Learn about Your Industry, and Network With Talent in the Process!

A few years back I decided to join associations such as ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers) and WTS (Women’s Transportation Seminar) where I was able to meet with a wide array of professionals. I learned more about the industry I recruited for while learning about new projects and business-related items.  I would attend events free and paid. It helped build my personal brand as well as get my company’s name out there.  Going to these events was extremely valuable to learn more about the industry for which I recruited.

Another benefit of going to events is that it shows your hiring team and other stakeholders that you are deeply interested in what they do.  For example, I recently went to a Geotechnical event in Washington D.C. and learned more about slope stability.  Prior to attending this event, I informed one of the Senior Principal Engineers of my plan to attend, and he was thrilled that I would take the time to learn more about his industry.  Doing something like this can really help when talking to prospective candidates, as you are speaking their “language.”

It is important that you do NOT recruit at these events.  Your name tag will mostly likely include your company name, but not your title. If anyone asks, be truthful and tell them that you are a recruiter for XYZ company.  Sometimes the person who you are talking with might take a step back, but assure them that you’re not there for recruiting purposes.  However, more often than not they will give me a business card (I have stacks of them) or send me a LinkedIn connection request shortly after.  Hence, it just continues to build my pipeline.

Socializing is the Spice of Life

As a recruiter, it’s important to socialize with professionals that you consistently communicate with.  It shouldn’t matter what line of business you are recruiting for. Each industry has some type of professional organization, association or society that you can be a part of. Sometime these cost money, but your company might be willing to cover the cost if it means engaging with passive talent.

So, if you are a recruiter and want to separate yourself from the pack, look around and find out what groups or associations you can join. It will help increase your knowledge of the industry, while building your network and future pipeline.  Many organizations have happy hours, lunch and learns, community events, and more. So, “get out there!” It’s important to be seen and heard not only within your own company, but within the industry as a whole.  

The post Get Out There; Effectively Networking With Talent appeared first on RecruitingDaily.

Studies also show that diversity hiring helps organizations:

• Expands their talent pool
• Increase skills, talents, and experiences
• Improve innovation and creativity
• Improve problem-solving capabilities

Harvard Business Review research shows that more diverse organizations are significantly better positioned for companies looking to grow and expand into new markets. Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are also important to employees. Nearly three-quarters of employees agree or strongly agree that diversity in the workplace is essential.

Implementing and Ensuring Diversity in Hiring Strategy

In today’s job market, companies need to refine their hiring strategy if they want to attract a diverse pool of candidates.

Companies need to assess the marketplace and set realistic diversity hiring targets. This brings diversity to the forefront and helps organizations evaluate their current and future needs. How companies achieve those goals often comes down to how they communicate.

Setting clear expectations, objectives, and goals should be a top priority for organizations that want to improve workplace diversity.

Avoid Poor Communication

So, how do organizations avoid poor communication? Here are a few areas to evaluate to get started.

Review Job Ads

Poor communication can enter hiring practices inadvertently. To attract diverse talent, businesses need to be aware of how this happens. For example, Hewlett Packard’s tracking showed that men tend to apply for jobs if they have 60% of the qualifications. However, women tend to apply only if they meet 100% of the qualifications.

So, the more job qualifications listed, the fewer women are likely to apply. Stick to the core, must-have requirements, and avoid the laundry list to attract more diverse candidates.

Candidates from different countries may also have different skills, training, or degrees. So, requiring a specific educational background may discriminate against candidates that have different backgrounds.

Check Brand Messaging and Reputation

If companies have a poor reputation when it comes to diversity or send the wrong brand messages, diversity hiring is going to be an uphill battle. Take proactive steps to foster diversity within the organization. Review branding to ensure the images and messages used appeal to diverse candidates. For example:

• Is there true diversity within your organization?
• Do pictures of team members on websites or job boards reflect a diverse staff?
• Do time off policies include more religious holidays or important events for diverse employees?
• Are pay scales within the organization equitable?

Improve Listening Skills

Cultural groups may communicate differently, so it’s crucial to ask probing questions and listen carefully to the answers. Understand that when two people from different cultural groups are talking, the process may be slower and require follow-up questions to extract additional information.

This also helps to overcome any potential language barriers that exist.

For example, business communication styles in Western cultures tend to be direct, while other cultures tend to be more discrete in how they communicate. Active listening skills will be essential to avoid confusion.

This is especially important for employees that have to communicate in a language that is not their native language. They may be subject matter experts but have difficulty communicating in a second language.

Be Aware of Body Language

Different cultural groups have different norms for body language. Job applicants in the U.S. are coached to have a firm handshake and maintain eye contact with the hiring manager. Yet, many Far East countries perceive a strong handshake as aggressive. In some cultures, a limp handshake is a standard. Eye contact also varies across different groups. In some countries, strong eye contact is considered inappropriate and even confrontational.

There are plenty of other cultural differences when it comes to body language and gestures. Nodding is seen as a sign of acceptance or agreement in Western cultures, and in other cultures, a nod may signify acknowledgment rather than agreement. The OK sign and thumbs up may be perfectly acceptable in the U.S., but they are seen as extremely offensive and insensitive in some cultures.

HR teams and hiring managers need to be aware of these cultural differences and how they communicate when interviewing. So, next time a candidate doesn’t look you in the eye or offer a firm handshake, don’t judge them based on body language alone.

Help Diverse Hires Succeed

Some workplaces may struggle to successfully integrate diverse employees into their organization. This requires effective communication with current employees and the onboarding process for new hires.

Current employees need to understand the value of diversity in hiring and develop an appreciation for cultural differences. This is especially important for managers that may have to adapt their communication style to use inclusive language and account for cultural practices and norms. It can be easy to offend someone unintentionally by using the word words or communication styles.

New employees may need a mentor to help them navigate the existing cultural differences. Workplace norms that are taken for granted may be foreign concepts to those from different cultures. Mentors can help new hires better understand expectations and provide new hires with a person they can go to when they have questions or concerns without judgment.

Hiring and Retaining a Diverse Workforce

In most cases, improving hiring diversity and retaining a diverse workforce can be summed up in one word: Respect. When companies show respect for different cultures and genders, they provide a more positive, inclusive culture. That starts with the way leaders, managers, and team members communicate with each other and demonstrate respect.

