised by how many thousands of people looked at it, and how far around the world it went!”

Alex Fraser and Hanson were able to target their advertisement at women, as the opportunity qualified under equal opportunity legislation. (Note, if your organisation is looking to recruit a certain demographic, ensure your advertisement is not discriminatory. Equal opportunity law is state-based, so check the law in your location before you advertise, or book a discussion with one of our recruitment specialists.)

Recruitment was challenging, as they were seeking passive candidates who didn’t necessarily have a commercial driving background. Instead, they had to assess for qualities to shortlist instead, such as adventurousness and willingness to have a go.

Employment Office’s recruitment advertisement also included a number of screening questions, which drastically streamlined the shortlisting and selection process. 

Alex Fraser and Hanson received approximately 260 applications for their eight roles. From this talent pool, they invited 30 candidates to attend a group assessment day which was run by Employment Office.

After the group assessment day, seven candidates were offered employment.

“We had a challenging timeline of six weeks from advertising to making the offer, including comprehensive truck driver medicals. Some of our candidates had to provide notice at their other organisations, but we had to complete training before the end of the year! We managed to secure seven new hires. The instructors at Wodonga TAFE gave glowing praise for all our candidates.”

Winning CCAA’s Innovation Award for Diversity and Inclusion 

The CCAA Innovation Awards are a two-year program of annual state awards, the winners of which compete for the National Awards biennially. The awards recognise innovation in the way the construction materials industry is committed to continually improving its performance in a range of areas. CCAA promotes innovative thinking and leadership to inspire others to deliver improved performance in their businesses and across the industry.

Congratulations Hanson Southern Region and Alex Fraser for winning the Diversity & Inclusion award, which recognises the outstanding contribution they have made in improving the level of Diversity & Inclusion in their workplace and the industry more generally. 

Hanson and Alex Fraser received the award for their Woman Drivers Transport Careers program, designed to bridge the gap between licensing standards and professional industry requirements and increase the participation of women drivers across the Australian Road Transport industry to address the shortage of drivers in this sector. 

The State Awards were hosted at the annual CCAA Awards Dinners which was attended by over 1100 representatives of industry, government, suppliers and sponsors. The National Awards will be hosted at the Construction Materials Industry Conference, the industry’s premier biennial event. 

The state winners will now go as finalists for the biennial National Awards in 2020. Congratulations Hanson, Alex Fraser and Employment Office, and well done to all the winners. 

Recruiting for local government? Use Instagram to strengthen your employer brand

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Instagram is a great social media tool for employer branding. If you’re recruiting for the public sector, there’s no reason you can’t use it to attract more candidates to your vacancies.

It is a common misconception that working in the public sector means that there is no room for creativity when it comes to recruitment. With recruitment becoming more candidate-driven, being an employer of choice is becoming more important. 

Research suggests that 68% of active candidates look at social media when searching for work and 22% investigate the social media of the employer before applying.

As the fastest growing social media site, Instagram is becoming a critical tool for candidate attraction. Here are three reasons why your local government organisation should leverage Instagram as a recruitment tool. 

Instagram adds authenticity to your brand

Organisations and people who use Instagram for business are using it to promote themselves or their brand, so it’s an excellent tool for local government. By promoting the great work you do for your community, you can improve the way your community and potential candidates view your work.

Plus, when you create an open discourse about the positive work in your organisation (i.e. the fun events you have planned or the success and stories from your employees), it authentically communicates the type of work people do and enables potential candidates to see themselves in a role. Those who do not work in local government don’t often see what happens behind the scenes. By giving insights into the fun and positive aspects of working within your organisation via Instagram, you reach a large audience and improve the way your community views your work.

The visual aspect of Instagram

As an image-based social media platform, Instagram is great for graphic recruitment advertisements. Advertise your vacancies using an eye-catching image or graphic that will capture your audience’s attention and encourage them to apply. You can also make your organisation’s Instagram feel personal, speaking directly to your audience by featuring photographs of community projects that are underway or even a fun aspect of the working day (see example below of a local government post from Cumberland Council in NSW).

Plus, the beauty of Instagram doesn’t require you to always have professional photographs. While professionally taken images are going to enhance the look of your Instagram profile, images can also be taken on your team members’ phones. This technique can help to create the impression that your local government is right there in the action and present a more personal angle to your employer brand.

Your current and future audience is on Instagram

You may think Instagram is just for millennials and Gen Z. While a large majority are of this age bracket, 33% of Instagram users are between the ages of 30 and 49. That is a huge chunk of your mature community and audience that you want and need to promote your employer brand to.

Plus, with the majority of those on Instagram being a younger demographic, your future audience and voters are very likely to be present on the platform. Presenting local government as being an important aspect of adult life and a great place to consider starting a career, you can begin promoting your employer brand to your future workforce, earlier.

