With employment rates reaching record highs, most of
today’s viable job candidates are employed someplace else. The
challenge for recruiters seeking the best candidates, then, is
how to reach these people who are not even looking for a job.
The problem with most traditional forms of recruitment
tactics is they are designed with active job seekers in mind.
For example, if your organization places a recruitment
advertisement in the help wanted section of the newspaper, you
are making an assumption that the candidate you want is
seeking employment and looking in this section of the paper.
What are the strategies that employers can use to attract
these elusive job seekers cost- effectively? Examine these
ideas to improve your recruitment results.
“Sell” what you have to offer. Most candidates who are
happily employed elsewhere will need to be “sold” on the idea
of working with your organization. Therefore, you cannot
merely list the job requirements in your print and on-line
recruitment messages; you need to “woo” candidates by spelling
out what’s in it for them. Focus on the benefits and
advantages of working in your organization in language they
can understand. Conduct focus groups with current employees to
determine the best selling factors to emphasize in your
advertisements.
Offer response options. Traditionally, employers have
limited access to their employment offices in an attempt to
maintain efficiency. For example, one client had a sign posted
on the employment office door indicating applications would
only be accepted on Tuesdays and Thursdays within certain time
periods. What the organization failed to recognize is that
while you may increase the efficiency of the employment office
by using this technique, you may also reduce the number of
applications received from good candidates who are employed
elsewhere.
Today’s employers wanting to attract candidates who are
working elsewhere will need to provide response options.
Consider the following:
- Interactive, on-line response options
- A clip-out coupon that can be mailed or faxed
- A 24-hour telephone line that permits candidates to call
the day the advertisement appears
- Evening and weekend employment office hours
Remember, also, if you require a resume as the first step
in your employment process, you may be excluding those who are
too busy in their current job to respond.
Use intrusive techniques, such as telemarketing, direct
mail, on-line sourcing, and employee referral. Intrusive
recruitment techniques are those that assume the right
candidate is working someplace else. Third-party recruitment
is an excellent example of intrusive recruitment, since
candidates are directly contacted by phone to determine if
they or someone they know is interested in a specific
opportunity. While third-party recruiters can do an
exceptional job in identifying top candidates, many employers
are seeking lower-cost options that yield the same successful
results.
To accomplish this goal, employers are using intrusive
techniques, such as telemarketing, direct mail, on-line
messaging, and employee referral. In fact, telemarketing is
essentially doing in-house what recruitment firms have done
for years. Employers gain the numbers of potential candidates
by purchasing such a list from research companies, through
data bases, or from recruitment advertising agencies.
Alternatively, some organizations use free telephone or
on-line listings from school rosters, professional
directories, and the like. Then, the employer contacts these
candidates by phone or e- mail to determine if the candidate
is interested in such an opportunity.
Employee referral is another intrusive strategy that
targets those already employed. Ask new employees during their
orientation to provide you with the names and contact
information of three to five people they might recommend from
their last job, or those they know from school, church, or
social activities. Don’t wait for the employee to make
contact—act on this information immediately by making the call
yourself, using the employee’s name as a means to establish a
“warm” lead.
In today’s labor market, employers must use different
strategies to attract that elusive job seeker—the person
happily and successfully employed elsewhere. Only then can
organizations get the best employees to meet their staffing
goals.