The post Diversity in Your Hiring Strategy: The Importance of Communication appeared first on RecruitingDaily.

The Oxford Dictionary defines soft skills as “personal attributes that enable someone to interact effectively and harmoniously with other people.” In other words, how we do things like problem solve, communicate, resolve conflict, and perform in leadership roles.

What’s The Problem?

Soft skills sound pretty sweet…because they are.

The issue we face is that nobody puts “killer soft skills” on their resume. Determining whether or not James in accounting is going to spit in Joan’s coffee if she gives him the side-eye is almost impossible.

Needless to say, it can be incredibly tough to identify the difference between a candidate with mediocre soft skills and one with a gleaming set.

It’s our job to figure that out.

The art of soft-skills recruiting takes some time and effort to lock down, but with a little guidance and effort, you can see past the resume and get a better understanding of your candidate’s social repertoire.

The Solution

In this session, Larry Anderson, Talent Acquisition Manager at Slalom, teaches you all about the nuances of soft skills recruiting.

Larry’s goal is to help you get to the root of identifying these skills in your interviews. But this isn’t just for an army of one; he’ll also show you how to pass this knowledge to your team so you can all spot the candidates that check every box.

Highlights of the show:

• Qualifying questions you can ask to shed some light on their soft skills. 
• Breaking down elements of a “good” answer from candidates.
• Techniques you can share with your full interview team.

Who knows, you might even end up learning something about your own communication failures (just kidding, you’re perfect).

The post Soft Skills Recruiting 101 appeared first on RecruitingDaily.

The Oxford Dictionary defines soft skills as “personal attributes that enable someone to interact effectively and harmoniously with other people.” In other words, how we do things like problem solve, communicate, resolve conflict, and perform in leadership roles.

What’s The Problem?

Soft skills sound pretty sweet…because they are.

The issue we face is that nobody puts “killer soft skills” on their resume. Determining whether or not James in accounting is going to spit in Joan’s coffee if she gives him the side-eye is almost impossible.

Needless to say, it can be incredibly tough to identify the difference between a candidate with mediocre soft skills and one with a gleaming set.

It’s our job to figure that out.

The art of soft-skills recruiting takes some time and effort to lock down, but with a little guidance and effort, you can see past the resume and get a better understanding of your candidate’s social repertoire.

The Solution

On January 24th @ 2:00 PM E.T. Larry Anderson, Talent Acquisition Manager at Slalom, will teach you all about the nuances of soft skills recruiting.

Larry’s goal is to help you get to the root of identifying these skills in your interviews. But this isn’t just for an army of one; he’ll also show you how to pass this knowledge to your team so you can all spot the candidates that check every box.

Highlights that we’ll cover are:

• Qualifying questions you can ask to shed some light on their soft skills. 
• Breaking down elements of a “good” answer from candidates.
• Techniques you can share with your full interview team.

Who knows, you might even end up learning something about your own communication failures (just kidding, you’re perfect).

These educational events are recorded! If you don’t think you’ll be around for the live performance, you can still register for it now, and we’ll email you a link to the full presentation.

The post Soft Skills Recruiting 101 appeared first on RecruitingDaily.

• • • I Make Job Offers Announcements Fun
    • Prioritize Alignment to Values, Checks and Balances and Speed
    • Job Offers Are Based on Potential and Fit
    • We’ve Got a 2-step Process: Meet & Greet and Skills Assessment
    • We Check For Technical Ability and Behavioral Fit
    • We Use An High Touch Approach and Position-Specific Compensation Research
    • Search Committees Recommend 3-5 Applicants and we Take it From There
    • We Review Resumes to Identify Desired Skillsets and Monitor Red Flags 

I Make Job Offers Announcements Fun

As a former recruiter, I love being the bearer of good news so I like to make good news fun. Whether it is for a new hire or a new vendor relationship, I enjoy making the candidate/vendor feel special and wanted.

When a candidate hears from the hiring manager it is already a tense call with mostly doubtful thoughts running through their minds. Which is the perfect opportunity of letting them know our team, company, or CEO thought you were “heads above the rest”. I love politely asking “Will you be our Director of Marketing?”

For a vendor, our team requested one last meeting to ask their team questions and as things began to look serious I walked in with bottles of champagne letting them know they won our business.

LT Ladino, CEO & Founder, vCandidates.com

Prioritize Alignment to Values, Checks and Balances and Speed

At nth venture, we start with testing every candidate’s alignment to our purpose: setting talented people free through the value of ownership, and the comp model we have built around that. We also have a question bank aligned to our professional values: Integrity, Discipline and Acumen.

Individuals generally start with the hiring manager or in a screening interview, and then move to a panel interview and finally an interview with our CEO – but it can vary a bit depending on the role.

One important tenet of our process is the concept of “two keys” – no one person can make a hiring decision, they must have the approval of a peer outside their reporting structure (and generally, the whole team participating should be aligned).

Finally, we move fast – we typically go from posting to offer within 3-4 weeks – every req is “top of mind” in part because we run so lean.

Nathan Deily, Chief People Officer, nth Venture

Job Offers Are Based on Potential and Fit

At our company, we make job offers based on the potential and fit of the candidate. We do not have a formulaic way of making offers, but we take into account the candidate’s prior experience, achievements and unique skill set. We also look at the team’s current needs and growth trajectory.

When we make an offer to someone, we do so with the understanding that they will make a significant impact on the company’s growth strategy. This is one of the most important decisions we make, so we take great care in understanding if this will be a good match for both parties.

Admir Salcinovic, Co-Founder, Pricelisto

We’ve Got a 2-Step Process: Meet and Greet, Skills Assessment

Job offers at my marketing job at CyberPilot are offered based on the experience of the two interviews that you have beforehand.

The first interview is a friendly meet and greet! You talk a bit about yourself, ask about the job, your skills, and to see if you fit in with the company in general. If the first interview goes well you get invited to the second interview!

The second interview is where you get to test your skills in the form of a specific case you have to work on. In my case, I had to work on a blog post about a very technical subject and turn it into something that everyone could understand. Luckily it went well. I got a phone call a few days later, where I got offered the job.

