3 Innovative Recruitment Techniques

By: Noah Rue

It is likely that sooner or later (or even perhaps now) your business is going to be trying to fill an opening for a great job with an even greater candidate. For better or worse, there are a lot of great jobs out there, and it can be challenging for potential employees to find and apply to everything. This is exactly where human resources recruitment professionals can make a huge difference.

Finding and recruiting the right type of talent to help your business succeed can be a complete and total game changer. The right new employee can make all the difference in contributing new ideas and experiences that capitalize on your company’s existing successes and improve on weaknesses. With that in mind, it is critical to work to incorporate the latest and greatest strategies for recruiting the best possible employees.

Fortunately, there are a wide range of new techniques that are helping employers find great potential candidates. These techniques vary significantly, but all manage to tap into the extensive technological experience associated with many younger millennial and Generation Z candidates. Some of these include tricks such as social outreach, texting, and promoting the best perks available.

1) Social Outreach

The idea of utilizing social networking to identify and recruit potential employees isn’t exactly a new one. Many companies have been using networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn for a few years now to reach candidates and examine potential interviewees for flaws. These platforms allow employers to interact with potential employees before an interview ever takes place.

Many recruiters are taking it a step further than social networking platforms to find new employees. In some scenarios, they are completely moving all outreach online into the virtual networking realm. For instance, some companies are using virtual reality to recruit candidates because it allows them to conduct an online interview and gives candidates a chance to experience what work might actually be like prior to accepting a position.

In today’s economy, freelance work has become mainstream. Nearly 53 million Americans do freelance work every year, largely as contract employees but also as temporary workers and moonlighters. Online outreach and job recruitment has been identified as one way contract employees are finding work — approximately 65 percent have said online recruitment strategies helped them to find a job.

2) Text Alerts

Another means by which recruiters are getting the attention of qualified potential candidates is through their phones. With nearly 70 percent of screen time going to cellular devices, it is a smart way to reach out. Many innovative companies are working on models for outreaching candidates directly through text message rather than by phone call or email.

Part of the reason for this is due to the fact that text messages have an estimated 98 percent read rate and an average response time of around 90 seconds. Emails, on the other hand, only average a read rate of approximately 20 percent and, with so many telemarketers these days, many people do not answer calls from unknown phone numbers.

Recently, a fair amount of effort has been put in to reaching out to passive candidates, or those talented workers who may not be looking currently for a job, or may not be applying their skill sets to your field. Targeting these professionals with higher wage and more responsibility may be a great way to capture new talent, or at least put your company on their radar when they are looking in the future.

3) Perks Galore

Many human resource and recruitment professionals are now also making a point to clearly identify and promote the perks and benefits that come with accepting positions within their organization. New talent, especially in younger generations, is very interested in the things that companies are willing to offer them. Given the high prices of health insurance, rising student loan debt, and a desire to have some time off to enjoy life, many perks don’t require huge stretches beyond what companies are already doing.

For instance, in order to better recruit and retain new nurses, some medical facilities are offering things such as tuition reimbursement for employees and dependents. This type of effort goes a long ways in building a positive working environment by creating goodwill with new employees and taking off some of the stress associated with paying for schooling. Furthermore, it encourages talented individuals to seek out your company as a means of covering their education.

Some large companies are even taking it a step further by offering things such as signing bonuses and coverage of moving expenses. Others are helping employees enjoy life outside of work by allowing them to create flexible schedules, work from home, or earn overtime above their base pay. All of these things are great perks for recruitment professionals to flaunt while they are outreaching potential candidates.

There are a number of innovative means to reach out and attract qualified professionals for your job openings. Tools such as social outreach and text messaging are become popular ways to capture the attention of younger, tech-savvy generations. Likewise, promoting the perks and benefits your company offers can help to seal the deal in new employees signing on and sticking with the company for years to come.

By Noah Rue