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Three Lessons From Years of DE&I Product Development

Three years ago, we embraced the idea that Greenhouse had an outsized responsibility for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) because of what our product does.

Hiring is one of the most powerful tools we have to create real and lasting change in the world. Thousands of great companies are making their hiring decisions using our software, and those decisions are framed within our product suite.

As our customers became focused on DE&I and wondered how they could mitigate bias within their own hiring process, we set out to build features that would help them accomplish this — leading to the launch of Greenhouse Inclusion in 2018.

In the two years since that launch, we’ve learned some important things:

1) Who makes the product matters.

The media likes to talk about the theoretical benefits of having a diverse team, and we’ve seen it work firsthand. In creating Inclusion we brought together a development team with a wide range of perspectives — from race and gender to age and sexuality.

Within software development, there are many cautionary tales of products that have unintentionally amplified bias at a great scale. So having a truly diverse team and a research-led approach was one way we could be certain we wouldn’t make that same mistake.

For example, as the team dug into the challenge of how a company filter resumes, they steered the Greenhouse process away from opaque AI algorithms towards explainability and transparency and an attitude of “filtering in” rather than filtering out. The team’s gut instincts told them that they wouldn’t want to be judged by an algorithm in this way, so they designed a different solution.

A team member whose last name is frequently mispronounced was passionate about a feature that would make it easy for candidates to record the pronunciation of their name for interviewers ahead of time. So that feature was researched, tested, and programmed into Inclusion as well.

With several innovations like these, Inclusion would come to reflect our team’s lived experiences and was a better product for it.

2) Good intentions are no substitute for hard work.

Faced with new expectations around DE&I, some companies merely want an easy way out. “Isn’t there a button we can press to magically fix this?”

Or they want a way to virtue signal. “Can’t we just put a badge on our career page saying that we care? Isn’t that enough?”

Others are big on excuses, like “There just aren’t enough female engineers out there.” What they fail to see is that it’s about more than just who is applying for these sorts of positions, it’s about inequities in the evaluation process itself.

Excuses and good intentions aside, companies can’t simply jump to inclusive hiring without changing the overall structure of their hiring process.

This hard work involves closely examining candidate pass-through rates by demographic, to find out where the company needs to focus on efforts and make adjustments. Companies also need to ask themselves which interviewers always say yes, or always say no.

And they need to solicit insights from candidates to find out how people from different backgrounds experience their hiring process.

This is all to say that hiring requires attention, resourcing, and considerations as any other function like Sales, Finance, or Marketing. And what it needs to function in the fairest and inclusive way possible, is structure and process.

Inclusive hiring practices include evaluating all candidates on the same set of criteria, training hiring managers, and interviewers on focusing on specific skills and attributes, and measuring progress to name just a few.

3) Companies can change the status quo.

One of the encouraging signs we’ve seen as we examined DE&I hiring metrics is how much is within a company’s control.

Within this data, we saw that different sourcing techniques — from referrals to agencies, from job ads to LinkedIn — bring in distinctly different pools of candidates. Companies can actively decide where to invest their time and money in attracting candidates, and that can have a measurable impact on the diversity of applicants they receive.

Within the interview funnel data, we could also see that the demographic ratio of hires often looks very different than the ratio of applicants. In one pool, for example, only 45 percent of applicants were White but yielded 75 percent of the hires. Clearly, there are factors inside a company’s evaluation process that can lead to unbalanced outcomes.

Looking further within scorecard data, we could see that certain attributes are regularly scored differently across demographics. For example, “communication skills” will often have wildly different results for different races.

It’s data like this that is our most powerful argument against any excuses a company may have for inaction around DE&I.

Three years in and we continue to invest in our DE&I feature set. We’re working on developing better data visualization tools to help our customers really interrogate their hiring process and understand where they need to focus.

We’re working on a new consulting offering, where experts can peer into a company’s hiring data and make specific recommendations.

We founded Greenhouse to help companies become great at hiring. The customers we work with drive this kind of change in their hiring from within.

Because great hiring does more than accelerate their business, it helps to express their values as a company – as a place where great people want to work and great companies want to work with.

Tools and Tactics for Sourcing Success in 2021

Despite the global pandemic and high unemployment, hiring continues to challenge certain sectors. The need for specific skill sets, background, certifications, and experience, coupled with a call to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion, has organizations struggling to find the right talent to advance outcomes.

Further complicating matters is the state of sourcing. Taken as a whole, the tech landscape is fragmented and complex, with countless point solutions to choose from, all claiming to make hiring more efficient and more effective. But for those doing the work, the question is, how? Or, perhaps more importantly, where and when? It’s enough to make your head spin.

