Your Guide to Recruiting and Hiring Quality Candidates CHAPTER 1 Recruiting in the "New Normal" Recruiting today is different than it was even just a decade ago. Unemployment rates are at a historic low, and finding and hiring qualified candidates has become highly competitive. Both employers and job seekers have more choices, and information overload is always a factor. This is what we mean by the "New Normal." In this article, you will learn about today’s recruiting environment, and what you can do to excel in your goal of building the best team in your industry. Employees are more mobile than ever. According to recent statistics (Jobvite 2019 Job Seeker Nation Report), 64% of job seekers stated they were satisfied with their current workplace. This number is up just slightly from where it was in 2017 (62%). However, 82% of workers are open to a new opportunity, and about half have had an interview in the past year. This is a fast-moving, highly-dynamic environment for employer and employee alike. We will share the implications and, more importantly, what you need to do to build and maintain a workforce that keeps you ahead of the competition. In the "new normal", employees (particularly younger employees) are restless and highly mobile both in terms of openness and technology. Moreover, although they are generally satisfied with their jobs, they are apt to interview just to stay on top of what is happening in the marketplace. While this presents a retention challenge, it is also good for you as an employer provided you have the type of strategy we describe in this article. Company culture is a key factor for recruiting in the new normal. Many people think of culture as the manifestation of a company’s personality. When employees talk about culture, they often mean three things: alignment on a common mission (a clear, compelling vision for the future), work environment (managers who "walk the talk"), and values (such as gender pay equity and the importance of diversity). To get a read on your culture, review Glassdoor for candid comments. If you don’t like what you see, make it an immediate priority to create a better and more compelling environment. This may prove to be the best investment you can make in your company’s ability to attract and retain top talent. While this article addresses all workforce segments, there are a few specific considerations when dealing with millennials. Chances are, millennials are a key part of your workforce now and will be in the future. Who are the Millennials? Born from 1980 to 2000, millennials are the largest single generation at work today. While they now comprise about one-third of the US workforce, this share is expected to grow to 46% in the next five years. Here are a few realities to keep in mind about this segment: Raised in an era of layoffs, millennials are different in their attitude toward loyalty compared to the Gen Y and Boomer generations that preceded them. They see the gig economy as a viable alternative to full-time employment. Like all employees, millennials are highly motivated by pay. But workplace culture, diversity, and flexibility are also very important to this segment. When surveyed about plans to stay with their employer, millennials at firms that are considered diverse and flexible show much higher intentions to stay. Other generations may feel threatened by the growing importance of millennials. Workers are worried about the potential of their jobs being taken by this generation as well as being made redundant by automation. Other generations in the workforce. We talked about millennials, but you also need to factor in other generations who may have different needs and motivations. For example, the Labor Department indicates that the workforce participation of Americans aged 65 and older was 19.8% in 2018, up from 10.8% in 1986. This 9 point increase in just 12 years is amazing but not surprising. You can encourage the senior generation to join your company and stay by offering part-time work, as well as explicitly planning for knowledge transfer as they prepare to retire. Regardless of the type of employees that you are trying to attract, the new normal at work means you are constantly in recruitment mode. Companies that win the race for the best workforce will be those who take issues like culture, flexibility, and diversity seriously. CHAPTER 2 How to Create an Effective Job Posting You know how important a job advertisement is to help you attract the best job candidates for your open positions. What you say in your posting can make the difference between a quality candidate moving to the next ad vs. deciding to stop and engage with your company. Today’s recruiting environment is highly competitive for all companies, so just being "good enough" is not good enough. You need to stand out in a compelling and differentiated manner. We have worked with thousands of employers to replace unsuccessful methods with refined techniques that consistently produce measurable results. Following are six tips to help you create and place job advertisements that will work as hard as you do to get from "Hello" to "Hired." Tip #1: Write a full-length job advertisement. Now is not the time to conserve words or abbreviate. Be sure your ad is at least 150 words in length and preferably longer. No matter what the position is for which you are hiring, a thoroughly descriptive post about the job, the ideal candidate, and your company will help ensure that your ad gets visibility on the fullest possible range of job aggregators and niche sites available. If you’re struggling about what to say, add an "About Us" section and an "Equal Employment Opportunity" statement. Tip #2: Minimize your use of "blind" advertisements If you must keep a position search confidential, we can certainly help you place that type of ad. When confidentiality is not essential, we strongly recommend that you identify your company by name. Data has shown that candidates are much more likely to respond to ads when they can see the employer’s identity, connect with contacts they may know, and conduct background research before applying. Almost all candidates do this, which is why you should have an up-to-date and compelling company website and LinkedIn page. Tip #3: Use industry-accepted terminology. Some employers have evolved their own terminology to describe jobs and functions. This can be very confusing, so make sure that you use descriptive terms about the position that reflect common industry usage. We are not suggesting that you necessarily change the job title. However, when you’re hiring an Engineer IV, for example, your ad will stand a better chance of attracting the right candidates if it includes exact duty descriptions such as "senior technical manager responsible for the mobile product line," etc. Tip #4: Position your company correctly. Potential employees want to know about your company: who you are, what you do, and why you do what you do. This is especially important if you are small or relatively unknown. Don’t hesitate to put your best foot forward as if you were selling to a potential customer. You can write about your industry, products, services, size, location, and any awards you have won. If you have a unique culture, share a bit about what makes you unique, fun, interesting, etc. Above all, though, please be honest and make sure you are not overselling – this just creates angry employees downstream. Tip #5: State the compensation. Being clear about salary helps avoid any disappointments later. If you are not sure of a position’s actual pay, by all means, use a range. This guideline applies as much to salaried positions as it does to hourly or blue collar job openings. Remember that similar sounding positions often have a wide range of pay, so clarity on the range you are offering is very helpful to candidates. It can also weed out those who are not interested early in the process. Tip #6: Have ve or fewer mandatory requirements. Your job candidates will want to focus on how their skillset and background fit with the position’s requirements but can be put off by a long laundry list of mandatory needs. If you happen to have more than five major requirements, consider changing some of them to "preferred." This way, you will encourage more applicants and you will capture, review, and engage with a wider set of potential candidates. As a bonus tip, don’t forget to proofread your job posting. Quality candidates may be turned off by errors in grammar, punctuation or spelling. CHAPTER 3 Use Your Recruitment Strategy to Build a Diverse Workforce Now more than ever, creating and maintaining diversity in the workplace is a top priority for many employers. While often thought of as a good practice for our society, diversity also has the potential to promote greater financial and operational success for businesses of all types and sizes. Studies have shown that companies that are more diverse can out-compete their industry peers in the long run. For example, a recent study by McKinsey revealed that "companies in the top quartile for racial and ethnic diversity are 35 percent more likely to have financial returns above their respective national industry medians". This is also true of companies that have more gender-based diversity among their leadership teams. A survey by Peterson Institute for International Economics (PIIE) in 2016 showed that companies in 91 different countries with a female presence in leadership roles had improved firm performance.