There’s no doubt about it, the competition for top talent is hot. With the Great Resignation, The Great Reshuffle, The Big Quit – whatever you want to call the current talent climate – businesses are finding themselves in a ‘war of talent’ to snag the best employees. The problem is, with so many organisations out there vying for the same candidates, it’s hard to know how to stand out.
Just like the phrase ‘the early bird always catches the worm’ applies to many things in life, it applies to recruitment, too. In order to beat the competition, you need to act fast.
But, it’s not just about the race. Candidates today want to feel valued, and they won’t hesitate to move on if they get the sense that your organisation isn’t cutting their needs. In fact, research shows that the 3 main reasons candidates reject job offers are due to: lack of/delayed communication, little transparency on selection criteria, and time taken for interviews.
In other words, the key to attracting and keeping top talent is communication, transparency and speed.
However, as HR professionals spinning multiple plates at once, it’s hard to be on top of everything all the time. And sometimes we just don’t have the resources to communicate with our candidates as often as we would like to. This is where HR software comes in to help you automate your recruitment processes and give you the tools you need to beat the competition in the race to secure top talent.
With that said, did you know that those who automate their recruitment practices have been found to fill 64% more roles than those who don’t? So, if you want to know how to gain a competitive advantage, HR technology is your answer.
Now, let’s take a look at some of the ways it can help you win the talent war
Job Board Integration
To gain access to top talent, you need to make sure that you are getting as many applicants as possible. How do you do that? By posting on as many job boards as you can. Well, not as many as you can – the main job boards of your target candidate will work the trick.
But, that can be an extremely time-consuming process. Especially when you and your team have about 100 other things to tick of your to do list.
With HR software that integrates with all the major job boards, you can say good bye manual posting and hello additional time! In a matter of a small few clicks, your job advertisement will be posted on all the major job boards, where you can gain that competitive advantage of a larger candidate pool and swifter recruitment process.
Applicant Management
With an HR solution that includes an applicant tracking system, you can keep track of all the candidates who have applied for your open roles in one place. This is extremely helpful when you have a high volume of applications.
But in order to set yourself apart from the competition and portray yourself as a brand that cares, you need to send regular updates to your candidates.
You’re probably thinking, while yes that will would be a nice thing to do – updating over 100 job applicants just isn’t viable.
You’re right. If you are sending out these updates manually, there is no way that you are going to manage and get the rest of your job done. But, with HR software that holds an applicant management system, you can automate this process and save yourself and your team valuable time.
Not only that, but by keeping all candidates informed on the progress of their application, you could prevent losing that potential gem of an employee to a competitor.
Interview Management
If you were looking for a job, how would you feel if the company you were interviewing for was scatty and unorganized? Doesn’t really scream out we are an employer of choice, does it?
Best piece of advice: put yourself in the candidates’ shoes and make sure that your interview process is as smooth as possible.
With HR software that includes interview management tools, you can do just that. These tools allow you to create customised interview schedules, send out interview invitations, and track who has attended each interview. This ensures that everyone involved in the recruitment process is kept up to date with what’s happening, avoiding any confusion or delays.
But, it’s not just about being prompt and organised with your interview scheduling. You need to make sure that you are following up with each interviewee in a timely manner.
Research from talent consultancy, Robert Half, found that 62% of candidates lose interest when they don’t hear back from an employer within two weeks of the first interview. The same survey found that 87% of professionals admitted that they would decline an offer if there was lack of engagement post-offer.
So, sending out a personalised email or call to debrief applicants is an essential part to maintaining a good relationship with the candidate – regardless of whether they are successful or not. It shows that you value their time, and gives you another opportunity to stand out from the competition.
At the end of the day, you maintaining communication post interview and offer could be the grip you need to stop that diamond slipping onto the payroll of your competition.
Recruitment Data and Analytics
When it comes to winning the war for talent, it’s important to have a clear understanding of your recruitment process. This includes understanding where your candidates are coming from, the level of candidates you are receiving per advertisement, how long they take to hire, and how successful your current recruitment campaigns are.
For example, if you are finding that you are getting a lot of attraction on your job advertisement, but the quality of candidates are poor – this could be an indication that you need to re-jig your job description.
You may also find that your time to fill is higher than usual, which could be a sign that you need to review and shorten your interview process.
By analysing your recruitment data, you can identify any areas that may need improvement, and make the necessary changes to ensure a more efficient process. HR software that includes recruitment analytics tools can be extremely helpful in this regard, as it allows you to track and measure key data points throughout the entire recruitment process, so that you can stay that one (or two) steps ahead.
Early access for new starters
Think about how you can help new starters beyond the recruitment process.
Consider allowing new starters to have early access (once they have signed their contract, and prior to their start date) to company videos, access to learning content etc. This will encourage new starters to feel part of your company, prior to starting. When candidates sign their contract, they are excited about the prospect of a new role/new challenge, keeping that engagement going is key to new starters feeling part of your company. This can be achieved by allowing new starters (through security) to have controlled access to information.
Selecting the Right Weapon for Your Recruiting Arsenal
There is probably an outdated number of recruitment software’s out there in the wild web. How do you know which one is the right fit for your business?
The answer is you don’t. But, by doing your research, you can get a general feel for what might be the best tool to help support your recruitment strategy.
HR software should make your life easier, not harder. Think about what it can do for you in terms of speeding up your recruitment process and enhancing engagement with candidates. For examples, signing of contracts, using built in ‘e-signature’ – making it really simple for candidates to view thier contract and sign, using thier mobile phone is a must. These are quick wins, that will really help to speed up the process and secure candidates.
At the end of the day, beating the competition in securing the best talent doesn’t start and end with recruitment. You need to retain your top talent too.
So, it may actually be worth your while looking into HR software that can do it all.
But we’ll leave that decision up to you.