Søren Jensen, Junior Digital Marketer, CyberPilot

We Check For Technical Ability and Behavioral Fit

At Disrupter School, we base our job offers based on technical ability and behavioral fit. As great as a good background is, ensuring the candidate can do the job at a high level is essential for us as a small business.

Being a good behavioral fit is our other key requirement. Knowing how a potential candidate will fit within the company culture coupled with their ability makes the decision much easier when we make our offers.

Charles Tichenor IV, Founder, Disrupter School

We Use An High Touch Approach and Position-Specific Compensation Research

We use a combination of a standard offering, position-specific compensation research and a personal call to present the offer.

A standard offer letter is a formal, written offer from an employer to an applicant. It outlines the basic terms and conditions of employment, including salary, benefits and any other relevant information. It is usually sent by mail or email.

A position-specific compensation research is usually completed by our compensation department. It is a detailed analysis of the market data and offers of our competitors in the same role. It is used to inform us of the correct compensation package we should offer the candidate.

A personal call is usually made by our hiring manager or recruiter to personally present the offer. It is used to ensure that the candidate understands the offer and can ask any questions they may have.

Luciano Colos, Founder & CEO, PitchGrade

Search Committees Recommend 3-5 Applicants and We Take it From There

At my company, we have a search committee that reviews resumes and does the initial interview. The search committee will then recommend their top 3-5 applicants and have another interview with the applicant and include the hiring manager. The hiring manager will then decide which applicant they feel is best suited for the position and offer them the position based on a successful background check. HR will conduct the background check and, if it comes back clear, the hiring manager will contact the applicant to set up their first day, etc. HR will take it from there and begin the new employe onboarding process.

Lindsey Hight, HR Professional, Sporting Smiles

We Review Resumes to Identify Desired Skillsets and Monitor Red Flags 

The job offer process at my company typically starts when we begin reviewing applications and resumes. This involves filtering through all of the applicants to find the most promising candidates based on their qualifications, experience and skillsets. We also look for any red flags or warning signs that might indicate someone is not the right fit for the job.

Once we have a list of potential candidates, we usually start with phone interviews to get an initial sense of their qualifications and experience. This helps us narrow down our list even further so that only the most promising candidates are invited to come in-person for an interview.

Once we have interviewed all of the candidates that meet our initial criteria, we then make a decision about who to extend an offer to. This is usually based on their interview performance and overall fit with our company culture.

Martin Seeley, CEO, Mattress Next Day

The post How Job Offers Are Made at 8 Companies appeared first on RecruitingDaily.

• • Ask Your Clients for Referrals
  • Reach Out to Conference Presenters/Hosts
  • Check Expat Hubs
  • Host a Pink Slip Party
  • Use Social Media to Source Passive Candidates
  • Check Retirement Communities
  • Find Appropriate Facebook Groups
  • Do an Audit of Past Candidates
  • Use Online Billboards
  • Recruit Diverse Talent at Historically Black Colleges
  • Engage College Faculty
  • Hold an Open House

Ask Your Clients for Referrals

One of the best ways to source great candidates is to call your clients (and competitors of your clients) to see who else they use in your space. 

Who is the best person they have dealt with outside of your company in the role that you are seeking? If you approach someone with a compliment that you have heard that they are great at their job, you will find the discussion starts a lot easier!

Ineke McMahon, Director, Path to Promotion

Reach Out to Conference Presenters/Hosts

I always review professional association annual conferences and professional developments for the speaker line-ups. 

Generally, these sessions host colleagues in the field who showcase their expertise and share their best practices. In this reach, you might also receive generous referrals to other potential candidates. Conference presenters tend to be well-resourced.

Diane Fennig, Senior Consultant, The Gallagher Group 

Check Expat Hubs

One of the best ways of picking up above-average talent is to hunt for expat enclaves online. A bit of Googling will likely locate an expat or transplant group for your city/country/etc. and these groups are usually filled with various experts that are often looking for work but having a hard time finding one due to visa restrictions or something similar. 

If you’re willing to put in the extra time to get them online and operational, then these expat groups can be a substantial source for qualified candidates.

Dragos Badea, CEO, Yarooms

Host a Pink Slip Party

If you are looking for one creative way to source candidates that are available and actively looking, then host a party. The Pink Slip party is an open call to viable candidates who have been laid off, let go, or are considering their options from their current location.  

By shaping a business social scene, you and your team can connect with potential team members in a more meaningful way before a traditional interview process occurs. Here’s how you do it: 

• • Create a call to candidates through social media promotion. 
  • Check the resumes submitted and invite the candidates who better align with the role of the party. Notify those who do not.
  • Communicate with individuals on the team that’s hiring to be in attendance.
  • Create an intentional atmosphere where the company’s culture & sense of community can be experienced.
  • Consider food and drinks. It is a social event. 

If you want to source ready and available candidates and get buy-in from them, create a unique experience—throw a party.

Khalilah “KO” Olokunola, Chief People Strategist, khalilaholokunola.com

Use Social Media to Source Passive Candidates

Hiring managers and HR professionals have a hugely demanding role to play, in that they need to be constantly on the lookout for new talent, maintain their current supply and ensure that they keep hiring processes and systems up to date. 

One of the most creative (but still underutilized) ways to source passive candidates is via social media. Potential new hires are typically relaxed when scrolling social media and are more likely to curiously engage with a job posting. 

Of course, the difficulty lies in being able to pinpoint the exact type of candidate suitable for the role, but with more precise targeting and testing of variables, this can quickly become a go-to creative method for hiring the best candidates.

Tracey Beveridge, HR Director, Personnel Checks

Check Retirement Communities

Resourceful recruiters will find unlimited, untapped talent in retirement communities.

 Having retired, many seniors are more bored than they expected to be. This is especially true after being so isolated during the pandemic. With benefits such as four-day workweeks and remote work (great for those who love traveling), going back to work for them is more attractive than ever.

While you may have to invest in training them in newer technologies, you’ll have experienced talent eager to re-enter the workforce. Sourcing candidates creatively means looking beyond job boards and going into retirement- theirs.

Raina Kumra, Founder & CEO, Spicewell

Find Appropriate Facebook Groups

A company I worked with was having a hard time finding dozer operators for their mining sites. A lot of these candidates are not on LinkedIn or other traditional job sites, especially specialized ones. 

