With unemployment levels at an unprecedented low, the current challenge for businesses is a lack of talented staff to join their organisations. In the most candidate-focused market we've ever seen, retaining knowledgeable, experienced, and fully-trained staff in the face of competition from other employers has become critical.
Recruitment is one of the critical elements in developing a successful business and, in the current market, recruiting the best candidates is becoming increasingly more difficult. The current economy has developed what is known as a ‘candidate market’. At present, organisations are finding it difficult to get the right amount of staff never mind the most talented candidates suited to their organisation.
Creative ways of recruiting
In the current employment market which is experiencing organisations competing with each other for a continually-competitive candidate market, some organisations are coming up with increasingly innovative means of attracting the best talent in the market.
Furniture giants IKEA, for example, were conducting a large volume recruitment campaign in Australia and elected to include Career Instructions into the flat-pack furniture. These Career Instructions looked exactly like the furniture instructions which every customer would expect to find in IKEA’s flat-pack furniture. This innovative approach meant that every IKEA customer took home a vacancy advertisement, almost eliminating adverting costs, and targeting only candidates who had already bought into the IKEA brand. As a result IKEA recruited 280 new employees from a total of 4,285 applications.
In an equally-innovative move, utilising Google’s Business View, Software company Sage were able to attract additional candidates by virtually opening their doors and showing potential candidates their office, their headquarters, the working environment, and company culture. The business software providers have found that this has been a fantastic recruitment tool for them. Encourage people to explore their premises via Business View, they have also created engaging games to attract candidates, hiding items around the offices and running an online treasure hunt.
In an era of Generation Y employees and a social media society, Marriott Hotel used a strategy similar to that employed by Sage. They allowed potential candidates to virtually visit their hotels as employees and did it as part of an online game. In the game, players had to purchase supplies on a budget, manage multiple employees, and work in the hotel restaurants, kitchens, reception etc. In a strategy to attract employees in countries such as China and India where they had found it difficult to fill their vacancies, the hotel group moved the game on to Facebook where it became a major success in allowing the Marriott to recruit the candidates with the skills they required.
Adopting an innovative recruitment campaign can allow your organisation to attract the type of people the organisation needs to become successful and in the numbers required. It will also demonstrate to potential candidates that yours is an organisation which is a forward-thinking employer which is developing with the times. Of course your recruitment strategy doesn’t need to be as extreme as the examples we’ve given, nor does it have to be costly. Here are some simpler ideas you can adopt to attract skilled talented staff to your organisation.
Shout about your company culture
Do people know about your company? Do you know what you do and your values? Do they know about the great benefits you offer to your staff? Whilst salary still plays a key role in candidate attraction, nowadays people want to know they’ll fit into the company they are applying to and you have benefits which match their needs. Keep your website updated with the relevant information and don’t be afraid for you and your employees to share what you love about the organisation you work in.
Reviews – the good, the bad and the ugly
Tech savvy generations today know exactly where to look to see whether your organisation meets their criteria. Be aware of the reviews left online of your company and think about how these can be improved (if they need to be
Think about your interview process
Where some businesses benefit from one-to-one interviews, others prefer the group approach from assessment centres. the interview process can vary from business to business, but the main point to remember is that your being interviewed as much as you are interviewing the candidate. If the interviewee is engaged, understands your business and what you are looking for, they are more likely to think positively about the role. Showing interviewees around the office , meeting members of staff are just examples of how you can bring the role and the company to life in an interview.
If you’re looking for ways to attract more talented staff to your organisation, Brook Street can assist you with the best route to attracting the candidates you need. Contact your local branch today to find out how we can help.
This blog was written Declan Callaghan, from our Belfast branch
