A Guide to Developing Effective Recruitment Strategies

A Guide to Developing Effective Recruitment Strategies

Key Takeaways:


  • Developing a solid recruitment strategy is essential to identify priorities and opportunities for measurable improvement in recruitment.
  • Organizations must take a personalized approach, focusing on the most critical objectives and laying the groundwork for a robust recruitment program.
  • Regular reviews and enhancements to recruitment strategies are essential to maintaining momentum and staying competitive in the job market.

A record 50.5 million employees left their jobs in 2022, and more than 60% of employees are considering quitting their jobs in 2023. Employers everywhere are understandably focused on employee retention. After all, higher retention enables organizations to improve productivity and manage recruitment costs more effectively. However, factors such as the pandemic, the Great Resignation, and a growing desire for more flexibility have caused employees to leave their jobs at an alarming rate

As a result, organizations must effectively compete for talent and attract more applicants to backfill departing employees and ensure they have the staff necessary for future growth.

Modern recruitment marketing solutions make it possible to source more qualified candidates, obtain more applications, and achieve greater recruitment ROI. But first, talent acquisition teams should develop a recruitment roadmap that will help to identify recruitment priorities and opportunities for measurable improvement.

 

Critical Elements of an Effective Recruitment Map

Like any worthwhile undertaking, taking action to boost recruitment effectiveness requires setting clear objectives. Of course, hiring more effectively and filling roles with high-quality candidates is the ultimate goal. Organizations must first consider the factors critical to short- and long-term recruitment success to reach this goal. By setting goals that identify and address recruitment challenges, it will be much easier to proactively resolve pain points and attract high-quality candidates. 

Consider the following factors to get started in developing a recruitment map for the future:

  • Opportunities to improve the candidate experience throughout all stages of the candidate journey.
  • Knowledge of the local job market in all recruiting locations, and the tactics required to reach local candidates where they are.
  • Strategies for reaching passive candidates, including those with limited brand awareness.
  • AI-based recruitment technology solutions that engage candidates and bring them back to the careers site where they can apply.
  • Optimal ways to use metrics and analytics to measure progress and define success.

recruitment strategies

Tip: Recruitment analytics isn’t about getting a snapshot of a recruitment program at one moment in time. Recruitics’ analytics tools and dashboards tell a visual story about company recruiting performance against key performance indicators (KPIs) and provide AI-driven data to support better recruitment decision-making.

Identifying recruitment challenges and creating a roadmap to combat them benefits companies. With limited budgets, hiring professionals are expected to accomplish more with fewer resources. Having a clear plan helps identify priorities and areas requiring more attention. Equally important, it helps identify tasks that can be put on hold or are unnecessary. By focusing on the most critical objectives, managers can make significant progress in areas that require improvement – while enabling professionals to work efficiently.

 

Three Key Steps of Recruitment Mapping

Nearly four out of five organizations say it’s difficult to fill open positions, according to a ManpowerGroup survey. Thankfully, developing a recruitment map for the future addresses current talent acquisition challenges and can help organizations develop a plan for effectively competing for talent in the future.

Here are three key steps organizations can take to create a roadmap for recruitment success:

 

Step 1: Audit Existing Recruitment Strategies

Organizations should take stock of where things stand before setting out to change recruitment policies and practices. By auditing the entire recruitment program and assessing what works and what doesn’t, it will be easier to identify and prioritize the next steps. 

It can be tempting to begin making changes that touch every aspect of the candidate journey, including employer branding, social media, the application process, and beyond. However, companies can set the stage for a more robust recruitment program by using effective analytics and recruitment metrics.

It’s virtually impossible to improve what isn’t measured first. Therefore, analyze the following metrics and KPIs in the initial audit phase:

  • Candidate interest and engagement: How many candidates are clicking on job ads or viewing career content, and what is the click-through rate (CTR) for job postings?
  • Candidate experience: At which points in the candidate journey do applicants fall off?
  • Recruitment spending: What is the cost per job posting and per applicant?
  • Candidate sources: What is the conversion rate per recruitment source?

recruitment marketing analytics

During the audit phase, it’s possible some metrics will be in great shape. As the old saying goes, “If it’s not broken, don’t fix it.” For example, an organization could have high candidate interest and engagement but low conversion rates (applicants aren’t completing applications). In this scenario, there may be only small tweaks to make to the careers content and messaging; instead, the organization should focus on improving the application process.

Tip: Having the right recruitment messaging grabs applicants’ attention. To keep them engaged through the application process, make applying easier with mobile-friendly applications and tools like easy apply.

 

Step 2: Prioritize Next Steps 

Factors such as new competitors, shifting seasonal demand, and plans for opening new locations can impact any organization’s approach to recruitment. Equipped with insights gained in step one of the mapping process, organizations can take the next step and begin prioritizing recruitment process enhancements. 

