Finding the right person to fill your job vacancy is no easy task. In fact, many employers consider finding the perfect job candidate to be the hardest part of their job. Fortunately, there are dozens of ways to make the process easier. Here are just a few:
Use a Good Recruitment Agency
Instead of spending time advertising your vacancy and sorting through hundreds of CVs and applications, you can work with a recruitment agency that can do it all on your behalf. Don’t assume, however, that you can leave the agency to do everything without any instruction from you. Make sure that they understand the role that you’re trying to fill, and the kind of person that you’re looking for. They’ll do a better job of finding the perfect job candidate if they really understand your company. For that reason, it’s also worth considering a specialist recruitment agency offering marketing recruitment if you’re looking to fill a marketing role, or sales recruitment if you’ve got a sales vacancy to fill. If you’d like to do it yourself, you can list your site on any of these job portals.
Get Creative with Your Adverts
Don’t be afraid to give your job vacancy advertisements a little bit of personality. It’s the easiest way to show potential applicants what your company’s really like. Creative recruitment tactics are used by even the biggest and most popular companies. Take some time to think about the way you write your advert, and what you include in it, rather than rushing the advert and hoping that what you create will attract the perfect job candidate.
Include a Salary and Location in Your Job Advertisement
People care about office atmosphere and company culture, but they care more about whether or not they’ll be paid enough money to make their work worthwhile. Equally, they want to know that they’ll be able to get to the office without spending 90% of their salary on train tickets and taxis. As much as you’d like to sell your company on the promise of a great working environment, it’s essential to employees that you provide them with the basics. The right candidates are going to skip your advert if they can’t see where you’re based, or that you’re willing to pay what they deserve.
Target the Right People
Looking for staff for your abattoir? Now is not the time to advertise your vacancy on the PETA website. Where you advertise is as important as what you say. Think carefully about your dream candidate, and spend some time considering where your dream candidate is likely to spend their time. Do they spend a lot of time traveling by train, and reading the free newspaper that they pick up at the station, or are they online and communicating through Facebook and Twitter? Make sure that your adverts can be seen by the people that you want to employ.
Sell Your Company and the Role
Give that perfect candidate a reason to join your company. Offer benefits that matter to them, and describe why your company is the one for them to work for. Work out your own USPs, and decide what makes your company a great one. Then, promote those USPs to the right audience.
Take Your Time
Once you’ve prepared your advert, published it and received your applications, remember not to rush the recruitment process. Take your time, use a rigorous interview process and consider employing your favorite candidate on a trial basis before you commit to a long-term contract. You’ll only find your perfect candidate by making an effort to review candidates carefully.
Do you have any tips to add? How do you find the perfect candidate? Share your thoughts in a comment.
About the Author
Susan Lewis is a HR consultant, writing on subjects such as recruitment, payroll and other human resources issues.