If you’re interested in having a discussion about strengthening your employer brand, Employment Office’s Employer Branding specialists can help you become an employer of choice. Read more about our Employer Branding services here, or get in touch to speak directly to our experts on 1300 366 573. 

The 4 most important screening questions to include in your recruitment advertisements

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Using screening questions in recruitment advertisements is the fastest way to efficiently create a great shortlist of candidates. These four screening questions and additional tips are an invaluable way to find your ideal candidate, sooner. 

Many recruiters understand the importance of providing a great candidate experience and how, a part of this, is making it easy for candidates to apply online. Sometimes, recruiters are reluctant to add an extra layer to your recruitment process, thinking it will reduce applications. Interestingly however, many high-quality candidates like answering screening questions, as it gives them a way to highlight their key skills and stand out from other applicants.

We recently shared the 6 reasons to include screening questions in your recruitment advertisements, from distinguishing serious applicants from tire kickers and reducing the time required to create a great shortlist, to having a consistent format to analyse. But did you know screening questions can effectively act as a cover letter and give you the opportunity to ask candidates more relevant questions?

While you, of course, want to have a structured list of screening questions for your phone, video and in-person interviews, the following list includes the best questions to use specifically in your recruitment advertisements.

1. “Do you have the unrestricted legal right to live and work in Australia?” (Yes/no)

Overseas applicants will always apply for roles. However, this simple yes/no question allows you to eliminate candidates applying from overseas (from the “no” responses). If your organisation is not accepting overseas applicants, include a statement to this effect in your advertisement and target the advertisement in your specified location.

That being said, your organisation might be willing to offer relocation assistance fees, whether that be within Australia or from overseas. But even so, include this question in your advertisement as it’s useful to be informed about a candidate’s current location and residential status.

If your organisation is open to accepting candidates from overseas, you can include optional additional questions. For example, a recruiter advertising for temporary roles such as fruit pickers might not require candidates to be Australian citizens. If a candidate selects the “yes” response, the recruiter can also include a question asking candidates to specify the terms of their visa (if applicable).

2. “If you hold any relevant qualifications, please detail them here.”

If the role you are advertising for requires specific qualifications, this is a great question to ask in your recruitment advertisement instead of sifting through resumes or waiting for the interview stage.

Even if you do not require specific qualifications, this is still a useful optional question to include as “highly regarded” with the note “if applicable”, so you can quickly rank top candidates.

Qualifications should include all certifications and licenses, not just education. For example, first aid certificates.

Ask candidates to list their qualifications with institution names and dates obtained.

3. “Please outline your relevant experience in [skill/s relevant to the role].”

Depending on your role, you may prefer to merge the above questions 2 and 3. If your roles typically receive hundreds of applications, including these questions will drastically reduce your time to shortlist. Those candidates with relevant qualifications, experience and skills can be ranked higher on your shortlist.

As stated above, even if you do not require previous experience, it’s still a useful optional question to include as “highly regarded” with the note “if applicable”, so you can rank top candidates faster.

4. “If you were to be successful, what date could you commence?”

Many organisations require their employees to provide a four week notice period. If you have two equally great candidates that you are struggling to distinguish between, one may be able to start next week, and the other in a month or two. Which one will you choose? This is a really helpful question to give you a better idea about your candidates’ commitments and requirements.

Additional questions 

What kind of culture and employer brand does your organisation have? It can be useful to include a fun or behavioural question that reflects your culture. While it may not be appropriate for a construction role, it can work for a role that is more creative, or if you have a social office where cultural and behavioural fit is important. For example, an organisation hiring for a creative marketing role asked candidates, “if you could be any animal, which would you be, and why?”. These type of questions allow candidates to showcase their personality and creativity. It’s a great way to find those hidden gems!

Another screening question that is not as common is asking candidates to outline their salary expectations. Sometimes organisations advertise for roles, receive few responses and are unsure if this is to do with the salary range they have specified. Other times, they’re just not sure what they should be paying! While a good recruitment specialist will conduct market research and provide a sound recommendation, asking this screening question in your recruitment advertisement is an extra way to gauge candidate expectations.

Important final tips

Research reveals if you have more than five screening questions, the number of applications submitted drops by 50%, with significant drop-off rates every additional question asked.

Specialists typically advise against including any more than six or seven screening questions in your recruitment advertisement, as it increases the difficulty of the application process for candidates. Three to four questions is the sweet spot!

Identify the key behaviours and skills required for your role, and use your best judgement to determine if there are any additional questions to the ones listed above that will help make your shortlisting process easier.

For example, for a finance manager role that requires leadership skills and management of a monthly accounting cycle, you may like to include questions such as: “what is your approach to leadership in an organisation that….”, and/or “have you managed a monthly accounting cycle? List your experience.” This gives you a great way to assess candidates beyond two-dimensional resumes.

