5 Tips For Recruitment Managers

Recruiting is still very much a people-centric business, relying on connections and constant engagement to ensure full fruition.

Recruitment is an important process in any organisation. In our competitive job market, hiring managers are tasked with finding the best possible candidates – people who not only possess top talent, but are also able to fit into the company’s culture. To help recruiters reel in the best for their business, here are five basic tips to follow.
 
Talent Landscape Insights

Researching on hiring trends and the talent landscape is highly recommended before any recruitment exercise. This allows hiring managers to not only manage expectations, but also formulate effective campaigns. Some questions to ask yourself include: What is the age range of my target candidates? What platforms can I engage them on? How can I reach the right candidates? Once these questions have been answered, recruitment managers can steer their teams in the right direction.
 
Open Doors With Networking

One of the best ways to recruit is through referrals and mutual introductions. Through this tactic, recruiters can form a pool of potential candidates who have gained the “stamp of approval” from their HR counterparts or industry partners. Talent acquisition teams should also be encouraged to attend networking events, seminars and after-work drinks with various industry professionals to build their list of contacts. These sessions will enable them to learn more about the employment landscape.
 
In addition, hiring managers can tap on the networks of existing staff by having referral schemes. Recruiters will need to work with internal HR staff to devise a referral programme which highlights what recruiters are looking for, and what incentives employees stand to gain from submitting leads.
      
Vivid Job Description

Your job advertisement plays an important role in forming a good first impression for any potential candidate. As such, it is crucial for recruiters to ensure that these ads keep the attention of applicants. To achieve this, be sure to be generous with the job description in the recruitment ad and/or on your website.
 
The ad copy needs to be succinct about the job benefits and company culture, and, at the same time, adopt a professional outlook with regard to the choice of words and website design. This way, potential candidates would be able to retain a better impression, which may influence their decision to apply for a job position. 
 
Engagement is Key

A successful recruitment exercise ensures that the candidate – whether hired or not – leaves the process with a positive experience of the company and its culture. In this aspect, recruiters need to be seen as the go-to people for updates on interview statuses and hold critical knowledge of various job roles and company policies. Hiring managers should take every opportunity to build relationships and show that their company is an employer of choice.
 
Identify The Right Talent

Interviews are the best time to test the suitability of candidates. To make full use of this opportunity, interviewers should take the chance to learn more about the candidate and assess their ability to process information. Hiring managers can have an existing employee sit in to ask and answer questions relevant to the job. This employee can then provide feedback to recruiters and help them judge if the candidate does have the capabilities to take on the role.
 
In addition, interviewers can present real-life challenges which all staff in that role typically encounter for the candidate to solve, allowing them to gauge said candidate’s problem-solving skills and competence to take on these challenges. Insights gained from these activities can help hiring managers separate top talent from candidates who’ve come prepared with rehearsed answers and questions.
 
As you can see, recruitment is still very much a people-centric business, relying on connections and engagement. By laying the groundwork with a combination of insights, networking channels and advertising portals, talent acquisition teams can then find the best ways to reach and engage potential candidates on a personal level.