There are, however, multiple Facebook groups focused specifically on dozer operators. One of these groups has over 7,000 members, and some of them are pretty active. So, beyond being able to source candidates directly, you might also get help from the group members in terms of referrals.

Atta Tarki, Founder & Author, ECA Partners

Do an Audit of Past Candidates

The number of times I’ve seen hundreds of excellent candidate profiles go to waste simply because they weren’t accepted for the position they applied for is, quite frankly, shocking. 

Many companies do at least a version of this, by asking candidates to sign up to their employment portal so that they are kept in mind for future opportunities, but I would recommend a more hands-on approach where candidates are filed into various buckets for future role opportunities. 

There are various bits of HR software that can do this, but I don’t see them used to their full potential all too often. Finding new candidates is always a challenge, so why do that when you can mine the ones that you already had some contact with?

Kate Kandefer, CEO, SEOwind

Use Online Billboards

One creative way to source candidates that we just recently started using is online billboards. 

We are trying to catch candidates’ attention by posting a generic job announcement on an online billboard. This job announcement will feature our benefits and direct them to the link to view our job postings.

Lindsey Hight, HR Professional, Sporting Smiles

Recruit Diverse Talent at Historically Black Colleges

One creative way to recruit diverse talent is to host career days with on-site interviews at historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) to encourage students to apply for jobs at your organization. 

Not only does this allow recruiters to target a diverse channel and access underrepresented populations, but it also allows recruiters access to the next generation of talent entering the workforce and opens up an entirely new pool of potential candidates.

Dr. Shirley Knowles, Chief Inclusion and Diversity Officer, Progress

Engage College Faculty

Engaging with local university or college deans and professors can provide you with both student and alum candidates. 

These faculty members have built and maintained relationships with students and business leaders in their fields. They know the students’ work ethic and abilities. Once you have established a trusted relationship, they will encourage their students to apply with you. 

As alumni often maintain relationships with their department faculty even after graduation, they may reach out to see if they know anyone hiring. Networking in this way provides an inexpensive way to recruit talent.

Andrew Adamo, VP, Bullion Shark

Hold an Open House

Tech companies are more than businesses; they’re brands (or, at least, they should be). People want to see the behind-the-scenes magic. How are apps developed and tested? Who came up with that genius code? What new and cool perk have you added to the office? 

Reach out to local colleges, coding camps, and competitors and let them know you’re offering a sneak peek into the inner workings of your company. Promote the event on social media so even customers can get in on the fun. Then, at the end of the tour, let everyone know you’re hiring and encourage them to apply, or spread the word to someone who’s looking. 

Rob Reeves, CEO & President, Redfish Technology

The post 12 Creative Ways to Source Candidates In 2023 appeared first on RecruitingDaily.

According to LinkedIn, about 70% of the workforce is considered passive. In case you’re new here, that means they’re employed but potentially looking for a job change.

The kicker is you won’t find passive candidates in your applications. They have no idea who you are, probably don’t know anything about your company, and they don’t want the job you’re offering.

Well…they don’t want it yet. 

You Just Live in It

This is where you step in.

Engaging passive candidates takes a specialized level of communication, mindset, and proactive nurturing that doesn’t necessarily apply to their active peers. But it’s not impossible.

Lauren Kessler, Regional Talent Acquisition Manager at Slalom and Passive Candidate Whisperer, is giving you 60 minutes of in-depth training.

In this on-demand webinar, Lauren will outline six proven steps to help move your most sought-after passive candidates to active opportunities.

What You’ll Learn:

1. Where to Find Passive Candidates
2. Messaging: Get them excited about the company, not the role
3. Offer the Networking Call
4. Ask! And respect if they aren’t interested
5. A Casual Process: offer casual next steps that benefit the candidate
6. Keep in Touch

Patience Is the Process

But it’s worth it.

Staying sharp with nearly 70% of the active workforce makes sense – whether for the role you have open now or one they’ll (more than likely) be looking for later.

Dust off your passive contact list, give it a big ole hug, and enjoy the webinar.

The post 6 Steps to Move Passive Candidates to Active Opportunities appeared first on RecruitingDaily.

1. Develop Your Relationship

Between recruiters and hiring managers, there needs to be more understanding of their roles in recruitment. As a hiring manager, I think, “Does this recruiter even know what we’re hiring for and why?” As a recruiter, I think, “Great, another hiring manager that doesn’t understand my role and has unrealistic expectations for this process.”

So before jumping head first into hiring, start by developing a relationship between recruiter and hiring manager. It may seem obvious or even unnecessary to some, but this is the most crucial part of the hiring process. Get an understanding of your hiring manager personally, as well as their duties and bandwidth. Also, share that information about yourself and your role at current state. Leading with connection and empathy goes a long way. And, of course, within that kick-off meeting, review and define in depth the role, job functions and requirements, among its other nuances. You should be on the same page.

2. Define Roles and Responsibilities

Once you’ve gotten acquainted, you need to clearly define the role and responsibilities you will each play in the hiring process. I know we’ve all experienced a lack of communication, process or duplicative efforts within the hiring stage. Last thing anyone wants is a rejection email sent multiple times to the candidate or a congratulatory email sent right after a rejection email. I shiver even thinking about it. But more often than not, even if there’s no outward appearance of communication struggles with candidates, there most definitely are internal communication issues.

Determining what needs to get done by listing out all the tasks in order of how they must be performed. You can then give ownership of each task to individuals or teams. For example, define who’s in charge of creating job descriptions, job postings, candidate sourcing, resume screening, shortlisting candidates, interview scheduling and candidate follow-ups. While this may seem obvious, maybe someone is better suited or there are bandwidth complications. It’s crucial to stay in lockstep.

3. Set Clear Expectations

In addition to clarifying roles and responsibilities, it’s important to define expected turnaround times and other expectations for yourself and hiring managers. This will help to ensure that you stay on track with your recruitment timeline and determine which stages of the process require communication and document when the communication must be shared.

Create a guideline or communication timeline to share with your team and hiring manager. The document must specify the different types of communication needed at each stage of the candidate’s journey. Make sure to clearly define when those communications need to be shared, so hiring managers know exactly what’s expected of them. You may suggest that rejection emails are sent out within 24 hours of the decision being made, which would require the hiring manager to send you a list of rejected candidates immediately after they finalize their decision.

