Workplaces and the employer-employee relationship have changed radically over the past three years. But, as the new year approaches, will the workplace level out?
Industry experts think employers are still in for more change – which now may be a constant. But with rising inflation, continual supply chain challenges, demands for sustainability, and the search for top talent, employers will continue to experience roller coaster swings into the new year and possibly beyond.
If there’s ever been a time, the time is now for employers to consider revisiting and updating their hiring processes. Keep reading to learn more about the signs that it’s time for an employer to update their recruitment strategies.
1. The Talent Pipeline Is Not Maintained (or Worse, Never Created)
According to LinkedIn, today, the top candidates are only on the market for ten days. Pair that with the average hiring process taking 36 days, and there’s a significant disconnect for both employers and employees – especially when searching for top talent.
As 76% of hiring professionals claim that finding top talent for the advertised job is a primary challenge, employers must create and maintain a talent pipeline – allowing them to be proactive (rather than reactive) when accessing top talent when needed.
The purpose of a talent pipeline is to support a strategic plan for the future supply of talent. In other words, talent pools let hiring professionals cultivate a pool of high-quality talent that can be accessed when needed – while improving the candidate experience. Without one, businesses may struggle to find the right talent timely, causing delays in their hiring processes while leaving company needs unattended.
Every business and industry is different when planning for future talent supply and demand. To determine how to create and maintain a talent pipeline, employers should audit their current teams, identifying skills, knowledge, and experience that they currently have. Once employers determine what they have, they can objectively decide what they need to be successful tomorrow and beyond.
Finding and Nurturing the Pipeline
At this point, employers can look at job candidates interested in the company, students at local or regional colleges and universities, and other potential job candidates identified through social media channels, professional associations, or internal referrals.
But, employers shouldn’t limit their talent pipeline to external candidates only. By including current employees in the pipeline, companies can find top talent who already fit within the corporate culture to fill upcoming positions. Current employees may be the perfect fit for other positions after receiving reskilling or upskilling or when the employer experiences short staffing.
Creating a talent pipeline is not enough. To maintain this pipeline – keeping potential employees active and engaged – employers must nurture this pipeline regularly.
For example, share updates about the company with the pipeline, keeping talent warm while showing that the employer is truly interested in creating a relationship – even with former candidates. (Just because a candidate wasn’t a fit in the past doesn’t mean they won’t be a fit in the future.) To do this, consider sending emails to job candidates about company information or changes. Keep the pipeline engaged with short texts or social media posts. Also, hiring professionals can continually share job openings – to do this efficiently, consider programmatic advertising or beefing up company career pages.
Finally, employers should ensure that their talent pool is diverse – in thoughts, experiences, backgrounds, and abilities. Recent studies have shown that a diverse workforce yields 2.5 times higher cash flow, boosts revenue by 19 percent, and is more likely to capture new markets. With these findings, companies must consider diversity early in the process – when creating and maintaining their talent pipeline.
2. There’s No Process for Internal Recruiting and Hiring
Often, professional recruiters look “outwards” when seeking talent. Internal hiring processes are ancillary to (or missing altogether from) the recruitment process. In a recent survey of enterprise companies, two out of five had no formal internal recruiting processes.
But, by failing to consider (and utilize) internal recruiting and hiring, companies are missing out on top talent – perhaps in more ways than one. Not only would internal talent escape the radar of hiring professionals, but other companies may be recruiting them as well, directly impacting retention rates.
Internal recruiting sends a strong message to an organization’s employees. For example, it shows that employers “walk the walk” regarding skills enhancement and career progression. Further, internal hiring boosts employee happiness and fulfillment, increasing retention rates.
For the company, internal recruiting is a less expensive way and a shorter path to finding the right talent for a job. And current employees already fit in culturally, allowing them to often hit the ground running in a new position.
Besides including current employees in talent pipelines, companies should also focus on the following:
- Upskilling and reskilling their employees
- Providing ongoing opportunities for career development
- Offering an accessible job platform for internal employees
- Employee referral programs
- Creating a mentorship program for current employees
- Management and leadership training, again showing employees that companies are invested in their growth and career pathing
3. Employer Branding Is Not Up-to-Date
Today, 86 percent of HR professionals say that recruiting is becoming more like marketing. Thus, enter employer branding.
Employer branding is a company’s reputation, shown through its mission, values, and vision. And employer branding has never been more important than it is now.
For example, according to Glassdoor:
- 68% of Millennials, 54% of Gen Xers, and 48% of Baby Boomers visit a company’s social media channels to evaluate a company’s brand
- 75% of active job seekers are more likely to apply for a position if the employer actively manages its brand
- 86% of job candidates research a company’s reviews when deciding whether they apply for a job
- 86% of women and 67% of men in the U.S. wouldn’t join a company with a bad reputation
An out-of-date employer brand or one that is poorly managed can cost hiring professionals talent by negatively impacting candidate expectations while driving away top talent. This is something companies cannot afford to miss in today’s competitive market.
To maintain an active employer brand, companies should focus on:
- Regularly auditing and revamping their employer brand
- Creating and maintaining an employee value proposition (EVP). Through the EVP, employers can demonstrate what it has to offer employees.
- Meeting (and exceeding) employee expectations
- Creating an empathetic culture of care, prioritizing worker wellbeing
- Showcasing company values through the company website, social media channels, and day-to-day interactions with employees and job candidates
Good (and current) employer branding helps companies stand out to job candidates who are looking for companies that fit their ideals. Not only does a company’s branding serve as the corporate identity, it helps recruiting professionals by attracting top talent.
4. Professional Recruiters Are Reactive, Not Proactive, With Recruitment Strategies
Many companies still use a traditional reactive recruiting process – meaning they don’t start a candidate search until a position is open. This approach can lead to high-pressure, costly situations when trying to place someone to fulfill an immediate need.
Good decisions are often not made in these high-pressure situations. Being reactive when recruiting can lead to bad hiring decisions or no hiring decisions at all - if the right talent can’t be found in a short timeframe.
Instead, hiring professionals should pivot to a proactive recruitment strategy, where companies focus on the future. With a proactive hiring approach, recruiting professionals anticipate what roles they’ll need in the future (and build a talent pipeline for those roles, as mentioned above) rather than what is needed at the moment.
Considering that 70% of the global workforce consists of passive talent (those who aren’t actively searching for a job), professional recruiters would be wise to meet those candidates where they are – through social media, employee referral programs, or other network connections.
When focusing on proactive recruitment, companies should:
- Continually update job descriptions, including job titles
- Offer competitive salaries
- Offer benefits that employees want, including flexible schedules and wellness benefits
- Continually showcase company culture on social media
- Streamline the application process, focusing on one-click methods
- Prioritize career advancement for employees and candidates
By proactively taking control of recruitment, hiring professionals have their finger on the pulse of the talent market – enabling them to not only tap top talent when needed but also allowing them to fare better during the ups and downs of the job market.
Update Recruitment Strategies Today
Throughout the pandemic, many companies have used the time to re-evaluate and reconstruct their recruitment marketing strategies. However, this is not a “one-and-done” task.
Companies should continually take the time to see what is working and what should be adjusted, but sometimes companies don’t know where to start.
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Do you need help “getting your house in order?” Recruitics is here to help create the best recruitment marketing strategy!