Technology helps, serving as a buttress and making it possible to ensure a seamless candidate experience and expedite the process. But without a keen understanding of what’s available – and how solutions fit together – today’s tech landscape can make sourcing candidates harder, not easier.

Given the circumstances, here are the pros (and a few cons) of sourcing technologies to consider for 2021:

Job Boards

Employment websites, the grown-up alias of job boards, have come a long way in recent years, thanks to aggregators like Indeed and specialty search engines like Dice. These inbound recruiting tools work to draw candidates in, a tactic that’s particularly effective when looking to make multiple hires for the same position. You can post jobs or search resumes, even inputting your very best Boolean strings.

But as far as usefulness goes, that’s about where the sourcing story ends. The practicality of job boards still favors candidates more than employers, especially given the addition of forward-facing career development resources, insights, and advice all focused on getting hired.

Marketplaces

While there are different models, curated hiring marketplaces for outbound recruiting, like Hired, use machine learning and data to help connect employers with vetted candidates who are ready, eager, and willing to engage. These platforms can be extra useful for those in-demand tech roles where candidates are harder to source.

Say you’re looking for a Boston-based programmer with a bachelor’s degree in computer science, 5+ years of industry experience, AND fluency in React and Python. You can filter for these exact preferences and sift through a curated selection of active job seekers who match the criteria. Added bonuses include bias reduction features, candidate wish lists, salary calculators, and role-based assessments.

Databases

Of course, not all candidates are actively looking, which makes recruiting all the more challenging. Database tools can uncover passive candidates and lead to previously undiscovered talent pools, making it possible to get a first-mover advantage on anyone thinking there might be a better opportunity out there. These often boast access to millions of profiles that aid in building out pipelines plus integrations with a host of other solutions to ensure a seamless experience after the sourcing stage.

Like job boards, there are even specialty database options out there, such as Hiretual’s Healthcare AI Sourcing Solution, which collects data from vertical-based platforms including Healthgrades, Zocdoc, RateMDs, and more. The major drawback is whether or not the information provided is accurate and up to date as there are no guarantees the phone numbers and email addresses that databases find are still active.

Staffing Agencies

For rapid or more flexible hiring needs, staffing agencies like Adecco can serve as a point of contact and intermediary, matching qualified candidates with current openings. This approach can save busy recruiting teams time and money by contacting and screening job seekers on their behalf, filling both temporary and permanent staffing opportunities.

However, using an external party to supplement internal efforts sometimes leads to friction or more work for the in-house recruiters, left to educate and onboard this resource. It’s not a perfect fix, particularly when you look at the price, but with the right partner and a well-developed relationship can prove fruitful in select scenarios.

ATS + CRM

For organizations that receive hundreds or thousands of applications, an applicant tracking system with candidate relationship management integration can mine their existing candidate base. That’s right, your ATS and CRM serve double duty as a sourcing tool if you know where to look.

You will need to start by refreshing the data in place to determine which applicants to keep warm, nurture, and engage, which can be taxing and requires smart segmentation to be most effective. Still, if done correctly, leveraging these tools will not only help you source but also promote your employer brand and provide a pleasant experience for all (even those previously turned down or lobbed into the dreaded black hole).

In an ideal world, sourcing would be simple. Picture it: jot down a short job description, post it online, read through a stack of resumes, interview a few candidates, and make an offer to the top pick. They accept the job and start in two weeks—a recruiting miracle.

Reality, of course, remains a lot more complicated. The job market will fluctuate, hiring managers will ask to see more candidates, even after they’ve met the best ones, candidates will lose interest or get poached by the competition, and so on.

The game continues. But as the saying goes, the best defense is a good offense, and in recruiting, that starts with sourcing – and sourcing technology.

How To Embrace Working From Home As A Long-Term Norm

Working from home is now the reality for millions of people around the world. But though many of us would like to return to the office, we need to embrace the fact that remote work is going to be a long-term norm.

This is because it could be a considerable time before enough of the population is vaccinated to allow office workers to return en masse, while many companies may choose to reduce their overheads by moving permanently to remote working.

We’ve highlighted some of the ways recruiters can embrace the norm of working from home. This includes addressing the loss of the competitive environment you get from the office and taking a more data-driven approach to recruiting.

Address losing the competitive environment of the office

Recruitment is a target driven environment, one where you’re encouraged and inspired to compete against your colleagues. You message them, call them, and speak to them face-to-face in the office, driving one another to achieve greater success.

