Sometimes hiring can feel like a maze, where despite trying your absolute best, hitting the mark seems impossible.
Given the flood of recruitment crises out there, we asked leading talent acquisition specialists about their coping mechanisms.
They’ve generously shared their most effective strategies, the ones they turn to when the going gets tough.
If you’re on the lookout for real and actionable solutions to turn your hiring headaches into wins, this is the right blog for you.
3 bold strategies experts use to manage recruitment crises
1. Engage and promote internal candidates
“One thing that I love to do is focus on the employees that we have.”
— Gina Perez Morrison, Director, Recruiting and Team Development
Neglecting internal talent can lead to a disengaged workforce and high turnover. Employees who feel overlooked are more likely to seek opportunities elsewhere.
The key to avoiding this recruitment crisis is to keep your company culture vibrant and engaging.
Regularly assessing employee engagement and considering internal candidates for promotions can make a huge difference.
Focus on nurturing the talent you already have within your client’s organization.
Make internal candidates realize their worth by reassuring them about their value and potential opportunities.
Pro tip: Give your employees an opportunity to learn something new every day.
2. Build a strong talent pipeline through referrals
“Because it is much harder to find candidates in this kind of talent short market, it’s really important that you make the most out of every contact that you have.”
You might’ve experienced the disappointment of losing a referral!
Overlooking these referrals can result in missed opportunities to connect with candidates who might be an ideal match for the position.
This brings us to our second strategy―Don’t underestimate the power of a good employee referral.
When someone you trust recommends a candidate, you might just find the perfect match for your client.
But here’s the thing: if the referred candidate doesn’t quite fit the bill for the current position, don’t just write them off.
Instead, keep the connection alive.
Have a conversation with them to understand their skills and career aspirations. Add them to your talent pool, considering them as potential candidates for future roles.
This way, when the right opportunity arises, you’ll already have a pool of potential candidates who could be the perfect fit.
3. Stay balanced and focused
“My things have always been to stay organized, focus on the candidates that you really want, and try to develop some kind of connection.”
In recruitment, as in life, there are things we can control and things we can’t. A recruitment crisis often brings a lot of the latter.
For instance, imagine a tech company client suddenly losing their lead software developer. This departure can create a significant gap, especially if the developer was involved in key projects.
Finding a replacement with the same level of expertise and understanding of the ongoing projects quickly becomes a challenge, often requiring more time and resources than anticipated.
Losing focus in these situations can lead to hasty hiring decisions, resulting in a mismatch of candidates and job roles.
The key is not to let these uncontrollable factors dictate your state of mind.
Try maintaining a balanced perspective and focus on the areas where you can make a real impact.
When the going gets tough, get back to basics. This means revisiting the fundamental principles of recruitment. Are your job descriptions clear and enticing? Are your interview processes streamlined and effective?
Sometimes, the simplest strategies are the most effective, especially in times of crisis.
By the way, there are still plenty more strategies to explore. Head over to the episode to get more solutions for tackling recruitment crises.
