No matter how intense and drawn out your interview process is, no matter how hard you grill potential candidates; you’ll always miss out if you’re not attracting the best candidates in the first place.
Candidate attraction should naturally be the first step in the recruitment process so it’s a shame that so many companies don’t produce attractive job specs or have a dedicated ‘join us’ page on their website.
When it comes to initially looking for opportunities, this is what candidates are after:
- Clear requirements – The vaguer you are in terms of what you’re looking for in the ideal candidate, the more varied and unsuitable applications you’re going to receive. Make sure you bullet point the key requirements of the role and what skills/expertise/experience you want a potential applicant to bring to your company
- Sell the culture – 82% of companies agree that ‘culture fit’ is important in the recruitment process. Going over your values at induction isn’t enough anymore. What your company is about, who makes a ‘X’ person within your business and what your mission statement is; should be mentioned somewhere on a job description or somewhere on a ‘join us’ page. It’s equally important for both candidate & client to meet in the middle when it comes to personality, so make sure your hiring manager lives and breathes your company culture at interview, so a potential hire knows what to expect
- Career path – Moving jobs is a massive life choice, so make sure there’s an empathetic angle when creating a job description. It’s a massive reassurance for candidates, if there’s clear career progression within a role, outlined on the job spec. Employees are always looking to learn and advance in their careers – promoting within a company boosts morale and keeps productivity high.
- Excellent benefits – Let’s be honest this is usually make or break when it comes to the read-through of a job description, nowadays candidates aren’t just looking for an attractive salary, additional benefits are now as, if not more important than salary. These can range from a company share scheme, pension, cycle-to-work, mobile phone/laptop and discounted transport. However this should be one of the last items you discuss with a candidate, because if they’re that money-motivated and they join you, they’ll likely jump ship at the earliest opportunity!
What do you believe is the most important factor when it comes to attracting the ‘perfect’ candidate to your companies; have you seen any innovative or quirky ideas recently?
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