4. Use Automation to Collaborate

Collaboration thrives on communication and vice versa. However, this can be challenging when either party has too many tasks and responsibilities to maintain that they cannot hold up their end of the bargain. In fact, people spend just about 33% of their time doing the job they’re meant to do because they’re too busy switching between platforms and hunting down information.

Automating certain tasks and reminders can help to simplify things and ensure better collaboration between recruiters and hiring managers. If able, invest in automation tools that allow you to easily set reminders, assign tasks, and automate routine activities such as interview scheduling, job postings and candidate communications.

5. Be Proactive

The reactive method is long gone. If you are reactive, you’re failing. To establish better communication with hiring managers, recruiters must become proactive communicators. Feel free to reach out first or follow up consistently with your hiring manager to avoid confusion or miscommunication. Finding the best fit alongside your hiring manager requires proactive communication. Whether it’s a brief email updating them about your shortlisted candidates or a follow-up call asking for updates on a candidate’s offer status, this type of proactivity ensures a seamless process with robust, clear communication.

Better Communication for Seamless Recruiting

When there’s good communication between recruiters and hiring managers, it creates a smoother recruitment process. It lets you stay on track while saving time and enhancing the candidate experience. This will reflects positively on your expertise as a recruiter and your hiring manager’s employer brand–a win-win for everyone involved. Yes, even the candidates.

The post 5 Tips for Hiring Manager Communication appeared first on RecruitingDaily.

According to LinkedIn, about 70% of the workforce is considered passive. In case you’re new here, that means they’re employed but potentially looking for a job change.

The kicker is you won’t find passive candidates in your applications. They have no idea who you are, probably don’t know anything about your company, and they don’t want the job you’re offering.

Well…they don’t want it yet. 

You Just Live in It

This is where you step in.

Engaging passive candidates takes a specialized level of communication, mindset, and proactive nurturing that doesn’t necessarily apply to their active peers. But it’s not impossible.

Lauren Kessler, Regional Talent Acquisition Manager at Slalom and Passive Candidate Whisperer, has offered us 60 minutes of in-depth training on December 13th.

Lauren will outline six proven steps to help move your most sought-after passive candidates to active opportunities.

What You’ll Learn:

1. Where to Find Passive Candidates
2. Messaging: Get them excited about the company, not the role
3. Offer the Networking Call
4. Ask! And respect if they aren’t interested
5. A Casual Process: offer casual next steps that benefit the candidate
6. Keep in Touch

Patience Is the Process

But it’s worth it.

Staying sharp with nearly 70% of the active workforce makes sense – whether for the role you have open now or one they’ll (more than likely) be looking for later.

Dust off your passive contact list, give it a big ole hug, and see you at the webinar.

Can’t make the live event? No worries! Register now, and we’ll send you a copy of the video and slide deck after the session. 

The post 6 Steps to Move Passive Candidates to Active Opportunities appeared first on RecruitingDaily.

We’re all guilty of having our mobile devices glued to our faces and candidates are no different. For many, text is the best form of communication. Reports from recent surveys show that for job seekers between 18 and 30 years of age, almost 90% preferred using text messages during the hiring process.

In the ever-evolving world of talent, attracting and engaging candidates in the hiring process is key. But before you start firing up your thumbs, keep in mind that COVID has had a major impact on the job market, and this does not exclude recruiter-candidate communication.

There are a few new rules of engagement.

Sophie Okonkwo, Global Talent Acquisition- Engineering EMEA at Microsoft, will join us to offer guidance on how to provide informative communication to your candidates with text messaging during Covid – i.e., you have to make it count…without sounding like a creep.

Sophie is a communication extraordinaire (check out her Emoji Sourcing session from HRTX – make sure to register for your free insider account to access it). She knows her stuff, and she knows how to teach it.

Reply YES To Learn More

There’s a lot here to unravel if you don’t want to be a member of your candidate’s blocked contact list.

Allow Sophie to demystify the concept of text messaging in hiring.

She’ll show you:

• Tips on texting candidates for better engagement.
• How to shorten your time-to-hire metric through candidate texting.
• How to create a 5-star candidate experience through candidate texting.

Grab your phones, your coffee, and dial in to learn how to keep your candidates on the line.

You’ll be glad you came.

The post How to Text Candidates in a COVID World appeared first on RecruitingDaily.

According to Gartner, only 16% of new hires possess all the skills required to be prepared for their current and future roles, and only 29% of new hires have high current-skill preparedness. 

Further research finds that IT, finance and sales positions filled today will need up to 10 new skills within 18 months. In today’s job market, recruiters need to hire for potential, not experience, as highly gifted candidates are the first to be hired or develop key industry skills.

With that said, it’s hard to find a high-value candidate that doesn’t expect some degree of flexibility, which often comes in the form of remote work. As candidates become more choosy, employers should pay attention to how they present their own value to passive and active hires.

Recruiting Remote Employees

Recruiting for a work-from-home role isn’t that dissimilar to an in-person position. Modern onboarding always includes technology, but a remote employee will rely on it for everything.

Factor in Remote or Hybrid Work Experience

Candidates don’t have to have remote or hybrid work experience. In fact, the majority of your applicants won’t have it. In 2021, 26% of the American workforce worked remotely. That only accounts for 87.6 million people, most of which have limited work-from-home experience.

Still, experience in a hybrid environment and the ability to use remote work software can help your candidates onboard quicker, so long as they are productive while working from home.

It’s also important to treat your remote employee as such. Work-from-home staff often apply for remote roles because they have more freedom, and they won’t appreciate being asked to hop on a meeting suddenly or to take a “quick trip” to the office. If you do this, they’ll likely quit.

Remember that productivity should be tracked by output in a remote setting. Just looking at hours worked doesn’t tell the whole story, as workers are often more productive when they have minimal interruptions. Trust your remote employees will get their work done before the deadline.

Consider Successful Remote Employee Skills

Both experienced and inexperienced hybrid candidates can still possess specific skills that make them perfect for remote work. Many people can work independently and stay productive without physically being in the office. With that said, don’t micromanage remote employees.

