Shortlisting and hiring the right candidates has never been more important. Attracting top talent is crucial to ensure maximum efficiency and come out on top of the competition in an increasingly volatile market.
That said, the job market has also changed dramatically over the last five years. The pandemic led to career changes on a global scale to battle unemployment. Some candidates looking for an opportunity decided to stop their job searches while things got a little crazy.
Millennials and GenZ, cornerstones of the workforce of tomorrow, now display a transient approach to employment, posing a challenge for the modern recruiters and employment sourcing personnel.
It becomes an uphill battle finding the top recruits, especially on a budget. So, when sourcing services companies have a mixed bag of talent, how do they attract passive candidates to join their team and elevate their market position?
While job boards can be a great way to get candidates to apply for a position, there are three significant shortcomings that you must bear in mind:
- They are expensive.
- The quality of talent coming in is inconsistent.
- Passive workforce DO NOT scan job boards.
Passive Candidates – The Untapped Potential
Unfortunately, not every organisation understands the requirements of their employees, leading to an unhappy work environment. As a result, almost 85% (1) of the global workforce is passively looking for a change and will gladly accept a new opportunity when the right one knocks on their door.
There are benefits to exploring passive candidates.
One, they aren’t looking for another opportunity, meaning less competition for the talent.
Second, since they aren’t desperately looking for another opportunity, they are less likely to lie on their resume, so a glance through the CV should be enough to judge if they possess the skillset that you need for the job.
Finally, since YOU are the one exploring talent, you can contact the people you think will best fit the job role, translating to better control over the recruitment process.
But there’s the ever-looming dilemma of attracting such talent in the first place. So, how do you make the opportunity look enticing to attract them like a moth drawn to flame?
In such scenarios, a little creativity can go a long way. Here are some creative talent sourcing solutions that you can build up to recruit the talent that best suits your requirements.
Thinking Outside The Box – Creative Sourcing Strategies
1. Leverage Attractive Job Postings
To millennials and GenZ, perks matter as much as the salary package. As a recruitment in-charge, you can use this to create enticing opportunities and attract the talent that your organisation needs. However, perks hidden behind closed doors will not serve any purpose, however great they may be.
Highlight the perks and benefits on the job home page to make it the first thing that the potential recruits see about your company. Write a comprehensive yet catchy job description that outright answers the major KPIs and the main activities to complete them, the challenges they may face, the skills required to overcome them, and the bottom line that recruits must reach daily. Add a salary range to filter the recruits applying for the position.
2. Try New Social Media Platforms
Being one of the most popular online activities, social media for recruiting makes logical sense. LinkedIn can be a recruiter’s best friend if used the right way. Use the platform to see a potential candidate’s resume, contact them regarding the opportunity (while avoiding clichés), ask them if they’d like to hear more about the job and what it entails.
Furthermore, leverage other social media platforms to get the word out. Use Facebook ads to create appealing job descriptions and share them with followers. Tweet about the job actively to target passive candidates and move to paid promotions if they gain traction. Post enticing videos about the work culture on YouTube to give potential recruits a better insight into how your organisation is the right fit for them.
3. Competitions And Skill Challenges
A creative sourcing strategy that has emerged in the last few years is skill challenges, which again utilises the vast potential of social media for recruitment. Essentially, an industry-specific short skills challenge is an extremely effective way of grabbing the attention of candidates and test their proficiency without going through the hassle of the recruitment process beforehand.
You can also add rewards like cash bonuses and gift hampers to attract even more candidates to the event. In the entries, you will most likely find a recruit that knows the trade and will fit the work culture like a well-oiled machine.
4. Ask The Current Workforce For Referrals
Your existing workforce has an exponentially wider professional network and social media reach that is waiting for you to tap into when there is a vacancy in your company. Referral programs have been extremely popular, and due to good reason – they are reliable, cost-effective, and internal labour expenses are reduced. Referred employees also tend to stay longer, mainly due to their commitment to the person who referred them.
Ask your team to help you build the best crew. Share the information with your team and ask them to share the information in their professional networks. You can also offer referral bonuses for successful recruitments or set out on a team lunch when the process is completed.
5. Other Sneaky Methods
Several other sneaky methods sourcing services companies can use to get the word out and attract talented recruits. For instance, your products like apps can serve as a recruitment tool (remember the Spotify ads?) or display the ad on your public website to let people know that you are hiring.
Nailing the recruitment game takes a significant amount of time and effort. More often than not, it pays to step outside the comfort zone of traditional recruitment options and leveraging different platforms and approaches to attract the best possible talent for your organisation. Feeling stuck? Don your creative hat and the kind of response you get for some of the strategies mentioned above. You might be surprised by the results.