During uncertain times, recruitment strategies might not be top of mind. Having a plan for when the time to hire comes is vital for the future of your business or organization. It’s critical to have a robust recruitment process that will allow you to attract the top talent in your industry, while quickly narrowing it down to the perfect fit.
Ultimately, simplify the process into three primary steps, planning, recruiting, and the final selection. Failing to plan is planning to fail – cliché, but true. Prepare to be strategic. Likely, you won’t find the right candidate that fits your corporate needs, company culture and team dynamic.
Leaving a position vacant for too long or hiring the wrong person has a dramatic trickle-down effect that will have a lasting impact on your business – and not in the right way. The real cost of a bad hire is detrimental to the productivity, dynamic, and overall stress on your current team while wasting valuable time, money, and resources of the company.
Here are 5 of the most significant recruitment mistakes that employers make and how to avoid them:
Not Knowing Your Ideal Candidate
If you don’t know who you’re looking for, you won’t know where and how to find them. Being flexible with age, knowledge, gender, and background is critical for the diversity of your team, but knowing the skills, strengths, and qualifications that are required to thrive in the role and meet specific targets is vital. Don’t oversell the position; be transparent about your team and company culture, and set clear expectations. Also, be aware of which hard skills you require and which soft skills can be learned on the job. If you know who you’re looking for, attracting top talent and narrowing down, candidates will be a breeze.
Not Looking Internally
Sometimes the best person for the job is already in the office. Promoting them up not only helps retain them within the business but also takes advantage of their background knowledge of the company and loyalty to the team. You might need to train them in the processes, procedures of the specific role, but it will take the pressure off of introducing them into the entirely new company culture.
Posting The Position On The Wrong Platforms
This goes back to knowing who you’re looking to hire. Once you know this, the next step is doing your research and finding out where your ideal candidates reside. This can be through social media, Linkedin job postings or groups, online job boards, your company website, sending out a newsletter to your corporate contacts, participating in hiring fairs, advertising it through partnered affiliates, or sending it to a job search program through your local University. Posting the position in the right place will allow you to source the right candidates and simplify the recruitment process for both the applicants and you as the employer.
Making The Application Process Too Complicated
It’s vital to challenge potential candidates, but you also want to allow them to shine. Making the initial process overly complicated could make top talent loose interest, make your pool of possibilities too narrow, or waste the time of you and the people who took the time to apply. The submission process could include anything from sending in a standard cover letter and resume to asking them to get creative in a non-conventional way (such as submitting a video), completing a personality test, or performing a skills-based assessment. Whatever it is, choose one and make sure the requirements are precise, and the results you receive will lead you down the right path to a successful candidate.
Not Using Time Strategically
Rushing the recruiting process will hurt you just as severely as waiting for the “perfect” candidate. Hiring too quickly will put a strain on your business, especially if it ends as a flop, and you have to repeat the process over. However, taking too long will also have a jeopardizing effect on your team’s stress, productivity, and overall success. Choosing the correct amount of time you need to refine the process while being efficient and finding candidates you can retain and rely on to drive your company forward is the overall goal of the entire process. Be aware of your timeline and share it with your team while making sure they feel supported every step of the way.
Are you looking to attract the top accounting and finance candidates to add to your Calgary team?
We offer a personalized, people-first approach to helping you build a high performing team that will drive your business forward. You will feel 100% confident in your hiring and onboarding strategy as we work together to find new hires that will succeed and invest in your company long-term.
With a targeted, people-first approach, we offer recruitment and customizable coaching services to professionals at all levels. Ultimately, meeting search and placement needs that accelerate business, drive optimal results and retain top talent.
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P: 403.264.2242
E: trevor@bullseyerecruitment.com
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