Why you need to recruit faster (and smarter)

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Remember when you had the luxury of time when it came to recruiting? Fewer vacancies and a glut of applications meant there was no real urgency to snap up a good candidate straight after interview.

Things are different now. As the economy has started to recover, more businesses are looking to recruit. But overall it’s growing harder to do so as there are skills shortages in many sectors including:

• construction
• maintenance
• manufacturing

According to the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC), the number of vacancies is currently at record levels but candidate availability is falling.

One recruitment survey last month even estimated there are currently more vacancies in 32 out of the top 50 cities in the UK than there are candidates to fill those roles.

What does this mean?

Jobseekers are more able to pick and choose the roles they want - and that’s great news for the many hundreds of thousands of people looking for work.

But of course it’s harder if you’re looking to fill vacancies for your organisation. For the first time businesses may be seeing an increasing number of job offer rejections, not just acceptances.

Focus on speedy recruitment

To recruit the staff you want in 2015 and beyond, you need to make job offers quicker - even in the temp field.

Speeding up recruitment doesn’t mean lowering your standards. It’s about getting rid of the preventable barriers slowing you down - and adjusting to a new way of doing things. How can you do this? 

Aim to offer within 24-48 hours

Feel someone is right for your role? Don’t hang about. Candidates in 2015 have far more employment choices, and if you don’t make an offer within 24 hours (or 48 hours maximum) they’ll probably have received another elsewhere.

We want to fill every vacancy with the ideal candidate, and it’s really frustrating when we see clients miss out on great staff because they take too much time getting back to them after an interview.

Use technology

The days of struggling to find a mutually convenient time for an initial face-to-face interview are long gone.

New technologies like video interviewing, which we use at HRGO, make it far easier to arrange a ‘meeting’, without losing the personal element. It’s convenient for the candidate as they can do it anywhere via their smartphone or tablet.

If you’re a time-pressed recruiter, we can carry out first or second stage interviews for you then email over video links to view and share with other decision-makers.

Be 100% clear about the role

If you’re crystal clear about the role you’re looking to fill this will cut down on wasted time for you as well as potential candidates.

According to recent Citizens Advice research, only 12% of the job ads it surveyed contained all the information recommended by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA).

If you put out an ad that’s vague about hours, pay and other crucial issues you risk a candidate backing out after interview because they weren’t fully aware what the role entailed. Obviously that will slow you down from filling your vacancy with the right member of staff.

At HRGO, we do all we can to comply with the REC Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct and legislation which governs our industry. We’ll also work closely with you to make sure every job listing contains the necessary information for that role. It’s a key factor in helping you snap up the best talent before your rivals have the chance.

More information

Need more info on making your recruitment process quicker, leaner and more effective? Do get in touch to find out more.