Screening questions in recruitment advertisements are designed to make your shortlisting process easier. Without them, you are more likely to receive an excessive amount of low-quality applications.

Use your best judgement or seek the advice of a recruitment advertisement specialist. If you include sound screening questions, you should not need to ask for cover letters! Combined with resumes, they should supply you with all the information you require.

Trends reveal more organisations are now starting to use this smart recruitment marketing strategy. So, if you’re receiving a large quantity of candidates but not the quality you are looking for, or are struggling to create a great shortlist in a timely manner, screening questions might just be the key you need.

Hiring to Retain: Bust the Myths of Retail Careers using Employer Branding

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We’ve collated some common myths about careers in the retail industry and the employer branding solution you can use bust them…

Many have a misconception that retail is just an industry that you enter as a ‘stepping stone’. While this may be true for some aspects of the industry, it is definitely not true for the majority of it. Here’s our guide on how you can use Employer Branding techniques to bust these big myths about the retail industry in order to attract, hire and retain the best talent.

Myth 1: Retail work is a just a ‘stepping stone’ and there’s no career progression

This myth probably originates from the casual nature of the store assistant role. Many young people rely on this position as a first job; a place to gain some work experience before moving on to a ‘professional career’. While the retail industry definitely needs these people, it is a common misconception that this is all that retail is.

Using employer branding, you can sell retail as more than just a stepping stone. After all, a store assistant role is an entry level role to begin building a career. Make it clear in your job advertisements that there is more to retail than stacking shelves. Think about the skills that your potential employee can develop, from dealing with money to stock room and even warehouse management skills; there are a number of routes that can be taken to develop a career and allow employees to grow internally.

Myth 2: Retail workers are unskilled and unqualified

This myth probably also originates from the basis of retail being an option as a first job and shop floor roles not needing specific qualifications. While it is true and some roles don’t require qualifications, many opportunities within retail do require a specific tertiary qualification which are often something that can be developed while working – from internal apprenticeships to support through degrees.

Again, this is about selling employee development. Selling your brand as somewhere that provides opportunity to everyone, regardless of qualifications or personal situation. Selling the fact that you can learn these skills through internal development programmes and support. After all, retail offers opportunities to progress in sales, management, HR,  IT, software development and more. Some of the bigger brands do this really well; we are sure that at least one brand came to mind when you read that.

Myth 3: All retail workers are either young people or the semi-retired

When you consider how many people will take their impressions of retail from what they see in the shop floor, it’s not surprising that this is a myth that needs busting. Those who are more willing to work weekends or over Christmas have flexible schedules and naturally this would be more suited to young people, students, working-parents and the semi-retired. According to GradAustralia, a study by the Families and Work Institute has shown that the average age of retail employees is actually 37; what the public do not always see is the workforce behind the scenes, those that manage regions of stores and/or work in the head office.

In terms of Employer Branding, the answer to busting this myth would be to show people the different avenues available to them. That they don’t have to be a young person just starting their career to have the opportunity to progress within retail. Share the stories of employee career and success paths, demonstrating how they got there.

Do you need support with your employer brand?

Employment Office’s specialists in Employer Branding spend time getting to know your brand’s unique story and work in partnership with you to promote your story to high-quality candidates.

To find out more about our Employer Branding Service, contact us on 1300 366 573 or email us at info@employmentoffice.com.au.

 

4 things candidates are looking for in your employer brand

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Many employers understand the value of promoting a strong employer brand. But what are the key things candidates are looking for? By understanding the key elements of employer brand candidates are looking for, you’ll learn how to tailor your messaging and content strategy, and the best areas to focus your efforts and attention.

Whether or not your organisation has done anything to actively manage your employer brand, you already have one! And potential candidates are examining it before deciding if your organisation is right for them. According to LinkedIn, 75% of job seekers consider an employer’s brand before even applying for a role.

There are a number of components that go into an employer brand, and all of these things work together to shape your overall employer brand. The things that comprise your employer brand include:

Things you can control:

  • Careers site
  • Recruitment advertisements
  • Website and blog
  • Culture and organisational values
  • Candidate communication

Things you can influence:

  • Employee stories and advocacy
  • Social media channels
  • Organisation reviews

Things you can indirectly influence:

  • Public perception
  • Accolades and awards.

So, what are candidates looking for? And how can you attract the right people to help your organisation?

1. Your mission

Candidates are looking for more than a paycheck. They’re looking for an opportunity to contribute towards a valuable mission. For millennials, this is particularly important, as according to the latest statistics, 78% saying they want their employer’s values to match their own.

