Getting started with your marketing recruitment process is overwhelming. It may have been a challenge just deciphering the marketing position needed for the organization. Even within well-established industries and technologies, markets change so quickly that the skills and personalities you needed to look out for yesterday may no longer be useful today. The recruitment and selection process can be scary, but it doesn’t have to be.
Consider this your cue and guide to making a few simple, but effective recommendations to improve your recruitment and selection process:
1. Define Your Recruitment Objectives
One of the most important steps to improve the recruitment and selection process is to know not just who you’re looking for, but why you need them. In previous years, many startups or companies attempting to scale up made the mistake of simply shoring up labor reserves and getting more bodies in the office, rather than focusing strategically on what roles need to be filled. In more cost-constrained markets, it makes sense to examine at your immediate labor needs and consider how they affect the bottom line.
Do you have an abundance of smaller, more administrative tasks that could be accomplished by a group of junior creative professionals? Or are you looking at a complicated, high-impact job that requires senior-level experience? Understanding what you’re looking for will help you more easily zero-in on who is best for the role.
2. UX Is Just As Important for Applicants As It Is for Customers
Most organizations know how user experience can impact sales leads and customer conversion and retention. Yet when it comes to attracting quality candidates, often the recruitment portals don’t reflect an eye for intuitive and innovative UX. A clunky or antiquated careers portal reflects poorly on the enterprise’s employer branding and can turn off some of the most qualified candidates. Focus on creating a career page that is aesthetically pleasing and prioritizes UX so you can attract the best of the best.
3. Consider How You Reject, Not Just Accept
When fielding countless applications, it can be easy to just prioritize the experience of candidates who meet your criteria. But what about the applicants you reject? In many ways, rejection of underqualified candidates can shape ongoing recruitment efforts. A recruitment and selection process that is less-than-transparent or doesn’t notify applicants that they have not been selected can leave candidates with a bad taste in their mouths. With the rise of employer review sites, interacting with applicants – even rejected ones – with clarity and sensitivity is likely to avoid negative brand associations.
If you must reject an application, make sure to send a note thanking the individual for his or her application but noting that you are pursuing other applicants. For applicants that have made it through several rounds of interviews, a personalized, direct explanation is ideal.
4. Look at Depth of Knowledge, Not Just Experience
Experience is an important indicator of a knowledge base, but it isn’t the be-all, end-all. Instead, look for candidates with a depth of knowledge in the field or role you need to fill. Get them to talk about how they handle change or ambiguous circumstances with minimal direction. For instance, ask an applicant to describe a time when they had to call on knowledge outside of his or her usual scope of expertise to solve a professional problem.
5. Conduct Video Interviews
Finally, taking advantage of all the technological innovations that have become industry-standard is key to attracting the highest quality talent. Video conferencing is a low-impact way to interview an applicant face to (digital) face, giving you more information about a candidate while being significantly easier for all parties to schedule.
Upgrade Your Recruitment and Selection Process with Profiles
Taking steps to improve your recruitment and selection process is often a significant operational challenge. That’s why so many Fortune 500 companies turn to Profiles for their creative staffing needs. We set a new standard in hiring. Request talent through Profiles today to learn more.