Since every organization is unique, there is no “single solution” for an effective recruitment strategy. However, one thing is true: an ever-evolving job market and fierce competition for talent requires fresh new tactics and out-of-the-box thinking. To be where the job seekers are, employers should take an omnichannel recruiting approach, using a mix of advertising, text messaging, and social media to reach candidates. For example, companies that are growing and adding new locations might incorporate text messaging to help get the word out to potential candidates in new locations. Or, companies with a more steady need for candidates might focus more on building a talent pipeline with help from a programmatic advertising solution that automatically advertises jobs only when and where they need to be filled.

When creating content for omnichannel strategies, it’s beneficial to consider recruitment videos – which can be implemented into recruitment campaigns. Videos are beneficial since candidates interact more with engaging and dynamic content, especially content that focuses on the people of the organization. An easy way to elevate employees' voices and start building a video production strategy is by using platforms like Jamyr. Jamyr is a user-friendly platform that offers customizable tools for creating captivating video content. It helps organizations of any size showcase their employer brand, attract top talent, and showcase authentic employee stories. 

When prioritizing recruitment tactics, keep in mind that recruitment professionals can’t do everything at once. Between managing the talent pipeline and working with hiring managers to meet their needs, many recruiters have limited time. Therefore, adopting personalized solutions that address current needs and fit within the budget is essential for short and long-term success. By focusing on the most important tactics, companies can lay the groundwork for a more robust recruitment program.

Here are some ideas to help organizations prioritize next steps in improving their recruitment practices:

 

Short-term Priorities:

  • Promote the employer brand and refine the employee value proposition (EVP) to boost applicant interest and engagement.
  • Test the application process, including measuring the time it takes to complete and identifying any tech solutions to help streamline the process.

talent acquisition strategies

Medium and Long-term Priorities:

  • Identify new job advertising solutions to help capture and engage prospective applicants via social media, video, job sites, and other sources.
  • Refresh employer branding content as needed. Excellent times to refresh branding are after a merger or acquisition or amid a brand repositioning exercise. Also, even if the brand was revamped a year ago, it can be different now – due to how turbulent the past few years were. Companies should continually be revamping to ensure it is aligned with the market.
  • Complement the recruitment tech stack with add-ons that enable more automation throughout the recruitment process.
  • Conduct an audit and update diversity strategies. As candidates increasingly prioritize diversity initiatives and company values, reviewing and aligning diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) strategies with the organization's current position and future aspirations is crucial.

Tip: Every organization has unique recruitment challenges and opportunities for improvement. Recruitment marketing teams that want to know more about improving their competitiveness relative to other organizations can take this free assessment and learn their Recruitment Marketing SCORE.

 

Step 3: Implement the Recruitment Map and Boost Hiring Competitiveness

Refining the organizational recruitment strategy and making short and long-term enhancements is like learning to crawl, walk, and run. In step one, organizations are taking a close look at the metrics and assessing their performance. By step two, they advance from crawling to walking, and begin making strides in attracting higher applicant volume and quality. Finally, in step three, it’s time to run. Organizations are implementing changes and refining them as they measure performance along the way.

At this stage, organizations can keep the momentum going by creating a timetable for regular reviews of their progress. By periodically making enhancements and reviewing the analytics, organizations can stay on top of their recruitment program and adjust strategies and tactics where needed.

Tip: Recruitment best practices and trends are always changing to meet candidate expectations and organizational needs. Learn how to recognize the signs it’s time for a recruitment strategy refresh, and rely on a trusted recruitment marketing partner  to boost competitiveness in today’s job market.

effective recruitment strategies

 

A Map for Long-term Recruiting Success

Operating a company today has many twists and turns that can make attracting enough quality talent seem almost impossible. But it is possible to successfully compete for talent in today’s challenging environment, especially with help from intelligent technology and a talent attraction strategy that accelerates recruitment goals. 

Focusing on obtaining organizational buy-in, including leadership and managers, is essential. Change can be intimidating, so hiring professionals should carefully select what to include in the roadmap and emphasize how it can benefit various areas of the company. Additionally, it's crucial to present measurable results for the proposed changes. For instance, highlighting strategies that can save money may garner greater interest from leadership, while measures that save time and optimize the recruitment process may resonate more with managers.

Crafting a recruitment map for the future takes an optimal combination of analytics, proven recruitment marketing tactics, and a strategy tailored to the unique needs and challenges of the organization. By using a phased approach, hiring professionals gain visibility on easy tweaks to start, then on what needs to be done to get the company up to par with the market, and lastly what to nurture to stay ahead of the competition.

 

For help getting started with a recruitment map that yields more quality applicants and better recruitment ROI, the team at Recruitics is here to help! The Recruitics team can provide strategic support and customized recruitment marketing solutions to help organizations hire more competitively.

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