Generally, when you search up the definition of recruitment you usually read something along the lines of a process where you actively seek out candidates to hire them. This task requires businesses to find and hire candidates. However, with recent unfortunate developments regarding the workforce, are they taking things too far?
The way the recruitment and hiring process has changed is drastically different from what it used to be. What companies are doing now is searching for “passive candidates” that can fill in gaps when they are created and using phantom job opportunities to do so.
Thanks to this age of information, businesses have also found ways to sift and do background checks on applicants and potential candidates in ways that may even be ethically controversial. If they are doing so much with recruitment and hiring more than ever before, then why are employers unsatisfied?
The Root of the Problem
There is one big reason why employers have started complaining and it is only slightly related to the importance of onboarding. The real reason is that they are hiring externally rather than promoting internally, something that has come to be through a shift in history.
In the past, businesses would use HR experts to do the whole process. This included putting possible hires through tests and extensive interviews. It created an environment where they could fill vacancies in their workforce with individuals who were already working for the company, which meant a promotion.
This also means that the companies were training their employees to fill in the gaps at work, suggesting that those promoted were typically not as qualified as they should have been.
These promotions meant the company had to spend time and money on training. In contrast to the past, businesses now hire externally. The reason is that the candidates will already be qualified for the vacant position. Therefore, the company won’t need to spend on training.
This lack of scaling means that most job advertisements aren’t looking for fresh graduates but rather people with experience. It leads to low retention rates thanks to companies hiring from the competition and essentially trading employees.
Why is voluntary turnover so prominent you may ask? The answer is simple: Employees want to advance in their own careers, and the lack of internal promotions is hindering that.
How to Increase Retention
Start keeping a tally
Start by monitoring your new hires. This is something companies have stopped doing which leads to them being in the dark on whether their positions are filled mostly internally or not and whether new hires are worth the expenses.
Being aware of the talents of employees means you as an employer become able to assess whether you can post new openings within the company or not, rather than simply promoting someone likely unqualified for the job. However, that isn’t usually the case.
New hires have been found to take longer to perform equally to an internal employee, even though they are paid more sooner. This is the underlying problem smaller-scale companies seem to be constantly committing presently.
Maintaining good hires will also depend on diversity, since there is large-scale discrimination against anyone who isn’t a white male in many industries. Diversity will allow your company to find actual talent in every crevice, rather than relying on empty prejudices and creating a toxic workplace environment.
Stop relying on technology in the hopes of fewer costs
Many companies primarily use software that tracks applications for keywords managers are searching for. This method has been shown as not being effective in finding adequate candidates since most if not all won’t hit the target keywords fully.
List your expectations clearly
When sifting through potential hires, the main things you look at are their skills and their experience. For fresh graduates, this would mean they lack experience, so how should you decide whether to hire them over candidates with experience?
You should only be mentioning non-negotiable skills on your job listings, so you can find candidates that fit the necessary expectations you have for the position in question. This will also give you a larger number of viable candidates.
Make sure your leadership is solid
As mentioned throughout the article, companies need to stop searching excessively, which leaves them another option: to start attracting. If you have leadership that is competent and in touch with their employees whilst also keeping the team running efficiently and striving for success, then you are able to attract proper candidates more easily.
Remove filled position listings
Many companies leave filled job listings up online in hopes of fishing for potential candidates for the future or for candidates they may want to add to the team. The implication of all these listings being kept up online is that it creates the illusion there are more jobs than there are in reality that is frustrating for job seekers.
Make notice of the difference in job seekers
There are two types of candidates: active and passive. Companies nowadays focus mostly on passive job seekers, ergo people who already have jobs and are likely to switch if they receive higher income.
This proves to be ineffective regarding cost and efficiency, since there are no studies backing up the fact they truly make the job switch as active job seekers would. Active candidates are actively seeking work due to ambitions within their careers and wanting to improve, making them better candidates to seek by companies.
Conclusion
The main takeaway is to become a company focused on revamping its recruitment strategy. It should make job opportunities as well as maintain a good environment for employees to grow and have ambitions hopefully within the company rather than leaving.
Adapting a work culture where promotions are available to those who are capable of filling in higher positions will desaturate the over-saturated domain that is recruitment and hiring. Moreover, it allows employees to experience growth. This will open new positions for capable candidates, both active and passive.