Working from home removes you from the office environment and this is something you have to address as part of embracing remote working.

While you can still communicate with them digitally from home, some of the camaraderie you get from the office will be lost. One way of addressing this is to use performance dashboards.

Performance dashboards are a way of showing if people are achieving their goals and hitting their targets. They feature a range of metrics, including:

Individual performance
Pipeline figures
Sales forecasts

You could have a live feed of these figures, so people can pit themselves against their peers throughout the day.

And while they aren’t a replacement for the hustle and bustle of the office, they do visualize performance. This is a great way to regain some of the competitive edge that’s lost without being able to see your colleagues face-to-face.

Make sure you have the right home office setup in place

It’s not just physical interaction with your colleagues that’s lost when you work from home. You also lose the physical office, which is assembled and maintained in line with the needs of your company.

While your employer doesn’t lose responsibility for ensuring you have the right work environment in place (they still have a duty of care to you and the business) some of it passes to you.

This means you need to make sure you embrace this reality by being proactive about getting the most productive workspace in place that you can.

We don’t need to waste any time addressing your personal productivity. You’re a professional who knows how to work in the best way possible. However, not everyone is an expert in office ergonomics.

Some of the things you require for your home office setup are straightforward:

Connectivity
Comfort
Self-health

Some of the solutions are obvious. You need a reliable internet connection, you must have a desk and chair that lets you sit comfortably, you should take regular breaks.

But there are additional things you should request from your employer as you embrace working from home. For example, it might be a good idea to ask for a SAD lamp, as you may not get as much natural light in your home workspace as you did in the office.

The point is if there’s something that will help you to work more effectively then you should ask for it. It’s not simply in your interest to get it but it’s also in your employer’s interest to provide you with it.

Use solitude to take a more data-driven approach to recruiting

We don’t need to tell you that industry knowledge is one of the most important parts of recruitment. You need to know what industries and roles are on the rise, so you forge relationships with the right people and recommend the correct candidates,

It can be difficult to find quiet moments to try new things when you’re in an office and this is understandable. With so much going on, it can be difficult to put your energy into exploring new ways of doing things.

Working from home removes the blur of background noise from your colleagues, giving you the chance to try out some new approaches. We recommend that one of these is using a more data-driven approach, one informed by SEO.

SEO (search engine optimization) is a term you may already be familiar with, particularly if your area of recruitment includes digital marketing. Essentially, it’s the terms people are searching for. Why does that matter to you? Because it shows you what jobs and industries are on the rise.

There are lots of elements to SEO. The main one that can help you as a recruiter is keyword research. Let’s take the example of digital marketing. Say you search for “digital marketing jobs” using a tool like Ahrefs. These are some of the keywords you get:

Credit: Ahrefs

This highlights a few interesting things, such as regions where digital marketing jobs are popular. Unsurprisingly, New York is the most popular area in the United States. However, what’s interesting is Houston and Dallas have the same number of searches. This means it may be worth exploring if Texas is one of the upcoming hotspots for digital marketing jobs.

This is just one example of how you can use SEO to inform your work. Without the noise of the office, you can embrace this as one of the benefits of working from home and use SEO to develop a more data-driven approach to recruiting.

Addressing the loss of the office, setting up your home workspace, and taking a data-driven approach to recruiting are three ways you can embrace working from home.

We’ve explained why they matter and what you can do to tackle them. All you need to do is put our suggestions into practice and then reap the benefits of doing so.

Fireside chat with William Tincup and Alistair Neal of Paiger

I met Alistair through a mutual friend, Kelly Robinson. Kelly was the mad scientist and genius behind Broadbean (amongst other cool companies and products in our space). Two things I remember about Alistair from our first meeting: (1) he’s at least 8 feet tall and he has an infectious smile.

I automatically liked him and the more I talk with him, the more I like and root for him.

He’s building a cool company with Paiger and he’s doing it with the knowledge that he’s helping recruiters and candidates have a better experience with one another through compelling content.

Alistair has been in the recruitment space for 10 years now, mostly in technology but with side dabbles in actual recruiting and recruitment marketing. I think him being a practitioner for a bit has been really valuable for Paiger.

He can relate to both recruiters, hiring managers, and candidates because, well, he has to. I think vendors that spend a little time on the side of practitioners have an (unfair?) advantage.

Outside of work, he’s an adventurous soul. He did a 4-month backpacking sabbatical across Asia including a motorbike trip through Mongolia, he recently learned to fly a wingsuit, and also do a bit of kite boarding when the wind is blowing. Life on the highwire.

