The impact of Brexit and the skills shortage continue to affect recruitment success but for some businesses there may be a hint of self-sabotage.
Are you making these four common mistakes in your talent acquisition strategy?
Making snap decisions based on the interview
New research from Totaljobs found that one in five hiring managers make a decision on a candidate within one minute of meeting them at an interview, disregarding all other evidence in the hiring process. A further 40% decide within the first 15 minutes and only one third wait until after the interview. For companies struggling to retain employees this approach will only perpetuate your problems.
The most successful talent acquisition strategies are supported by recruitment software. One case study found that new hires selected through algorithms remained in their jobs 15% longer than those selected by hiring teams. Technology reinforces or challenges your final decision on candidate selection. Review the information contained in your HR analytics on the source and characteristics of your most successful hires, together with the criteria in your screening process.
Collaborative decision making will also help to reduce the chances of a bad hire.
Failing to offer training to employees
Digital tech investment reached £6.8 billion in the UK last year, 50% higher than any other European country, but that investment isn’t translating into employee training. The CIPD’s latest Labour Market Outlook survey found that one in five employers who are struggling to recruit don’t fund training within their business.
The digital skills crisis is one of the biggest potential problems facing your company’s ability to meet its goals and objectives but employers are slow to respond. A further report suggests that 40% of organisations cannot currently meet demand due to staff shortages in tech skills.
Investment in training is critical for businesses in order to attract talent to their business and retain people with the key skills to move forward. UK employers reportedly allocate just one hour per week for learning and skills development. As the creation of new jobs in the sector continues to outpace non-digital, the development of tech skills should be a priority for HR.
Clichés in your job posts
Using headline grabbing language such as ‘tech guru’ or ‘software ninja’ in job posts won’t improve your chances of hiring success. Include phrases and words which reflect the online job searches your candidates will be using to ensure you show up in their results. The same principles apply for avoiding clichés in the job description itself. Phrases such as ‘excellent interpersonal skills’, ‘the ability to multi-task’ or ‘work in a fast paced environment’ won’t enhance your screening process or inform potential candidates of exactly what you’re looking for in your next hire.
Emphasise the main purpose of your role and the benefits of working for your company to engage with jobseekers. For hard to fill or high volume roles create a candidate persona from the data in your recruitment analytics to add focus to both your job description and job posts.
Predictable job interview questions
Today’s candidates are well prepared and rehearsed for the most typical interview questions. Instead of asking the popular and overused questions such as ‘what are your strengths and weaknesses?’ and ‘why do you want to work for this business?’, the adoption of a ‘job content’ approach can be more effective, focusing on challenges and issues facing the prospective new hire now.
Support a structured interview process with a combination of behavioural and situational based questions and pre-hire and online assessments. The introduction of effective interview training for all employees involved in the hiring process will also improve candidate evaluation and avoid precarious 'one minute' interview decisions.
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You might also like to read:-
Getting Your Job Posts Right First Time
8 Ways To Reduce Your Candidate Drop-Off Rates
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