Let’s Make A Match This Month!
Recruiting is not actually the same as matchmaking. A romantic matchmaker is only interested in finding the right spark between two compatible people. If they are successful, matchmakers move on. Ideally, the couple stays together forever! But it’s different in recruiting and the professional world in general. As a recruiter for several years, I have seen the same person land an excellent job they loved, perform well in it for years, meet all the company’s expectations, and still eventually move on.
The career path is linear like that. And it’s why, as a recruiter, I work on long-term relationships with everyone I interface within my role. Candidates may come back around. Hiring managers often need subsequent hires. The stronger the relationships I build, the more successful I am as a recruiter.
In this month’s newsletter, take a critical eye on the way you write job descriptions, who you’re considering hiring, and what trends you should be paying attention to in 2024.
Let’s Take a Look at Your Job Descriptions
Truly talented people who could be making a big difference at your company are not applying for jobs, because you’re being too specific about the qualifications. A new report co-released by SHRM and Handshake showed that 30% of people would not apply to a job they were interested in if they did not have the right degree or major. Another 26% said they wouldn’t bother if they didn’t have all the skills listed in the ad.
This is a problem for hiring managers. People can be taught skills, and they don’t always have to have a specific degree to learn them. You could be missing out on really incredible candidates because you’re being, well, too particular. Obviously, you want to narrow active candidates to those who are really the best of the best. But that tactic backfires when you accidentally rule out a great candidate just because they don’t have an MBA or experience with a particular technology.
My advice? Open up your requirements and work with a recruiter to narrow down your candidate list from there.
5 of the Biggest Trends in Hiring Right Now
What’s trending in HR? More importantly, what do you need to know to conduct smart hiring this year?
1 - Skills-based hiring is becoming more important than hiring for experience and education.
2 - Holistic health and wellbeing is now a major, mainstream focus of employee investment.
3 - While benefits and perks have long been used to lure talent, they are getting more personalized. New hires at progressive companies now get to choose their perks in an a la carte fashion.
4 - And yes, AI tools are taking over.
Per that last point, AI has a solid place in recruiting, where it can streamline workflows that used to be time-intensive for recruiters and hiring managers — sorting through hundreds of resumes for an open role, improving the candidate experience with smart chatbots, helping facilitate legal paperwork.
Current Labor Shortages Are Making It Hard to Hire
77% of companies are having trouble hiring right now, according to SHL’s 2024 Talent Outlook. This really isn’t anything new, and in a sense, I’m surprised the percentage is not even higher. Hiring has always been hard, but it has gotten harder.
In addition to working with an outside recruiter to close this gap, plenty of companies are shifting traditional attitudes toward hiring and expanding the pool of talent they’re willing to consider. They’re thinking about older workers and gig workers, and really making a consolidated effort to increase diversity in all kinds of ways, including considering neurodiverse talent for certain kinds of jobs.
There are nearly 340 million people in the U.S., so there is definitely someone out there who is perfect for your open role. You may need to expand your concept of what “perfect” looks like, though.
If you’re ready to start having those conversations, give us a call today!