6 essential steps for a successful recruiting process

From: http://www.bizjournals.com

If you have ever heard someone say something that completely disagreed with your own understanding of a topic and immediately dismissed it as, “Oh, that can’t possibly be true!” then you have been guilty of confirmation bias.

Confirmation bias is a cognitive process in which the brain unconsciously uses a system of defenses to protect you from potentially incorrect knowledge or information. The mind will automatically try to reject new information and instead seek evidence to support the current belief.

1. Look within

Before embarking on a search for new talent outside the company, consider the talented people you already hired and developed. In some cases, it may be more effective to redeploy an employee who already knows your organization than recruiting externally, especially if an outside candidate with the right skill set is hard to find.

Studies show that employees who are promoted into jobs perform significantly better than workers hired externally into similar roles. In addition to the practical cost and time-saving benefits, hiring from within can help create a culture of loyalty. Employees are more likely to stay with a company if they are given opportunities to improve through training and can see a clear path for career growth.

2. Understand the costs

Employee turnover is expensive. There are external costs to consider such as advertising, recruiter fees, background checks, pre-hire screening, and in some cases travel reimbursements for candidates or cash awards for employee referrals.

Internally, the costs to the business can also add up: downtime and lost productivity, and the increased workload of other employees which may include overtime compensation. After a candidate is hired, there are on-boarding and training costs to consider as well.

Make sure you have recruiting strategies and detailed processes in place for your business to help forecast and manage these costs efficiently.

3. Have a process

Long before you begin interviewing people, there are several necessary steps to take to ensure the hiring process is thorough and transparent. An organization should determine or revisit the primary purpose of an open position, including the operational necessity of the job, its financial impact to the company and the reasons for creating a new role or filling a vacancy.

After the primary purpose is determined, create a job description through an in-depth job analysis:

Create a recruitment plan that clearly articulates the duties to be performed and qualifications required by the organization
Develop a consistent salary structure for the role, based on the relative level of duties, responsibilities and qualifications of each position in the organization
Develop specific hiring criteria and interview questions to be used during the search.

4. Follow the law

Companies are typically aware of their regulatory obligations after an employee is hired, but compliance is just as critical when recruiting and interviewing job candidates. The recruitment process involves ensuring equal employment opportunity.

Nondiscriminatory criteria must be established and included in the written job description and nondiscriminatory strategies should be developed when mapping out the plan to attract qualified candidates.

5. Get technical

These days, technology and recruiting go hand in hand. Using social media sites such as LinkedIn and Indeed can maximize any recruitment strategy by helping to reach a large audience quickly, reduce advertising spend and target the right people.

Some companies also use talent acquisition systems to help build a talent pipeline and engage prospective job seekers during the application process. For example, some talent acquisition solutions allow you to run tests to evaluate skill levels and even measure how well the candidate will fit into the organization’s culture.

6. Check the facts

Companies should leverage technology whenever possible when sorting applications, but resumes should always be carefully reviewed by actual hiring managers. When deciding who meets the requisite qualifications for a job, remember to consider responses to practical questions on the application such as the candidate’s availability to start work, and if included, the compensation the job seeker is willing to accept. These factors may outweigh some deficits in experience or specific skill sets that can be developed quickly on the job or with some training.

Also, don’t forget to ask about non-compete agreements. Any candidate with such a contract should be required to submit a copy to the interviewer for legal review.

Ultimately, recruiting and cultivating talent is hard — and it should be. People truly are a company’s most valuable asset and essential to maintaining an organization’s competitive edge.

That is why recruitment is not a function for the human resources team to manage alone. In some cases, a company needs the help of experienced specialists to get the job done right, and most importantly, the entire organization must be committed to the success of the process.

Teresa Hudson, assistant general counsel and HR consultant at Engage PEO, contributed to this article.