At Bramwith, we are currently helping our clients and candidates navigate through this stressful and difficult time. We know that it sometimes isn’t easy to stay motivated, but keeping on track with goals and projects can be a really effective distraction and help us feel connected and productive whilst working remotely.
In this article, we offer tips for clients on how to keep the recruitment process active as well as some ideas on ways to enhance your candidate offering so that it’s even more competitive in the future.
Set up and refine your remote recruitment and hiring process
With most of us currently working from home, it’s likely that your business will already have remote working processes and technologies set up so why not extend them to your recruitment activities? You may even find that candidates can be more flexible with interview times as they aren’t tied to normal office schedules.
There are a wealth of platforms available so select ones that are accessible, reliable and offer a variety of channels; video, phone etc. If possible, try to set up contingencies in case connectivity is lost.
Make sure you provide candidates with all the information they need to access the platforms well in advance so they can test it out and troubleshoot any issues. Video calling isn’t a comfortable experience for all candidates so include an ample period of time at the beginning of the interview for everyone to introduce themselves and settle into the format.
Take the time to review your candidate and employee offering
Few of us usually have the time to sit back and look objectively at our processes as we’re too busy carrying out day to day tasks. So why not take this opportunity to make sure that your business’s offering is as effective as possible for attracting and acquiring new talent – and that you’re able to retain these prized candidates.
Start by taking a long, objective look at all the promotional material you use to discover talent. This includes job advertisements, LinkedIn ‘hooks’ and the careers-focused pages of your website. Make sure your key selling points are well-prioritised and that the requirements of the job are clearly communicated. If your company promotes wellbeing, offers great training or career advancement, don’t be shy to shout about it. Naturally, all language and images used much be inclusive and compliant.
Once you are confident that your collateral is the best it can possibly be, try comparing it to your competitors. If you were a candidate, whose ad would be more attractive and why? Is there anything you can do to fine-tune your offering even more?
Audit your promotion and acquisition techniques
This includes making sure potential candidates are able to find the jobs you are advertising. Take a look at the keywords or search terms you are using in ads and what your competitors are doing. Are you using the natural search terms that candidates would use? Do the job titles reflect the requirements of the role?
It’s also well worth auditing the channels you are using to attract and acquire new talent. Your website should have a dedicated careers page or pages, which are linked from key pages of the site. This might include the about us page, home page or any other relevant pages that get a good amount of high-quality traffic. If you don’t have any vacancies right now, add a message encouraging visitors to check back regularly and follow you on social media for the latest updates.
And speaking of social media, are there ways you can promote opportunities more effectively? There’s a lot of noise to cut through so make sure you’re highlighting those key selling points from the get-go. Make sure the platforms are the right ones for your target audience and that you are using the hashtags that will get their attention.
Keep motivated and on-track
This is a period of unprecedented uncertainty and it’s completely understandable if you have days where your productivity and mood are low. By focusing on positive distractions and creating constructive plans for the future you can help keep your emotional and physical energy levels in check and, when you see the outcome of your efforts reflected in your employees and candidates, it can make you feel more positive about the world in general.
That’s not to say we have to go through life pretending everything is fine. Take time out when you’re not feeling great and do something constructive (within government guidelines of course). Try to limit your time reading the news and keep in touch with your teammates. Enjoy any extra time you have and use it for something worthwhile, such as the aforementioned activities.
Above all else, take good care and feel free to share your experiences with us on our Twitter and LinkedIn feeds or talk to us directly.
We will endeavour to stay in touch with all our valued clients during this challenging time. All the very best from us at Bramwith and stay safe and well.
