Even though the media will have us believe that Brexit has had a negative impact on recruitment, we are still seeing an extremely buoyant market with aggressive competition for strong candidates.
But how can you ensure you get the cream of the crop? Our advice to you is, if you receive an application from someone who is of interest, get them in as quickly as possible. And don’t think it’s a done deal, if you like them you need to act quickly! Don’t think that you’re the only company interviewing the candidate because if they are good, they’ll be attractive to your competitors too.
Of course, recruitment isn’t something you should rush, and you should certainly have a strategy in place to ensure you are recruiting the best person to fit not only your role, but your company culture too. So, what should your strategy be?
- Know what you want, what you really really want.
- Be clear on your requirements, what skills are non-negotiable? What characteristics are you looking for? Have a must have and would like list. What kind of salary are you looking to pay? Would you be flexible if it was the right person?
- Be clear on your recruitment process right through to induction.
- Do you have an interview process? It’s worthwhile basing your process on a role rather than having a company-wide process. Some roles, for example a sales role, presentation skills may be really important, so you’ll want to ask the candidate to do a presentation for you to be sure they have the skills for the role. Whereas a finance assistant wouldn’t need to be great at presenting, but you may want to check their Excel skills out.
- Don’t play hard to get. If a candidate thinks you’re not interested, they might go elsewhere.
- If you want to get the cream of the crop, you need to be available. Acting fast is imperative, hold interviews at times that suit the candidate, make calls to candidates outside of working hours. You could miss out on an absolute cracker if you drag your heels.
- Understand the reasons why someone wants to change roles. The more you understand about your candidate, the more attractive job offer you can create. For example, if they are wanting to change their job to get more flexible working hours, work out the compromises you’re willing to make in order to get the best fit for your role.
- Be prepared to think outside of the box. You may not be able to offer the salary that other companies can, but that shouldn’t stop you from attracting the best candidates. Be flexible with what you can offer, could you offer the flexibility of working from home a couple of days a week, or starting later in the day so that they can take the kids to school, condensed working hours, or finishing early on a Friday. This flexibility can be very attractive for those candidates looking for a good work/life balance.
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