Every company wants the best talents in the industry in its arsenal. Who wouldn’t? Excellent employees are assets in moving the business toward success. Unfortunately, not all employers and recruiters utilize the most effective recruitment approaches to attract these candidates.
As it is, industries are still reeling from the COVID pandemic’s consequences, which left a devastating labor shortage in its wake. Call it The Great Resignation, Workers Revolution, or The Big Quit. It all means one thing: the hiring competition has become significantly more challenging.
In the United States alone, there are over 10 million unfilled jobs but only 5.8 unemployed candidates in the market right now, according to the statistics of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. We are seeing labor force participation of 62.3%, which is a 1% decrease from pre-COVID levels. This means that even if every unemployed American were to get a job right now, this would still leave over 4 million job positions unfilled.
Because there are a higher number of job openings than there are applicants, this triggers the simple law of supply and demand. The scarcity of talents means that those who are available in the market now have more leverage to collect and select their job options. Recruiters must put their best foot forward in their recruitment strategy as they vie for talents to join their ranks.
Finding the right approach
Is your current hiring strategy simply posting a job ad and waiting for applicants to start flocking in? If so, we’re sorry to break it to you. That just won’t cut it anymore. Finding the best of the best requires no less than your best effort. Now more than ever is the time to get aggressive with your recruitment approach — because, surely, your competition already is.
So, if you are still using the post-and-pray strategy to recruitment, you can try a new approach from these five tried-and-true strategies on how best to attract quality candidates to work for your organization:
5 proven tips to attract the industry’s talents
- Improve your employer branding
First impressions last, which is why it is essential to work on your employer’s brand. This aspect is one of the most crucial points in attracting talent, yet it is often easily overlooked.
“Valuable talents take the time to look at a company’s employer brand because this is how they size up your workplace culture. They want to get a feel of what it will be like working for your brand. When we prioritized improving our employer brand, we noticed an increase in the quantity and quality of job applications,” shared Kevin Huang, founder, and CEO of Ambient Home US.
- Target passive candidates
Don’t limit your hiring search to the unemployed talent pool only. Put effort into attracting passive candidates as well. Did you know that 70% of the global workforce comprises passive candidates who are not actively looking for a job? That’s right. Active seekers make up only 30% of the equation, which means that competition in that area is significantly tighter.
“Investing effort and resources into making our brand visible to passive candidates paid off by delivering the best candidates who have since been assets to our company. Our approach was to do headhunting and reach out to qualified candidates on LinkedIn. It didn’t matter that they were currently employed. Our main aim was to let them be aware of our brand and the opportunity to work with us so that we can stay top of mind whenever they decide to look for another job position,” recounted Dov Breuer, COO, Fixlers.
- Champion diversity and inclusion in your recruitment process
The fear of discrimination is a significant factor in why candidates from diverse backgrounds tend to get discouraged from sending in their applications. A job ad that puts importance on diversity, equity, and inclusion is more welcoming to a broader range of talents. Candidates are motivated to apply because they know they are given a fair chance, the same as everybody else.
A couple of ways to reflect your organization’s support for DEI is by implementing a blind hiring process and using skills-based applications to eliminate unconscious bias from taking place. “Blind recruitment essentially assures candidates that no bias will influence decision-making. It provides a level playing field for each of them to be assessed based on their output instead of their race, age, or gender,” said Nunzio Ross, Owner & Head Director of Majesty Coffee.
- Offer flexibility to promote work-life balance
Job ads that offer flexible work options are instantly more attractive to most candidates. It is clear by now that the new normal of hybrid and remote work is here to stay as this has been the preference of the workforce majority.
“Offering work flexibility tells candidates that you are willing to meet them halfway because you want them to have work-life balance. This is highly appealing to applicants because they have more control over their time and quality of life. Plus, another benefit to this is that you can expand your search to a global workforce because geographic barriers no longer limit you,” said Milo Cruz, the CMO of Legend Cookware.
- Provide opportunities for career advancement
Professional development is enticing to top talents because they are growth-oriented individuals. They want to know that, more than just the money, you are also offering them an opportunity to grow in their work and help them advance in their career.
“Excellent talents gravitate towards growth-oriented job roles. They are not simply looking for a source of income but also an avenue to further their potential. Growth opportunities within the company are key in both attracting and retaining great talents,” said Robert Johnson, the Marketing Director for Coast Appliances.
The key takeaway
There are some predictions and a lot of finger-crossing that the fierce competition among recruitment markets will ease up a little this 2023. While that is more of a flip-coin situation, what we know for sure is that learning from these 5 strategies will keep your company ahead. These will help your recruitment department fill in job roles faster without sacrificing the quality of hires and also significantly decrease hiring time.