As recruiters, I’m sure you can relate.

My goal with this interview is for you to fall in love with Alistair and Paiger as I have. I actually use the service and have since it was barely out of Alpha.

Work-related, what’s keeping you up at night these days?

The overall state of the staffing agency industry. Anecdotally, the industry seems to be doing ok during the pandemic, but that is just based on the clients I speak with regularly. I’m worried about the aftershocks as the downturn spreads from industry to industry and using staffing agencies is one of the budgets that is often reduced.

I put myself to sleep by remembering that the number of people working from home has opened up a previously unavailable candidate pool that should result in a lot of movement.

Also, I’ll take a moment to whine about the use of the term AI. It’s all machine learning, there is no actual AI in recruiting at the moment.

What’s your short term (>3 years) vision for Paiger?

In the next 3 years, we’ll build out the rest of the content marketing and employee advocacy functionality while increasing our account-based marketing innovation. We see a gap in the market for what happens to a target market once they’ve engaged with a piece of content.

Sure, there are standard pixel-based retargeting campaigns already available, but we see an importance in making the marketing experience a hyper-personalized journey.

What’s your long-term (<3 years) vision for Paiger?

Three years is a long time — we didn’t even exist three years ago, so it is hard to plan that far in the future. Without going into detail, we plan to always be increasing the effectiveness of content and account-based marketing.

You’ll know Paiger has reached its full potential when?

I haven’t thought much about this one. Paiger will have reached its full potential when clients no longer have suggestions about functionality wishes.

What advice do you give leaders regarding evaluating technology?

Pick a solution that will solve the immediate problem, but that will also be able to solve future problems so you’re not shifting platforms on a regular basis.

How to source Developers on Reddit

Reddit is an American social news aggregation, web content rating, and discussion website. Registered members submit content to the site such as links, text posts, and images, which are then voted up or down by other members. Here is The Glossary you need to be familiar with using Reddit.

Subreddit: Subreddits are communities and groups on Reddit. Example: You’ll normally see “https://www.reddit.com” If you see like the following example “r/linux” or “r/<anything>”, that’s the Subreddit.

Karma: Reddit Karma is the score users get for posting and commenting on Reddit. On the user’s profile, you can see the total number of Karma (Post Karma, Comment Karma, Awardee Karma and Awarder Karma).

Upvote/Downvote: It is similar to “LIke” / “Dislike” on other Social media sites. Users get upvotes for their posts if others find it useful. Bad posts get downvotes. These votes determine how valuable the post is. It determines the position of the content on the site.

Coins: Coins are Reddit’s virtual currency used to give other users silver/gold/platinum. You get them from buying them, receiving a gold award, or monthly from having Reddit premium.

Cakeday: “Cake Day” is the yearly anniversary of when you signed up on Reddit. It is a little cake icon that appears next to your username on Reddit. r/cakeday is the community where you can celebrate your cakeday. Post a link to enjoy your gift of karma!

Awards: Awards are given by Redditors to other Redditors for their contributions. Read this article to understand more.

Askreddit: r/AskReddit is the place to ask and answer thought-provoking questions.

How to source on Reddit

It is a bit challenging to source on Reddit as you won’t be able to get a lot of profile information. You need to have a lot of patience to source on Reddit. Users need not have to provide real names. Users discuss any topics of their interest related to the community they are following.

Moderators can remove posts and comments from their community if they find them objectionable or off-topic.

In Reddit you can find what’s user’s’ areas of interest are. If he/she frequently discusses Javascript then it is clear he knows / very interested in Javascript. Let’s see some ways to uncover hidden talents in Reddit.

Use the Search bar to run a search

Reddit supports using Boolean Operators in search.

For example:

Search Javascript AND HTML “For Hire” Chicago

Or use Javascript AND HTML AND “For Hire” London

Another example Javascript AND HTML (“For Hire” OR “available immediately” OR “Open to work” OR “looking for new opportunities”) Houston

Just click on the subreddit (remember if anything says “r/<anything>” it is subreddit, and “u/<anything>” is user profile name) and sometimes you can see their contact details mentioned along with some details like their skills, location, etc (only if they have mentioned ‘For Hire’ else it is rare to see any contact details/any personal information about the user).

If they are not available ‘For Hire’ check if they have posted any blogs and find out any information available (personal website, GitHub, any other social media sites, or their names, etc.).