Here are seven essential skills remote job seekers should have:

• • Ability to work independently
  • Strong written communication skills
  • Self-motivated and organized
  • Comfortable using digital tools
  • Team player and culturally sensitive
  • Emotional intelligence and empathy
  • Reliability and secure equipment

If the candidate has never held a work-from-home position before, check their resume or cover letter for the above skill-based keywords. It also helps to add these skills to your job description, as modern candidates are taught to use keywords in job postings to score well on ATS software.

Keep in mind that network security is essential, especially when you have remote employees. IP whitelisting is a vital part of networking security and should be implemented in your startup.

Identify the Qualities of Your Ideal Candidate

A software developer could possess all remote-specific skills, but they won’t be able to finish projects if they’re missing three out of the four coding languages you need. While there’s no harm in hiring them and training them anyway, it’s better to hire a near-ideal candidate.

Defining the ideal candidate for the remote position will help you plan your recruitment strategy and access your candidates’ applications. Create a list of soft skills, hard skills, traits, technical proficiencies and personality characteristics that mesh well with the position and work culture.

If you’re stuck on this section, ask yourself how you would measure a candidate’s success once they’re on the job. There are many powerful ways to recognize employees, such as offering a thank you note when they finish a project or congratulating a team for signing 10 new clients.

Source Candidates From the Right Places

Finding a remote employee wasn’t easy five years ago, but the pandemic made the problem worse. Recruitment trends show that freelancers and independent contractors are going to be in high demand, and you won’t want to mix these professionals up with classified employees.

If you do want to find freelancers, consider reaching out to candidates on LinkedIn. Upwork, Indeed, ClearVoice, FlexJobs, Freelancer and Guru are other great sites to hire freelancers.

On the topic of employees, these five sites target employment-based remote opportunities:

• • We Work Remotely: Caters to multiple industries
  • Remote.co: Similar to We Work Remotely
  • AngelList: Focuses on roles for tech companies 
  • Stack Overflow: Focuses on tech roles, like a software engineer
  • Remotive: Focuses on IT support, marketing, product, and sales.

To build up your remote talent pool gradually, communicate with other websites in your industry and get placed on roundups like “X Startups That Hire Remotely.” It’s also a good idea to research remote startup directories and get listed, as more candidates will apply for your jobs.

While focusing on your outreach strategy is effective, that doesn’t mean you have to stay off of job boards like Monster of Glassdoor. Just make sure you aren’t overworking your recruitment department, as it’ll make it harder for them to find and interview the right candidates.

Offer a Realistic Preview of the Position

Candidates will self-select out of the job if your job postings are accurate, brief and descriptive. 

Many recruiters think that being too descriptive will make fewer people apply, but that’s not a bad thing. If you don’t disclose the salary for this position, candidates will ask anyway. If they have to wait until the interview to find out and they’re disappointed, they’ll leave or stick around.

Those who stick around will likely leave the moment they get a better offer. This process wastes everyone’s time and becomes pretty expensive. It costs 30% to 400% of a person’s salary to replace them, so it simply isn’t worth it to hire someone you know is unfit for the role.

When recruiting remote employees, be clear in the job listing about the position’s telecommuting requirements and make the ad easy to read. List all required skills in a bullet-point format and avoid industry jargon.

Assess the Candidate’s Company Culture Fit

You may have a hard time assessing how well a remote candidate fits into your workplace culture. At the same time, you may fall into the trap of overanalyzing a candidate because you have the option to record them. Only allow colleagues to review a taped interview for fairness.

It’s difficult to ignore unconscious hiring biases. We often prefer to hire someone who looks or acts like us, and we don’t always know we’re doing that. It can be even more challenging to accept an imperfect candidate, but you’ll never find the perfect employee, and that’s okay.

What’s more important is focusing on their values. If the person you’re interviewing is a coder, but doesn’t know three out of the four languages you need, hire them if they’re willing to learn.

But before evaluating a client’s culture fit, you need to define these values and lead by example. Then, develop specific interview questions that evaluate whether a candidate aligns with them.

Keep Candidates Engaged With the Process

In a survey of 2,800 job candidates, 65% halted the application process because they found some aspect of the company or job unattractive. It’s much easier for remote candidates to ghost recruiters, so making various recruitment mistakes could make you lose a potential employee.

Here are a few reasons why remote employees leave your process and what to do:

• • The Process is Slow: A candidate may disengage or be hired by the competition if your process is too slow. Respond quickly to applications and book them in for an interview.
  • No Follow-Up: A candidate that doesn’t follow up may not know what to do next. Tell candidates how the recruitment process will go and how long it will take. 
  • Too Many Contradictions: A candidate who feels you’re not living up to your values will leave the process. Revisit your content and see if you’re being honest and direct.
  • The Interview is Unstructured: A candidate can tell you’re unprepared. Don’t ask generic questions, focus less on hard skills, and fix any technical issues upfront.
  • Bad Reputation: A candidate will be concerned if a bad reputation follows your company. Address these concerns early to alleviate anything that could cause anxiety.

In summary, you need to keep candidates engaged with the process. If you manage to hold their attention, you’ll be considered their top choice and that’s a very good thing in this job market. 

Remember that you’re not just finding an employee; you’re searching for a loyal and productive team member. Consider using your hiring process to develop a relationship with potential new hires. Remote workers are less likely to quit when they feel connected to their coworkers.

The post 7 Tips for Recruiting Remote Employees appeared first on RecruitingDaily.

The Importance of Onboarding as a Valuable Experience 

Providing a seamless onboarding experience is the key to retaining international talent. As one statistic on employee onboarding mentioned, 93% of employers believe that a good onboarding experience is critical in whether the employee will stay with the company.  

Onboarding training is a perfect opportunity for employees to get introduced to a new environment and understand the changes they will have to face. While for employers, it is a series of well-crafted processes where they can share all the tools and resources to help new members succeed.   

Today, new hires expect not only a thoughtful and positive onboarding experience but one that is tailored and personalized to the individual. After all, every new employee is an investment the company makes, so going the extra mile to ensure a flawless user experience can payout in the long run. When hiring international recruits, HR professionals need to consider a couple of extra things beyond paperwork and workflow systems to make onboarding a success.    

Implement a Buddy or Mentor System 

Starting a new job can be challenging, even more so when working in an international organization. Assigning the new employee with another coworker can help them feel more welcome and provide guidance. A mentor can help the new hire feel more settled and create a collaborative learning environment.   

