5 ways to engage candidates at every stage
Glassdoor Team
Glassdoor Team | Author & Career Expert at Glassdoor | Jun 11, 2024
Selecting the right candidate is about more than simply filling a vacancy: A great candidate enhances a team and will grow with the company. Finding that perfect fit requires a candidate-centric recruiting strategy that nurtures job seekers at every step - from bolstering your employer brand and improving your interview process to getting the perfect candidate to accept.
To help, we've outlined some best practices for meeting applicants at each phase in their journey. Read on to understand the recruitment strategies you may be overlooking.
#1 Evaluate your employer brand perception
Before a candidate applies to an open position, they need to have some basic awareness of your employer brand and your unique employee value proposition. Start with your company's Glassdoor page, and decide on the story you want to tell applicants. Pinpoint if there are there areas you can easily improve. In addition, consider incorporating feedback from past interview reviews to make the process more attractive to candidates.
Employer branding action items:
- Show off your employer brand on Glassdoor by signing up for a Free Employer Account.
- Highlight why it's great to work for your company on your career page, social media accounts, Glassdoor profile, and more.
- Consider how your company measures up against the honorees on Glassdoor's Best Places to Work List to identify areas for improvement.
- Bring your company culture to life through employee reviews, videos, blog posts, or testimonials from current employees.
- Read the feedback from employees and candidates on your page, and consider how to use it to affect change within the organization.
#2 Nail the job description
Writing job descriptions isn't the most thrilling task, but it's easy to make the mistake of cranking out a flat, generic list of responsibilities. Thoughtful job advertisements attract and inform candidates, giving you a higher quality and quantity of applicants.
Job description action items:
- Identify the job requirements to create the job description.
- Indicate which criteria are "must-haves" and which are optional.
- Clearly state if you're willing to consider a non-traditional candidate.
- Use language that highlights the benefits and rewards of working at your organization, and link to resources where applicants can learn more.
#3 Identify the best recruitment strategies
Candidate searches often begin with recruitment marketing, the system by which you draw qualified candidates to your pipeline. Successful recruitment marketing requires a multi-pronged approach - leveraging the right technology (e.g., applicant tracking systems, sourcing tools, and appropriate boolean lists), empowering your employees to share referrals, and showing off your employer brand.
Recruitment strategy action items:
- Analyze past recruitment success stories to identify the channels that have provided the best candidates.
- Consider internal and external referral programs as part of your candidate outreach efforts.
- Think about advertising in spaces beyond job boards, such as trade groups and publications, podcasts, and public radio.
#4 Conquer the screening stage of the application process
While you want the interview process to be thorough, you don't want to turn off candidates with a lengthy, redundant interview process. Before you begin interviewing, gather the stakeholders to analyze what type of candidate would be both a top performer and a solid culture fit for the team. Design an interview process that allows each stakeholder to inquire into a different aspect of the applicant's skills or background.
Interview action items:
- Stick to interview best practices.
- Be quick to provide answers and updates to candidates.
- Train hiring managers on how to conduct effective interviews.
- Skip the fluff and ask questions that matter, like "Describe how you manage up," and "How would you solve this problem?"
#5 Secure your top candidate
There's still work to do after a candidate accepts a job offer. If you want your new employee to hit the ground running - and stick with the company for years to come - you need a smooth onboarding process. Make sure your new hires have points of contact to answer questions about their specific role and broader company policies from the start.
Beyond getting the official documentation out of the way - a signature on the job offer, new hire paperwork, background check, etc. - you also want to get them excited about their new role. The first day in a new job can be intimidating, so put in the extra effort to welcome new hires and partner them with mentors inside the organization.
Onboarding and retention action items:
- Provide a warm welcome by having team members reach out and congratulate them, letting them know how excited the team is to have them onboard.
- Greet them with a small gift like company swag or snacks and a handwritten card signed by every team member on their first day.
- Check in regularly and listen to feedback.
Glassdoor Team
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