The 5 Most Effective Recruitment Strategies

Chris Goodwin, SHRM-SCP

 

It’s impossible for any organization to reach its full potential without the right team. Finding the right team members is always a little shaky unless you have a strong strategy for reaching applicants who are right for the job. Online job boards and hiring platforms help but without a clear-cut plan of action, it can feel like throwing pasta at the wall to see what sticks. 

Even with a plan, the search for qualified talent is a challenge for many recruiters. At some point in your career, whether you’re a small business owner or a corporate CEO, the task of recruiting new hires will fall to you. In today’s environment, there are many bumps in the road to finding and hiring new talent. In addition to a crucial skills shortage, employers are faced with some grim statistics; in 2021 52% of employees considered a job change within the first year of employment, and 42% of these individuals have actual plans to leave.

Your time and your company are too important for you to simply “wing it” when it comes to hiring new talent. In order to achieve your organizational goals and continue to drive improvement, you must develop recruitment strategies that bring stand-out talent to your team.

 

What Are Recruitment Strategies

Recruitment strategies are the techniques you use to attract, evaluate, and hire new talent to fill specific roles within your company. It’s important that you tie your organization’s recruitment strategies to your overall objectives as a company. As these objectives evolve, it’s necessary to re-examine and hone your techniques.

A successful recruitment strategy attracts the best candidates, those who see the potential benefits of joining your team. Once candidates are engaged, you can implement recruiting techniques at each step of the hiring process. Take no shortcuts. Hiring the right candidate is what creates the foundation upon which a successful organization builds. 

 

5 Effective Recruitment Strategies that Really Work

There are five unique strategies to improve your success in acquiring skilled candidates. You may find you already use some of these strategies whether you realize it or not. By formalizing these five strategies as part of your company’s documented recruiting process you’ll drive consistent and positive hiring outcomes.

 

1. Make Sure Your Brand is Clear

Your company’s brand is what sets you apart from others that are hiring and strikes a note with those who are best suited for the job. Employer branding reflects your company’s mission, values, and culture. Do you embrace diversity? Does your brand invite interest to potential recruits through advertising, website, and social media footprint? Do you consider your current employees satisfied with the way the company operates? 

Examine your brand with fresh eyes and tweak as necessary. Your company’s brand should come across clearly in any and all job postings. Embrace your brand, communicate your recruitment goals but do so in an organized and professional manner. Display your company culture through your ad content. This recruitment strategy helps weed out candidates whose goals may not align with those of your organization.
 

2. Create a Desired Candidate Persona

When marketing to a customer base, a successful organization creates a buyer persona. This is a fictional representation of the ideal client/customer. This marketing technique allows you to target a specific demographic and direct your advertising and initiatives accordingly. A customer persona technique is a very useful approach to marketing. 

When you use the persona technique in recruiting you to have a better idea of what and who you need to zero in on for your next hire. This recruitment strategy allows your company to design job postings that attract the candidate whose characteristics, skills, education, experience, and interests align with the needs of your organization.

Some ideas for creating a desired candidate persona:

• List out relevant questions such as inquiries into education and skills necessary to the position. Also determine those characteristics, interests, hobbies, and backgrounds you think would be of benefit. Check yourself for any bias or questions which could be construed as discriminatory.

• Interview your top performers. What motivates them? What are their goals within the organization? What are their personal goals, interests, and hobbies?

 

3. Initiate an Employee Referral Program

Employee referral programs are structured to invite team members to recommend suitable recruits for an available position. Your employees have intimate, inside knowledge of company culture and values. They are among your best resources for future employees. An employee referral program reduces recruiting costs, lowers turnover, and means faster hiring. 

A great way to involve your team members in recruitment strategies is to offer incentives for new quality candidates. PTO, gift cards, or lunch on the boss are some small incentives that will encourage your employees to get involved in the referral program. Be sure the referral program is touted in simple terms that clearly define the process and expectations. Check-in regularly with the program to assess its worthiness. Tweak if you must.

 

4. Learn to Leverage Social Recruiting Strategies

The use of job boards, online forums, and social media to recruit new talent has proved successful. Not so long ago these social methods were used to augment the more traditional approach to recruit candidates. Now however it is seen as mainstream. The majority of organizations-a whopping 84%-utilize social sites with rewarding outcomes. Some ways to use social sites as a recruitment strategy: 

• Post a job opening through your company’s Facebook page

• Tweet links to available positions and utilize hashtags

• Use LinkedIn to identify those individuals who fit your job description and message them through the LinkedIn site.

• Stay fresh and current with your social media. 

 

5. The Interview: One of Your Recruitment Strategies

After all you’ve done to bring the best candidates to the table, don't let your own lack of interviewing skills kill the opportunity. Remember the interview is a two-way process; the recruit is interviewing you the same way you’re interviewing them. Whether the interview is face-to-face or via a teleconference make sure it’s as comfortable and low-stress as possible. 

Customize the interview to the open position and what you already know of the candidate. If the new hire will be part of a team, have members present to ask pertinent questions. This serves a few purposes; the recruit gets to observe the interaction of team members with one another, gets an intimate idea of how they will mesh with the team, and the recruit is able to ask questions of the team members you may not be able to answer. This ensures a new hire brings the right skill set to the position and echoes the company culture.

 

Drive Your Recruitment Strategies Toward Success

Cornerstone Coaching & Consulting is here to help you home your company’s recruitment strategies. Our HR professionals have the experience and knowledge you need to create a thriving and successful workforce. Contact Cornerstone Coaching & Consulting today.