To captivate potential hires, craft an authentic narrative about why you’re here and what’s important to you as an organisation. Your commitment to this mission should be the thread that connects all of your print and online materials, from your careers page to corporate activism to social media to employee testimonials. Give prospective candidates and idea of what drives the work you do.

2. Real information about employee experience

When investigating an organisation’s employer brand, candidates aren’t interested in corporate jargon about your products and services. They want to know what it’s like to work for you, from those who know you best and are doing the work themselves.

The best way to do this is by filling your careers site and social channels with real employee profile stories, whether they are video or written stories, or both. This makes your brand more relatable and personal. People respond well and are most engaged with compelling visual imagery, a “day in the life” photos and videos. Attractive visuals and imagery create a lasting impact.

3. An active, engaging social media presence

We live in a digital world, so social media is crucial in your employer brand strategy. Up to 57% of job seekers use social media in their hiring search. How much time can you invest in this channel, and what is your strategy?

Tailor your content to the unique style of each social media account. For example, Twitter is great for concise summaries of key industry news (such as industry blog posts and recent awards or milestones for your organisation), compelling visuals trump all else on Instagram, and Facebook gives you space to post longer content that connects with a varied demographic. Ensure that your social media manager keeps all of your social media content on-brand to give viewers a sense of your organisation’s unique identity.

4. Positive candidate experience  

The experience you create for candidates is another important component for your long-term employer branding strategy, because it’s deeply personal and candidates are paying such close attention.

78% of candidates say the overall candidate experience at a company is an indicator of how well the organisation values its employees. That means job seekers look at your candidate experience as “proof” that you do, in fact, live up to your company values.

Create a positive candidate experience by making sure your processes are short, efficient, fair, and involve good communication.

Make sure your application process is brief, intuitive, and relatively easy. Many candidates will simply give up if your ask for page after page of information. Also, remember to communicate with prospective talent throughout your recruitment process and respect their time and effort. An automated email or text message confirming submission of the application should be a given, but adding a personalised touch from a recruiter within a few days (even a simple “we are still processing your application and will be in touch soon”) is even better.

Also remember that the candidate experience doesn’t stop after you’ve made your hiring decision. Notifying those who were unsuccessful is particularly important, as 80% of people say they wouldn’t apply for another job at a company if they fail to hear back about a position. Leaving candidates with a positive impression of your company ensures that you have prospective talent waiting in the pipeline the next time you’re ready to hire.

By understanding what candidates are looking for in your employer brand, you can review and fortify your strategies to strengthen and promote your employer brand.

Find out more about our Employer Branding services here. If you’d like some advice about how to build a great employer brand for your organisation, schedule a discussion with our Recruitment Specialists by calling us on 1300 366 573 or email info@employmentoffice.com.au.

Employer Branding: Time to sit up and take notice

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It’s hard to believe just a few years ago, the concept of an employer brand was little more than another recruitment buzz word.  Fast forward to today, and employer branding is proving to be a real game-changer in terms of attracting and retaining top talent.

Employer branding is now a permanent fixture on the agenda for not only HR and recruitment specialists, but the C-Suite is also sitting up and taking notice.

LinkedIn’s 2015 Global Recruiting Trends Report has revealed over half of Global Talent Leaders see building their employer brand as a top priority this year.

A further 75% say their employer brand has a significant impact on their ability to hire great talent.

It’s no surprise employer branding has become a major concern for business leaders.  With shrinking talent pools and competitive labour markets occurring in industries across the globe, future-thinking organisations have been working on employer branding strategies for years.

Google is widely regarded as one of the world’s best workplaces and this year was ranked No. 1 for the sixth time on Fortune’s Great Places to Work list.  Google leverages their workplace perks and strong culture to create an employer brand that sets them apart as an employer of choice not only in their field, but in the broader jobs market.

Closer to home, Australian software giant Atlassian, famous for its unique management style  and commitment to rewarding and recognising employees was last year named Australia’s top employer in BRW’s Great Places to Work List.

Cultivating a strategic employer brand is integral in positioning your organisation as an employer of choice, and making your Employee Value Proposition (EVP) stand out among increasingly competitive employee benefits, working conditions and corporate culture.

A strong employer brand shapes the perceptions key candidate demographics have of your organisation and what it’s like to work there.  It communicates your offering in terms of opportunities for career progression, investment in training and education and on-the-job support.

Organisations with a strong employer brand and the EVP to go with it benefit from higher quality candidates drawn from a diverse talent pool, in addition to increased employee engagement and better retention.  Time and money spent on the recruitment process are also slashed, as top talent is more readily attracted to roles with an organisation with a great employer brand.

Employment Office works in partnership with our customers to develop compelling Employee Value Propositions and build strong employer brands. We are specialists in getting the inside message out about why your organisation is a great place to work.

Contact Employment Office today to discuss how we can help position you as an employer of choice for top talent.