Social Integration to the New Company and Team 

Take the time to schedule a meet-and-greet with the new employee. Introduce them to key stakeholders, team members, and coworkers and create more social networking opportunities across different departments.  

International hires might need more strategic socializing to integrate and feel connected to their colleagues. If your organization carries out virtual onboarding, establish clear communication via digital channels at mutually convenient hours.   

Cultural Awareness Training 

One way to foster an inclusive environment is to allow the new hire to share more about their country and culture. An introductory presentation will make the new employee feel closer with their coworkers and bring light to any cultural differences, which may offer new perspectives and experiences.    

A company with a global workforce needs to bring awareness of different cultural and work etiquettes to create a common cultural framework. It can integrate a new hire and build strong professional relationships with people from different cultures.  

Personalized Onboarding and Training   

Taking a one-size-fits-all approach to onboarding will not provide a unique and valuable employee experience, as every new hire is different. Onboarding should be the same for every employee for the traditional aspect of it, such as sharing of: 

• • Role information and expectations 
  • Documentation
  • Benefits packages  
  • Technology protocols 
  • Company structure
  • Work policies & procedures 

Companies can pay attention to the personal preferences of an international employee and customize their training based on their: 

• • Language and Communication Preference 
  • Meeting Etiquette 
  • Professional customs 
  • Work habits 
  • Any areas of concern 

Personalizing training will make the new employee feel special, valued and supported, leaving them with a good impression of their employer.  

Regular Check-Ins  

Regular communication is vital during the onboarding and training period. International employees can feel isolated, so setting up periodic check-ins can make them feel welcomed and alleviate any anxieties.

Facilitating check-ins is also an excellent opportunity to gather feedback and gauge how new employees cope with their workload and new environment. These face-to-face or virtual meetings are a perfect way to see what’s working and make adjustments to the onboarding process.    

Conclusion 

A robust and effective onboarding program is the key determinant in improving an organization’s retention rate. A company’s success depends on the selection, onboarding and training processes for new hires, even more so for a dynamic and diverse international workforce. 

The post Tips for Successful Onboarding and Training an International Workforce appeared first on RecruitingDaily.

We’re all guilty of having our mobile devices glued to our faces and candidates are no different. For many, text is the best form of communication. Reports from recent surveys show that for job seekers between 18 and 30 years of age, almost 90% preferred using text messages during the hiring process.

In the ever-evolving world of talent, attracting and engaging candidates in the hiring process is key. But before you start firing up your thumbs, keep in mind that COVID has had a major impact on the job market, and this does not exclude recruiter-candidate communication.

There are a few new rules of engagement.

Sophie Okonkwo, Global Talent Acquisition- Engineering EMEA at Microsoft, will join us to offer guidance on how to provide informative communication to your candidates with text messaging during Covid – i.e., you have to make it count…without sounding like a creep.

Sophie is a communication extraordinaire (check out her Emoji Sourcing session from HRTX – make sure to register for your free insider account to access it). She knows her stuff, and she knows how to teach it.

Reply YES To Learn More

There’s a lot here to unravel if you don’t want to be a member of your candidate’s blocked contact list.

Allow Sophie to demystify the concept of text messaging in hiring.

She’ll show you:

• Tips on texting candidates for better engagement.
• How to shorten your time-to-hire metric through candidate texting.
• How to create a 5-star candidate experience through candidate texting.

Grab your phones, your coffee, and dial in (yes we know this is a texting webinar, but give us a break – we’re running out of texting humor) to learn how to keep your candidates on the line.

You’ll be glad you came.

Can’t make the live session? No worries – just register, and we’ll send you a link to the recording and materials after the show. 

The post “u up?” How to Text Candidates In a COVID World appeared first on RecruitingDaily.

Learn to Accommodate the Unpredictable

A challenging aspect of being a recruiter is the unpredictability factor during the recruitment process. People are complex and complicated, and each person can see the same opportunity from different perspectives. A recruiter should prepare for anything that could happen during the search. It is up to them to keep their clients and candidates on the same page throughout the hiring process.

Benjamin Farber
President Bristol Associates, Inc.

Don’t Haunt Potential Hires

Avoid ghosting job candidates. Keep in mind that they are also stakeholders in the vetting and interviewing process. In the digital age (where all comments are shareable and social), a negative or positive interview experience can be published online — and read — in a matter of seconds. This can have an impact on qualified job seekers who are researching your open positions and discourage them from applying. Regardless of how many “to do’s” are added to the task list, all applicants should expect open conversations and transparency throughout the process.

Jessica Arias
Director of People & Culture OnPay Payroll Services

Use LinkedIn Smarter

Tools like LinkedIn’s Career Explorer page are a recruiter’s best friend. It’s the platform’s central database that tracks today’s top-trending job titles in your recruitment vertical, but also the associated skills for these roles. The platform gives you a glimpse into what your actual target audience is prioritizing when job hunting themselves.

In this sense, think of tools such as Career Explorer like an encyclopedia for how to attract hyper-specific talent. You also get access to a library of workforce data and scouting and recruitment thought leadership, all in a single place. Basically, it’ll allow you to recruit faster, easier and ultimately better than colleagues who aren’t crafting their work around this centralized info.

Yang Zhang
CEO Plasmic

Build Your Network of Contacts

The first step is to identify the industry you want to recruit for (in my case, IT). Study org charts for some large companies in that industry to get an idea of what departments you might work with and what common and niche positions in those departments you may be recruiting for, as well as the growth opportunities for each position (good selling points for passive candidates).

I looked for IT org charts and learned everything I could about IT infrastructure from help desk to CIO/CTO, as well as where software development fits into the greater IT organization. Once you digest all that, do a deep dive into duties for each role and common tools/skills/technologies that are used for those positions. You don’t need to know everything, but knowing a little helps you to think of good questions to ask candidates. Now you know enough to be dangerous. The last step is to spend time each day adding people in the roles you studied to your LinkedIn and get a professional headshot taken.

Matthew Jones
Senior IT Recruiter VIP Tech Consultants

Seek to Recruit for Organizations That Matter to You

When you recruit for an organization whose causes, mission/vision, products or services are important to you, it shows. Your messaging comes from an authentic place, your ability to bring excitement to conversations with candidates becomes effortless and you become the best advocate for your candidates because of your vested interest in their and the organization’s, success.

