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10 Tips for Recruiting Top-Tier Candidates

When you’re hiring employees to help take your organization to the next level, it’s only natural to want the best of the best. Today’s job seekers are in high demand, so it’s essential to make sure your recruiting practices and job offers are competitive to keep up. Here are ten tips to attract and retain top-tier candidates.

1. Emphasize Employee Referrals

Asking your existing employees to refer individuals is a great way to find candidates you may not reach otherwise. Plus, these candidates may be more qualified than your standard applicants because they’re recommended by someone you know and trust. If you don’t already encourage employee referrals for job applications, now is the time to start.

2. Create a Positive Candidate Experience

Candidates expect employers to be communicative, timely, and organized. When hiring, try to avoid rescheduling interviews last minute, pushing interviews back, and asking interviewees to wait longer than they need to. Many people take interviews during their lunch break or take a day off from their current job to attend them, so it’s important to respect their time. Those behaviors will serve as red flags for candidates who may have other options on the table. The more enjoyable and professional you can make your recruiting process, the better. 

3. Look to Hire and Promote From Within

The easiest way to attract top talent is to look within the candidate pool you already have — your current employees. Consider whether you might already have the perfect candidate elsewhere in the organization for open roles. As a bonus, the training period for these types of “hires” is often fast-tracked because the employee will already have general knowledge about your organization. It’s a win, win for everyone! 

4. Prioritize Diversity

A recent Glassdoor study found that company diversity matters to 76% of job seekers. Moreover, applicants can see through halfhearted attempts at diversity and empty promises that aren’t receiving follow-through. If you’re still falling short in the DEI department, consider this your sign to recommit. Among other reasons, employees don’t want to work for organizations that don’t promote an inclusive work environment. If you need concrete steps to move towards inclusivity, read this article

5. Utilize Job Boards

Whether you love them or hate them, job boards are a powerful resource to help connect you to high-quality applicants. Opt for standard job posting sites like Indeed, Monster, and Glassdoor if you want to cast a wide net or look into industry-specific or location-specific boards for a more targeted approach.

6. Write Job Descriptions That Stand Out

To get noticed alongside hundreds of other open positions, make sure your job descriptions are accurate for the role and show your company’s culture and personality. The more unique the job description, the better! Make sure that it includes basic information about what the position will entail. After all, candidates are unlikely to apply to listings they don’t identify with!

It can be challenging to find time to create or update job descriptions. Utilize tools such as job description wizards. These allow you to choose from hundreds of templates that can be customized to include your specific requirements, responsibilities, job duties, and skills required to perform the role. Learn more here.

7. Simplify Your Application Process

Are you familiar with the exact steps applicants must go through to submit themselves for your open roles? If not, go through the process from the candidate’s perspective and note any pain points you encounter. Try to remove steps that often cause friction, like uploading your entire work history after already attaching your resume. The more time and energy you require candidates to devote to the application, the more likely they will move on.

8. Offer Remote Roles and Flexible Schedules

If you’re not already offering remote roles and flexible schedules, this is one of the easiest ways to attract more—and better—candidates in 2022 and beyond. The pandemic introduced a new level of work-life balance for many employees, and they’re just not willing to give up the flexibility they’ve learned to enjoy. (Learn more about the evolution of the 40-hour workweek in this blog.) While not every employee may need these options, offering remote working allows you to expand your reach to qualified candidates that live outside of your city. According to Upwork, 57% of employees work at least part of the time remotely, so consider this option when hiring.

9. Leverage Technology

Recruiting may seem like a manual process through and through, but today’s software tools make it possible to automate and simplify much of the process. Use mass outreach tools to send messages to many prospective employees at once, create templates to simplify interview notes or other standard documents, or lean on your project management tool of choice to help track applicants as they progress through your process. While you’re at it, explore these five tech tools to simplify other aspects of your day-to-day, too. 

Human Resource Information System (HRIS) tools can help simplify the recruiting process by providing flexible and straightforward job posting solutions, streamlined screening and selection processes, reports on cost and time to hire, and other benefits for business owners. Learn about HRIS technologies here.

10. Offer Competitive Compensation and Benefits

If you’re hoping to attract the best candidates, you need to be prepared to pay them what they’re worth and offer competitive benefits. Consider perks like signing bonuses, additional vacation days, wellness stipends, learning and development budgets, and more. According to MetLife, 69% of employees say a more comprehensive array of benefits would increase their employer loyalty. Glassdoor found similar results, with 60% of people reporting that benefits and perks are a major factor determining whether they accept a job offer. If you’re offering the bare minimum, you might be losing out on top talent! 

Experts indicate that hiring will remain competitive for employers in the coming years, so set your organization apart and find the ideal new additions for your teams. Contact our team to learn which benefits you should offer to attract the most qualified candidates for open job positions today!

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