Stop blaming your competitors when you miss out on hiring top talent.
Step one is realizing (and admitting) that you have a problem. In today’s highly competitive labor market, your hiring process is likely the #1 reason you’re losing out on hiring top talent. It’s a candidate’s market and the “A” players have spoken. According to a March Jobvite report, 45% of candidates place high importance on an easy job application process, while another 30% view a quick hiring process as a priority. In fact, 25% of negative candidate experiences occur because of long hiring processes with too many interviews.
It’s such a major factor that we’ve made adjustments to our processes here at HireBetter. We’re also notifying our clients about the importance of a faster, more efficient hiring process.
When was the last time you updated your hiring process? Our world changed in 2020, and job seekers’ expectations are no exception. Assess and align your hiring process with the current market, or you may be in for a rude awakening the next time you need to make a hire.
Pre-2020, the typical time to hire was two to three weeks. Today, that’s just not going to cut it if you expect to hire the best talent. If you’re still stuck with your hiring process from “the old days,” don’t worry – we’re sharing three things you can do now to speed up your hiring process and land your dream hires this year.
A clear candidate profile is crucial.
Anyone who has worked on a puzzle with more than a couple hundred pieces knows it can be time consuming and challenging. Now, imagine doing it blind folded, where you can’t see what the missing piece looks like. That would be next to impossible, right?
That’s exactly what hiring without a clear candidate profile is like. You can’t match the right people to the right seats if you don’t know what the perfect fit looks like. Start your candidate profile by assessing what skills, experience, and attributes you truly need. Is specific industry experience important? How important is culture fit and leadership experience? Does location matter, or is the role remote? Are you able to offer a competitive salary for this position, compared to the current market rate? If not, you may need to adjust your expectations and the job title. These are just a few examples of the types of questions and considerations involved when developing a clear profile for your ideal candidate.
When you know what you’re looking for, you can make quick and accurate hiring decisions – which is exactly what you’ll need to do if you plan on hiring top talent. Don’t use interviews as a discovery process; do the work ahead of time to determine exactly what and who you need in the role. So you can hire better talent, faster.
Efficiency and communication make the difference.
So, you’ve updated your hiring process to be as quick and accurate as possible – great! But you’re not out of the woods yet. While candidates as a whole have essentially forced employers to create a more efficient hiring process, more experienced job seekers may not be accustomed to this pace compared to their previous experience. Some of the game changers on the market today are fresh out of a long-tenured position. It’s unlikely they have experienced a quick hiring process like this before. For these candidates, this experience could come off as “too good to be true” and raise red flags.
At the same time, other job seekers are actively in the market and are receiving multiple reach outs that will require a more expedient process. In all cases, communication and setting clear expectations for the hiring process from start to finish are key. Otherwise, you risk scaring off your potential new hires.
You should also coordinate with your hiring team to make sure the interview process is organized and efficient. You certainly don’t want your team to ask the same questions in each round of interviews. Planning out who will ask what questions in which round is an important step for both the candidate and the employer.
Another key component in an efficient hiring process is doing your due diligence in advance of the interview. As you evaluate your current process, look for steps that can be done ahead of the interview or offer letter. One such area may be references and background checks. Get this out of the way first thing, so the candidate experience and your hiring process are streamlined. This allows you to go straight from the interview to the offer stage when your next-level hire comes along.
Wasting time doesn’t serve anyone, so doing your homework in advance is a must in today’s job market. From the very beginning, be clear about what the candidate can expect in the hiring process, the role, and the timeline you’re working on.
Treat them like people – because they are.
As a hiring manger, it’s easy to get caught up in the hiring process. Especially when time is critical and there are so many candidates to sort through! But it’s important to make the time and effort to try and connect on a personal level. Be personable, friendly, and inviting. During the hiring process, your rockstar candidate is judging the company based on their interactions with you.
If you come off as stuffy or “all business” in the hiring process, that’s how the candidate will perceive your company. Take the extra steps to personalize your emails rather than using a template. Make a conscious decision to be focused and conversational in the interview, and be understanding if your candidates need to reschedule or otherwise. You only get one first impression, so make it count!
Employers may blame their hiring challenges on competitors, COVID-19, generational differences, unrealistic expectations – you name it, we’ve heard it. But the truth is that your own hiring process is likely the culprit when “A” talent bails on your opportunity. The good news is, most of the time it’s an easy fix. Shorten your time-to-hire, know who and what you’re really looking for, and make your process a seamless and enjoyable experience for the candidate. Be personable and don’t forget that you’re representing your company’s culture.
If you’ve done all of the above and you still can’t land your dream hire, request a free consultation with our team. We’ll dive deep to uncover the true source of your challenges, recommend the solutions you actually need, and point you down the path to hiring perfection.
Understand your talent challenges and identify the solutions you truly need.
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