X-Ray search on Google

site:reddit.com/user “* * developer” “For Hire” London

site:reddit.com/user/ “* * developer” “For Hire” London

If you are looking for a Technical Recruiter to join your team, then try to use the following search string to find the recruiter who posted the job.

site:reddit.com/user “* * developer” “hiring” “New York”

Searching for Remote Developers

site:reddit.com/user (“* Engineer” OR “* Developer” OR “* Programmer”) “remote work” (“about me” OR “personal website”)

Here are some examples of some useful communities you can follow if you are looking to hire (Tech / Non-tech). Just search for relevant communities and join.

For posting the job in many communities you need to request to post a job.

r/javascript
r/forhire/
r/dallasjobs
r/chicagojobs
r/london_forhire
r/UKforhire
r/webdev
r/jobpostings
r/UKJobs

We have seen some useful sourcing tricks to source on Reddit. It is not advisable to contact directly on Reddit, instead cross-reference their profile on other Social media sites with available information. Go deeper into their posts and comments if you have spotted the right candidate. There are some possibilites where you can get their personal information so it’ll be easier to reach out to them (via Email / Github / LinkedIn etc.).

In closing, here are some additional useful tips on how to post a job on Reddit.

Happy Sourcing!

Dean Da Costa’s Start.me Collection

In the video below, Dean Da Costa takes you through his Start.me collection SSaR. He has 4 pages filled with links to Chrome Extensions, Sourcing and Recruiting tools, Web Scrapers, People Finders, and more.

You can find the collection here.

Note: If a tool has 2 asterisks it’s one of his favorites. He updates these pages almost daily.

You can create your own page by opening a Start.me account. From there, you can save your favorite links (from Dean’s page or any page on the internet) by copying the URL or duplicating the bookmark.

Plus, you can follow other pages, share out your own collections, or just keep it all private for your own reference.

There is no Degree for Talent Sourcing

Preaching to the choir here, but there is no degree for Talent Acquisition, Recruiting, or Sourcing. We can get a Human Resource Management degree, and that degree is vital to understanding employment law.

However, there is no such thing as a bachelor’s degree in Talent Acquisition. We are lucky enough to have some great training and certificates available thru SourceCon/ERE, Recruiter Academy, AIRS, Brain Gain, and Sourcing Certifications. Thank goodness for those.

But for us in sourcing, we are in the business of research curation. That research curation requires diligence and a constant that doesn’t end in a terminal degree.

So, what is research curation?

A Sourcer is equivalent to a reference librarian. If you aren’t aware of that, I can paint a picture for you. Back in the day before the internet, answers to any questions meant a trip to the library.

In high school, when a book report or paper was due, it meant a trip to the library. Library users were able to use a card catalog and look up most research articles, books, and magazines, on most any type of topic, all on our own. That would be akin to a Google search today.

In every library though, there was a holy section of books. Not accessible to the public to touch on their own but guarded by the reference librarian. This reference librarian had first editions, full encyclopedias, genealogy, greys anatomy, and other scientific manuscripts, and myriads of other collateral too expensive and specific to leave out for the general public.

They were keepers of specific information. If you couldn’t find it on your own, you enlisted the help of a professional reference librarian. A Talent acquisition Recruiter has access to most pieces of information found in the card catalog of data.

But if you want the specific, the special, the hard to find, you enlist the help of today’s version of a reference librarian, the Sourcer.

Not every search that a Sourcer is engaged with requires a deep dive on the internet with complex Boolean strings. Finding candidates off Indeed and LinkedIn can still be 60% of a Sourcers hires.

There is no shame in the low-hanging-fruit game. However, a Sourcer wants to leverage 100% of the workforce, not just the active candidates on paid job boards. To access 100% of the labor pool, a Sourcer must have records and data stored that directs us on our quest for the most qualified.

To that, I will give you a peek inside a Sourcers inventory and library.

A Sourcers Library includes:

Competitive Intelligence

Links to all resources to identify market intelligence. Perhaps even battle cards to summarize each competitor’s weakness, strengths, and value propositions. This includes Google Alerts, Salary intel, Employee Reviews, Email Naming Convention, Benefit details, and Culture on all competitors. This intel should be stored and cataloged alphabetically by each competitor.

Recruitment Marketing

Oh, yes. We can no longer say “that’s not my job” on recruitment marketing. Sourcers need to know where to find the best hashtags, how to post the most compelling content, and manage their own social media calendars. Social Media is now 50% of a Sourcers job. Since many of us are not marketing experts, we imperatively need a content library to house all our recruitment marketing collateral. I suggest following Rally Recruitment Marketing for their free templates and advice.

