“If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail!”

Sep 13, 2013  |   Recruitment
Image courtesy of cooldesign / freedigitalphotos.net
One of the most important components of an effective recruitment strategy is your recruitment plan. Many times organizations attempt to fill a position without having thought through their plan and as a result, the process takes longer than they anticipated, they end up hiring someone that is not a right fit for the job or for the company and at the end of the day, they have wasted time and money and have to start over. A recruitment plan can stop all of this from happening.
So what’s in the plan you ask?  7 easy steps – that’s it.  Let’s take a quick run through them:
Step 1. Identify the Job Opening. Once you have an identified job opening, that is a good time to consider what skills and abilities you really need in the position, in the department and in the company overall. Update the job description and the job posting so that applicants can clearly see what you are looking for.  The more they can see themselves in the job, the better quality of applicant you will get.
 
Step 2: Source Candidates. Post your job everywhere – use online job boards, LinkedIn and other social media outlets, your own website careers page, and of course, tell your other employees. An employee referral program is an excellent way to find future employees.
 
Image courtesy of Sicha Pongjivanich / freedigitalphotos.net
Step 3: Screen & Shortlist. Set clear criteria for what you are looking for and review resumes for those people who meet your criteria. Have a 10 minute screening phone call with those people so that you can narrow down the number of interviews you hold. The screening call is great to find out if someone is worth more of your time at an interview and it is also a great way to sell the applicant on your company. Encourage them to look at your website and to review the job description so that they are really clear on what you are looking for.
 
Step 4:  The Interview. Interviews can be as formal or informal as you like, however, remember that your applicant should be the one doing all the talking so plan ahead and have a list of questions you want to ask. This will ensure that you find out as much as possible about the applicant by the end of the interview. Make sure you leave time at the end of the interview for them to ask questions of you – those questions are really telling as to their motivation for applying for the job.
 
Image courtesy of Stuart Miles / freedigitalphotos.net
Step 5: Reference Checking. This is a step not to be skipped. Many organizations don’t bother with reference checking however it is a great way to validate your thinking. Are you right in thinking that the applicant will be great at customer service? Did they really run the project or were they just helping out from the sidelines? Reference checking is the best opportunity you have to make sure that you are on point with your hiring decision.
Step 6: Job Offer. Ideally, throughout the recruitment process you have been selling your organization as a great place to work. This makes the job offer process a lot simpler as the candidate will have already decided they want the job and is dying for you to make the offer. The best way to manage the job offer is to negotiate a win/win solution so that you are both happy with the result. This ensures that everyone starts off on the right foot.
 
Step 7. On-boarding. Your recruitment plan does not end with the acceptance of a job offer.  A new employee’s first 90 days on the job are the most important. You want them to fall in love with the work, with the company and with you so that they stop job searching and commit to staying. Retention is the best outcome you can ask for from a good recruitment plan!
So there you go. A 7 step recruitment plan that ensures that you have a good job that attracts the right kind of candidates so that when they accept your job offer you are both thrilled to start the working relationship! Here is a handy one page flow chart outlining the steps of the Recruitment Process.
Enjoy the planning process, dedicate the time and the rewards will be plentiful!