Cindy Rodriguez
Partner Adirondack Diversity Solutions LLC

Identify and Sharpen Your Soft Skills

I believe anyone can become a recruiter, but not everyone can be a great one. Great recruiters share a common quality: They know the key soft skills needed to engage clients and successfully place high-quality candidates in challenging positions. Every successful recruiter’s main soft skills are strong communication, negotiation, sales and people management skills. As you launch your career, identify opportunities to strengthen these skills and you will navigate many of the obstacles most newbies face in their career.

Strong communication, people and sales skills are critical to engaging clients, evaluating and managing their needs and providing tailor-made solutions they cannot find anywhere else. These same skills are critical in maintaining high-quality and productive relationships with hiring managers. Strained relationships with hiring managers are a major obstacle for both new and experienced recruiters, but with the right skills, you can overcome these common challenges.

Paul French
Managing Director Intrinsic Executive Search

Be Familiar With Your Role as a Recruiter 

Listening is the number one qualification for the individual who dreams of becoming a recruiter. A recruiter understands the business, treats job seekers like customers and teams up with hiring managers to collaborate on job specifications, plans, sources, assessments, sales, communication, listening, marketing, coaching, interviewing, evaluation.

Recruiters-in-the-making recruit for diversity, share knowledge, persuade, negotiate, contribute beyond their assignment and enjoy joint achievements shared with their colleagues. 

Business competencies new recruiters will require include a drive for results, composure, creativity, priority setting, problem-solving, perseverance, comfort around senior executives, standing alone, organizing and approachability. They are talent scouts who are passionate and polished professionals who, having listened well, take great joy in congratulating each of their newly hired staff.

Bill Gunn
Principal Consultant G&A

Learn How to Like the Unknown

You need to learn to like the unknown from the terminology that you do not know to situations where you simply have to wait for updates and answers. When it comes to starting your career, you need to quickly familiarize yourself with all of the terms that you will be using on a daily basis.

That includes business terms, your team’s jargon and some key elements that you will be discussing with your candidates (i.e., if you are an IT recruiter, you must know and understand their tech stack to be able to ask the correct questions). So when you see something new, Google it and understand what it is. 

Another big part of recruitment is waiting for the feedback, the offer, the decision on that offer and many other things. Be ready for that waiting time and to constantly push for updates. Recruitment is very dynamic, so you must be prepared for requirements to change quickly and be able to adapt to the new ones to be successful.

Katya Lapayeva
IT Recruiter CNA International IT

Work on Your Communication Skills

The key to success for someone to become successful in recruiting will likely always be in communication. This affects interactions with hiring managers, candidates and within your team. Due to the emergence of additional A.I. and technology-based solutions, it seems that meaningful communication has taken a back seat.

However, communication, which includes both the written and spoken word, will continue to be what separates the most successful recruiters from average recruiters. If you become comfortable with video, this can also prove to be a tremendous edge as a new recruiter.

Rollis Fontenot III
Founder HR Maximizer Inc

Explore the Possibility to Shadow a Member of a Recruiting Team

The recruiting landscape is extremely competitive and many companies are seeking to beef up their talent acquisition team. Most companies look for individuals with prior recruiting experience. However, that shouldn’t stop anyone from pursuing the recruiting/talent acquisition field. Recruiting requires attention to detail, maintaining confidentiality, ability to work in ambiguous environments and an ability to relate to candidates.

One important tip for prospective recruiters is to have a solid understanding of the questions that you can and cannot ask prospective candidates. This may seem extremely tactical, however it is an important component of being a recruiter. There are questions that are illegal to ask a candidate. It’s also helpful to reach out to Human Resources to see if it’s possible to shadow a member of the recruiting team to have a better understanding of the full lifecycle recruiting process.

Tawanda Johnson
People & Culture Thought Leader Sporting Smiles

Find a Way to Get Your Foot in the Door

You can start as a sourcer or recruitment assistant in order to get a glimpse into the recruitment industry. As both of these positions have a lower barrier to entry, you may be able to find an internship or on-the-job training opportunities for both of these positions.

These positions will allow you to get hands-on experience, and you’ll quickly find out whether or not recruitment is right for you. Moreover, you’ll gain insight into which specialization of recruitment is the best fit, allowing you to properly adjust the course of your career from an earlier point in time than most people.

Iohan Chan
Senior Content Editor Clark Staff

The post How To Become a Recruiter: 11 Tips appeared first on RecruitingDaily.

WorkReels said the expansion is intended to help recruiting agencies and talent acquisition teams attract higher quality talent and fill open roles more quickly.

Hcareers, which was founded as a hotel job board in 1998, provides real-time technology solutions to employers and professionals in North America’s hospitality industry. With 5.7 million members, the company claims to be the world’s largest community of hospitality talent.

Hcareers CEO Douglas Tutt said that joining WorkReels will enable his platform to attract top talent and help fill the industry’s worker shortage. “The hospitality industry is exploding post-COVID, but a serious employee shortage is holding brands back from making a full recovery,” he observed.

The Power of Video

According to WorkReels, job seekers are eight times more likely to view a job post that contains a video than a standard text post. In addition, the company said its partners are able to build stronger customer relationships and generate additional revenue streams by offering enhanced video-based recruiting solutions.

Rick Jones, WorkReels’ founder and CEO, said the company’s customers have seen application rates increase by 40%, “making recruitment faster, easier and less costly.”

Industry executives say video helps employers meet candidate expectations for a true look into their workplace culture and specific jobs roles. “Recruiters and business owners are encouraged to think differently about how jobs, people and environments are showcased to prospective employees,” wrote Insperity Senior Performance Consultant Jill Chapman. “In a tight labor market, recruiters may consider adopting video interviewing and messaging to attract today’s modern candidates.”

Younger workers tend to prefer video over other types of communication — like, say, email. “You’ve got a segment of employees who, quite frankly, are more likely to engage with video,” said LumApps Chief Marketing Officer Chris McLaughlin, in a conversation with RecruitingDaily’s William Tincup.

The post WorkReels Signs Hcareers as Partner for Hospitality Brands appeared first on RecruitingDaily.