Chrome Extensions

There are still plenty of free Chrome Extensions that are safe, and supply Sourcers with all they need to identify contact information. Right now, I have about 40 chrome extensions for contact info in my URL toolbar favorites. Don’t neglect the Chrome extensions that are out there for efficiency either. Ways to track, mine, and stay organized. CV Timeline is my favorite time saver for LinkedIn. Technology is there to make our lives simpler and more efficient. Take advantage of it.

A CRM

There needs to be one “source-of-truth” when it comes to storing our most priceless curation, and that is the leads/prospects we are identifying. I’ve tried a million different spreadsheets to serve as an alternative storehouse, but a CRM is by far and away the best tool for storing candidate curations.

Lists

Sourcers have lists for everything. Lists of associations, data mining, scraping, data extractors (whatever you want to call it) and more.

Paid tools like Phantombuster are a great start to categorizing candidate details for future curation.

A good Sourcer can rattle off twenty places to find any single job thrown at them. Not because they went to school for it. Not because they received a bachelor’s or master’s degree in it.

But because they practiced a strong behavioral habit to be curious and to store research for later use.

For your next Sourcing hire, look to add a training program. Realize the shortage in our industry for trained professionals and invest in them. They need to learn the skills somewhere.

Happy Hunting.

4 Methods on Building and Engaging a Remote Workplace

As HR leaders welcome new employees remotely, the virtual onboarding process presents both challenges and opportunities. Companies are now fusing radical candor cultures and taking simplistic approaches to HR to better cater to employees in this new remote workforce. Here are four ways to make this transition to building and engaging an entirely virtual workforce.

Create a White-Glove Onboarding Experience

According to research data shared by Glassdoor, organizations with an impactful onboarding process improve their new hire retention rates by 82%.

Just as the Ritz Carlton is known for continuously delivering great, white-glove customer care, the same personalization should be applied in HR. The onboarding process should focus first on developing a human connection and providing special attention to new employees.

Virtual onboarding shouldn’t be a “one-and-done” phone call or video session. Checking-in regularly with new hires is key to maintaining a remote staff that is motivated, engaged, and connected. Ongoing touchpoints such as weekly check-ins, regular video updates, or company-wide virtual meetings can help create a regular cadence of interactions so new hires don’t feel neglected.

Also, by carefully listening to and considering employee feedback or concerns, sending customized notes, and establishing introductory meetings between new hires and key company leaders, personalized onboarding can pave the way for building rapport, creating trust, and maintaining employee satisfaction.

Establish a Compassionate Company Culture

The workplace is becoming more transactional and increasingly dehumanized, where employees feel they are often treated as a human resource rather than a human being. Organizations such as 100% Human at Work (powered by Virgin Unite) are a cross-section of HR executives and business leaders aiming to bring profit and purpose together. The organization has launched campaigns for businesses to start thinking of people as human beings and not as resources.

Building a company culture starts with creating a meaningful foundation and connection versus checking off items on an HR leader’s to-do list. As the workplace becomes more digital and entirely virtual (at least for the time being), it’s critical for HR personnel to lead with empathy and embed compassion.

Leveraging workforce insights and engagement platforms to collect employee data are an essential element for HR departments in evaluating their employees’ well-being. For example, polling employees on a weekly or monthly basis is critical to determine whether key leaders are actively engaged with their staff, providing support, listening, and paying attention to their employees. This is essential for organizations to make adjustments on the fly to cater to this new working environment.

With uncertainty in the workforce at an all-time high, surveying employees during COVID is essential because it conveys employers are listening and it helps establish employee trust. The pandemic has caused complete disruption to the employee experience and that has taken a toll on employees’ mental well-being. According to The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), between 22% and 35% of U.S. staff have recently experienced symptoms of depression.

Employers can also remind staff about mental health offerings in their benefits plans that may include therapy sessions, wellness coaching, and online resources. By listening to employees, empathizing with their challenges, communicating frequently, and supporting their needs, organizations can help workers avoid anxiety, burnout, loneliness, or depression.

Replace Perks with an Empathetic Approach

Silicon Valley is the poster child for offering employee perks like gourmet meals, foosball tables in the break room, and offsite team-building activities. However, COVID-19 has forced companies to elevate the demands of remote work, as office perks are now a thing of the past. Instead, by focusing on other employee benefits that invest in their personal, professional, and physical well-being, as it relates to additional job training or health and mental wellness offerings, HR leaders can reinforce the company’s commitment to its employees.

While most companies give employees their birthdays off and/or gift cards, surprising and delighting employees is another unique and meaningful approach. Whether it is gifting a brand-new barbecue set or sending an employee flowers to brighten their day. These are simple yet worthwhile gestures that will boost employee satisfaction over free snacks and daily coffee any day.

