07 Aug 2023
As recruiters, we all want to hire the best people possible, and we all know it’s not easy. Many think it’s all about offering the highest amount of cash possible to entice people away from the competition, but there’s so much more than money to think about - things that can make a major difference to your recruitment.
Here are some pointers for the things we know are truly important:
Career Development and Progression Opportunities
People in the market for a career / job change will be interested in how you will help them develop their career. This isn’t all about saying you’ll happily support them with training courses; it’s about how you’ll give them challenging work, how you’ll give them responsibilities to enhance their future prospects and employability, and provide them with career paths which will help them grow and develop. Letting candidates know that they won’t stagnate if they come to work with you, will work wonders.
Promoting your Company Values
Potential new recruits will have in interest in the type of employer you are: what your company values are – how you instill and promote them; how you turn your company values into reality. This can include such things as your approach to reward, recognition, community engagement, teamwork and the leadership model you operate. Make sure information about all of this is readily available on your website and elsewhere – and if you have any case studies to share, then share them.
Your Reputation – As an Employer, and a Service Provider
If you have an excellent reputation as an employer, then you should be proud of it, and make sure the world knows about it. It’s a sure-fire way to secure interest from potential new recruits – and you should make a point of mentioning this in much of your literature. Mentioning your awards from, for example Stonewall (Diversity Champions), Working Mums, the CIPD or any professional association should go a long way.
Likewise, if you are known as an organisation which is number one in the market for the service you deliver (or somewhere near the top) make sure you reinforce that fact in your recruitment literature, and anywhere else you can. People will always be interested in working with market leaders, whatever the field.
This is because there is a level of prestige that comes from having worked for the market leading companies in a certain field. If someone has worked previously for Google or Apple, most companies in the technology field would be far more likely to hire them than applicants who only had experience from some of the smaller companies in the same sector. It is a potentially career-making move to join the market leading company in your area, even if it isn’t in as senior a role as you might like to hold.
Once a candidate has held a post at a well-regarded company for a few years, the company’s reputation will rub off on them when they decide to look further afield for advancement..
