As a recruiter, your mission is to bring talented, qualified candidates to organizations that can utilize their abilities in a mutually beneficial working relationship. It certainly sounds simple enough—but anyone involved in this line of work learns quickly that the business of locating, contacting, and landing candidates is full of complications at every stage.
Successful recruiting requires the development of multiple skills, none of which is likely to be mastered overnight. Nonetheless, there are a number of strategies that many recruiters continue to find useful in practice.
Respond to Candidates – Do you send a response email when a candidate emails a resume? Do you keep interviewees informed about their status in the hiring pipeline? Be sure to take the time to reach out to these job hopefuls.
Recruiters often find themselves so busy that they can forget that the hiring process looks very different to candidates, who must cope with silence and ignored emails rather than chaos and overflowing inboxes. Remember that searching for a job can be a lonely task. Just sending an automated email can help to reassure candidates that they aren’t being completely ignored.
By the same token, you should also keep the hiring manager updated on the progress of your hunt.
Know What the Company Wants – Of course, it wants personnel who can fit into a certain role, but managers can have widely varying ideas about what that means. Some companies emphasize experience, others look at “soft skills” that indicate a team player. Be sure you have a notion about what the client’s ideal employee looks like.
Assist with the Onboarding Process – So, your candidate has accepted a provisional job offer. Mission accomplished? Not yet—try to help the new employee ease into their position with minimal stress. You can do this by helping the candidate learn about what he or she can expect in the first month or two on the job.
Stay Active – You need to be continually searching for qualified personnel—even if no position is available for them at the present time. By cultivating relationships with passive candidates, you will be able to put together a useful stable of contacts that can be drawn upon when a suitable position does develop.
Use Recruiting Software – The days of the Rolodex are gone. Today’s recruiter needs to use state-of-the-art recruiting software in order to cut back on time-wasting tasks and find instant solutions. That’s why Exelare has developed its applicant tracking software, which comes with a wide range of tools—from resume storage to contact data management—to ensure that your recruiting processes are as efficient and effective as possible.
