With candidates harder to find than ever before, it could be time to take an inward look and really question if you’re trying hard enough to stand out from the crowd…
We won’t spend too long talking about how hard it still is to find good people in a post-Brexit, post-Covid, mid-conflict world, but what we will focus on is our tendency to stick to what we know when it comes to hiring and recruitment.
Budget growth and confidence is still stagnant, with many organisations asking their recruitment teams to focus on organic growth and ‘good old fashioned’ recruitment techniques to fill the ranks. But with everyone in the same boat – that is, candidates in seriously short supply – the hiring game boils down to hard sales and high salaries, both of which aren’t always the best outcome.
So rather than clinging on for dear life and hoping for a bit of luck with that Indeed advert, it may be time to start being more adventurous with your recruitment. And that doesn’t necessarily mean finding a huge budget to try something outlandish.
Audience first
We won’t deny the usual suspects (LinkedIn, Indeed, Totaljobs etc.) are superb places to find talent. But there are lots of other places where your job ads will be seen, and will bring results.
The obvious one, and one you’re probably already up to speed with, is social media. But we aren’t talking about lumping money into paid adverts or posting pointless organic posts once a month to small networks.
Instead, it’s about being extremely active – commenting on industry-relevant accounts, engaging with high-exposure influencers, joining groups relevant to what you do.
The trick with getting anywhere on social media is to be consistent. That means ensuring your paid activity follows a schedule and isn’t just a ‘burst’ activity once in a blue moon, and you’ll need to be spending a few hours per week engaging, commenting and being active. But if that brings you a hire, then it’s definitely worthwhile.
Beyond social media, there are literally thousands of places online where your desirable candidates are spending time. Community-based platforms like Twitch, Discord and Reddit are great for tech-based candidates for example.
Forums, although almost as old as the internet itself, are still great places to engage with niche candidates too. Instead of posting a live job and hoping for the best, try asking what candidates are looking for in an ideal role and find out the pain points. That gives you some great ammunition when it comes to having a conversation with whoever decides the job spec, salary and perks.
And offline, you can still do that networking thing that many of us abandoned during Covid. Yes, it’s a pain to travel, but getting face to face with potential hires and putting a flag in the sand that says ‘we’re hiring’ can be way more effective than waiting for an application that probably won’t come.
Looking (and sounding) good?
But even if you do start looking at more creative ways to reach candidates, you’ll need to ensure you’re brand is matching up to your approach.
It’s all well and good reaching out to prospects and grabbing their attention, only for the effort to be let down by a poor candidate experience. We’re talking cumbersome application system, dysfunctional interview process and general disorganisation.
But more importantly, the employer brand is often the place where the majority of serious applicants decide a job isn’t for them. Today, and especially for Gen Z and Millennials, the salary isn’t everything. If you aren’t telling your full story, from your commitments and beliefs to your sustainability and strategy, then your creative approach doesn’t match up with your not particularly creative employer brand.
Before trying something different, it may be time to ask if your outward image is creative enough. Do you have a dedicated careers page that includes your brand story, values, mission, news stories and as much information as possible about what life is like at your organisation?
Are you hosting and joining events dedicated to what you do, and documenting these? Are you shooting video around the office and asking your advocates to tell their story?
Sometimes hiring isn’t just about the job ad and the interview – it begins by sharing the many reasons why your people keep coming to work everyday. By channelling creativity into this story, you not only make your organisation attractive to new hires, but remind your existing teams why you offer a great place to work. Being black and white about it and celebrating what you do well, and talking about what needs to change, can be just as powerful as a creative recruitment campaign.