Unlike Google, Facebook, Twitter, and other companies offering employees a wealth of perks, one tech titan invests in their local community. In an interview with The New York Times, Marc Benioff, CEO and Founder of Salesforce, revealed how he’s a proponent of public service and believes it’s a corporation’s responsibility to contribute to the public good.

This is demonstrated on every new hire’s first day at the company, as they spend the afternoon volunteering in the community. While Salesforce has fewer amenities and perks than their tech counterparts, their foundation and core values are centered on purpose and mission through employee’s public service interactions.

Onboarding in the New HR Normal

HR leaders have an opportunity to support a more inclusive array of workspace options by providing innovative and alternative ways to foster in-person engagements while reducing or repurposing costly office space. Some organizations, such as Codi, enable employers to activate communal spaces in neighborhoods where their employees already live; allowing teams to still physically collaborate safely (and also avoid a lengthy commute in some cases).

While there are no one-size-fits-all when it comes to onboarding staff remotely in a virtual workplace, here are key takeaways and best practices:

Prioritize physical, mental, and emotional wellness, monitoring and addressing loneliness and employee burnout.
Foster compassion at work to build healthier work environments where staff are engaged and happy.
Find creative ways to incentivize employees like volunteer or service work.

The virtual workplace will only be successful when companies embrace it from the top down. Implementing new best practices to support the remote working model will elevate organizations to the next level while maintaining business continuity.

Why Hiring Good Mid-Level Managers Is Not Good Enough

The pandemic has been a stress test for managers of all levels. The most effective managers are learning to adapt through clear communication and effective utilization of technology. They instill optimism, promote collaboration and reward creativity, and trust among their teams is prevalent and evident. Middle managers, often cited as some of the unhappiest employees in the workplace, have had it particularly tough during the pandemic.

Feeling the pressure from above and below, they have to deal with the challenges of laying off employees and delivering bad news about pay cuts and reduced work schedules. They need to work harder to mentor, focus, and inspire individuals now working from home, and likely dealing with more of their own personal challenges.

Today’s added stresses and responsibilities have created a fight or flight moment for many middle managers – they are either spiraling downward or embracing the challenges and demonstrating their true value as leaders.

As a result, middle managers are either searching for new jobs or using the pandemic as an opportunity for promotion to leadership positions. Either way, it has created a need to effectively fill this role in a way that has never before been more important to an organization.

The economic uncertainty wrought by Covid-19 and the expiration of the CARES Act in July has flooded the market even further with candidates, making it harder for recruiters to identify qualified mid-and senior-level managers with the right mix of character and experience to effectively engage remote teams and help sustain business growth.

Regardless of the impact the pandemic is having on an organization, hiring criteria for mid-level managers is changing. Here’s how:

#1: Hiring profiles must start with strong leadership and communication skills.

Below average mid-level managers are struggling even more today because they lack the leadership skills to effectively support remote teams. Recruiters interviewing for mid-level roles must understand the subtle differences between good and great managers, and work these subtleties into their hiring profiles.

For example, good managers assign tasks, leverage employee strengths, and meet objectives. Great managers create a unifying vision, challenge their teams to solve problems and take calculated risks, and inspire them to exceed their own expectations.

Great mid-level managers also know that operating in a remote environment requires them to have greater availability for their teams. This allows more time for having regular check-ins and providing the necessary feedback to build trust and maintain focused, connected teams.

#2: Promoting from within can backfire.

Promoting top company performers to management roles has long been an acceptable practice. While this may ensure industry experience, there is no guarantee these individuals have the creativity, flexibility and communication skills to lead −particularly during a crisis.

It’s a common challenge to find top performers who are both strong leaders and ready and willing to step up into positions of greater responsibility. Average managers perpetuate problems and can have an immediate detrimental effect on the morale and productivity of the operation.

Companies and managers must recognize that when there is a lack of leadership potential from within, they need to seek the ideal blend of industry experience and leadership skills from outside the organization.

#3: Candidates must demonstrate their ability to lead up and lead down.

Middle managers often feel pulled in different directions by the various stakeholder groups they serve. In order to achieve results, they must be able to simultaneously understand the “why” from above while making it reasonable and actionable for their teams.

Recruiters should require clear examples of how a candidate has translated expectations from leadership and built broad consensus around a clear vision for their teams. Effectively motivating individuals and rallying teams around a common goal comes down to the ability to listen, understand, empathize, and hold people accountable.

#4: Helping employees get to the next level is part of the job.

