When it comes to swiftly finding a candidate that’s a perfect match for your organisation, insider tips are integral.
Many businesses underestimate how much power they have to attract the right type of potential employee to them when looking for staff. Using proven strategies to bring talent to your door is even more important in a market that’s lacking in skilled labour. Western Australia is currently experiencing such a situation, so pulling out all the stops when recruiting is not only smart, it’s absolutely necessary.
Recruitment can be a time-consuming and costly exercise, meaning finding the most suitable person for the job quickly saves critical resources. Onboarding someone who doesn’t work out is also expensive, so it pays to plan the process well and do all you can to ensure you select an employee who will last.
So, what can your company do to assess and hire a great fit fast?
Here are RecruitWest’s top 7 tips.
- Create a standout job description
Your job description is an opportunity to not only be specific about the position you are filling, and the attributes and qualifications you’re looking for, it’s also a platform to sell your organisation.
When candidates are faced with many job options, they will often lean towards the company that aligns more closely with their values. This helps your business find a better match, so go out of your way to highlight what makes your company unique – and don’t be afraid to share its big, bold vision – in the job description.
Including details about any career advancement opportunities and training you can offer can also boost the calibre of candidates. Reporting structure, salary range and job performance measure information may also be wise to include.
2. Think strategically
When it comes to tracking down the right person for your role, be strategic about how you fill it.
Oftentimes, current staff can recommend suitable contacts and colleagues, fast-tracking the recruitment process and increasing the chances of finding quality people who align with your organisational culture.
Think carefully about where your preferred candidates will be looking for roles and target your search accordingly. This may mean you advertise on industry-specific platforms, rather than throwing your ad onto every job board, with the intention of attracting those candidates who are more dedicated to their sector. Recruiting from industry events and conferences may be an option also.
3. Invest time in screening
Sorting the wheat from the chaff can be easier with a few industry tips, like asking candidates for key pieces of information that can help speed up the screening process.
For example, asking potential employees to provide details of recent additional training they’ve done can illuminate the people who are committed to growth and learning – people you usually want to have on your team.
Another strategy is to ask candidates to answer a few less common questions at the end of your job ad. This tactic allows you to better assess who has carefully prepared their application and eliminate those who may simply be hurriedly applying for a large number of jobs.
4. Harness the power of social media
There’s no denying that people spend a lot of time on social media platforms, so utilising these avenues shouldn’t be ruled out when searching for skilled staff.
LinkedIn is a hotspot for professionals, Facebook may be more useful for particular sectors and it’s possible other platforms could make your search simpler, too. Ensure you consider them all during your planning process.
5. Access an existing, deep database
When skilled labour is hard to come by and it’s a job seeker’s market, the usual recruitment pathways can be less effective.
Investing in access to existing databases of pre-qualified candidates is a solid strategy that can make the hunt for the ideal candidate easier.
6. Don’t take shortcuts
Finding staff is stressful and takes up a lot of time, however, it’s important to resist the temptation to take shortcuts and hire someone who’s ‘good enough’ but not the most suitable candidate.
Investing the hours necessary to do background checks, reference checks, and conduct interviews – face-to-face where possible – is vital.
Paid tests are also often incredibly helpful and the time that goes into conducting these can be well worth it.
7. Make interview questions work for you
The questions candidates are asked during interviews can provide meaningful insights that allow you to select the person who will best succeed in the role. Failing to ask the right questions can lead to a wrong choice, with costly consequences.
RecruitWest. Your expert recruitment partner.
Ready to start your recruitment journey and want to embrace a proven process that will help you grow your team – and scale your business – faster?
At RecruitWest, we possess an enviable depth of knowledge and our recruiting experience spans across all sectors.
We also boast an extensive database of professional candidates to fast-track finding your perfect match.
This year, why not navigate the recruitment process with ease and confidence and team up with RecruitWest.
RecruitWest.
We get people.