Ronald Reagan, the 40th president of the United States, once said: “The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. (S/he) is the one that gets people to do the greatest things.”

Such is the case for great mid-level managers. Not only are they role models for professional growth and development, they also recognize and proactively nurture leadership talent for next-level opportunities. Managers who feel threatened by advancing others are in no position to lead.

Management Beyond the Pandemic

Our current crisis mindset has driven many organizations to make long-overdue changes, become more innovative, better utilize technology, and communicate more effectively. It has also changed the way we think about management and that simply settling for good managers is no longer enough.

While everyone looks forward to getting back to “normal”, we’ve proven to ourselves that there are other ways to achieve success despite the challenges, and we are more capable than we once thought.

Humantic’s New UI for Candidate Engagement and Assessment

Wouldn’t it be great if you could get all of your candidates to take a personality test? It would certainly help you see if they are a good fit for your team. Well, now there’s a way to get a candidate personality assessment without a test. Humantic AI is a tool for candidate engagement and assessment for recruiters and sales professionals.

The tool facilitates understanding an individual’s unique personality and learns how they make decisions.

Humantic can also personalize your communication with candidates through AI-authored emails – personalized for each individual, based on their personality assessment.

Their new interface update gives easy access to add job openings and your candidates. You can add candidates from their LinkedIn profile URL, or through email IDs. If you have multiple candidates to add at once, the tool supports the upload of a CSV file.

Once added, the dashboard will display the candidate’s match score, as well as where they score on the DISC and BIG FIVE profiles. The match score will be based on what you have defined as an ideal candidate. These definitions can either be pulled from pre-defined personas or be based on a person’s LinkedIn URL. You can also define your own.

Another key update to the interface is the ability to move the tool out of your view by collapsing it, and then drag the icon wherever you want on your screen. This can really come in handy if you use multiple extensions at once.

Humantic AI is available to use for free for your first 21 days. You can check out their website and install their Chrome Extension/sign up to get on the waiting list!

Real-Life Advice for SMBs Hiring in the New Year

2020 created a whole new set of hiring challenges, many of which will carry on to the New Year and beyond. According to Gartner, 86 percent of organizations transitioned to remote interviews because of the COVID-19 pandemic, with many companies hiring for remote positions (at least for the next few months).

With the belt-tightening caused by the pandemic and varying lockdowns, many small businesses can’t afford unsuccessful hires this year. Owners and managers need people who can jump in with both feet, adapt to changing tides, and most importantly, stay with their organization.

While you can’t control each employee you bring on, you can increase your chances of attracting and retaining qualified candidates via intuitive hiring practices. I spoke with business leaders across the country with proven recruiting success from this past year. Follow their advice to streamline and optimize your remote hiring in 2021.

Create a Positive Candidate Experience

To attract valuable candidates to your business, you need to create an exceptional hiring experience. Just one poor interview or virtual encounter can be enough to drive potential employees away.

“Start by finding ways to shorten the application process to fast track time to hire,” explains Darrell Rosenstein, founder of The Rosenstein Group. “You should also find innovative ways to answer candidates’ questions effectively and comprehensively. Go the extra mile to provide as much information as possible for candidates to successfully complete the application process.”

Remember, the top candidates in your field will always be in demand, no matter the climate. If you take weeks to reply to applications (or even a few days in some cases), many may have already moved on. Moreover, candidates will be more engaged if you start a dialogue and actively respond to inquiries.

Put this advice in action: Reduce response time in emails and correspondence, even if you just acknowledge receipt and explain you’ll get back to them ASAP.

Any time you have a question about the role, add that information to your job ad (if one person had that question, likely, others will as well). Ask for feedback after interviews so you can refine your process.

Know the Value of Hands-on-Hiring

You can outsource or automate many tasks to save time as a small business owner, but the hiring process still needs a personal touch, especially for smaller firms who work closely with their staff. Talking to a person gives you a real idea of whether they would be a good match for your company.

Scott J. Corwin, attorney and president of Scott J. Corwin, explains why he personally handles hiring for his law firm: “It’s best as the owner of the business for me to meet one-on-one with any potential hire to determine not only if they possess the requisite skill set to deliver the highest caliber work product on behalf of my firm, but to see if the potential hire has the right fit and personality for our business.”

This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use recruiters or invest in resume optimization tools. However, when hiring for an important role, ensure the person who’s managing that position (likely you as an SMB owner) meets with the candidate.

Put this advice into action: If you outsource or delegate initial hiring, make sure you still handle the final interview.

When remote recruiting, even a video meeting can ensure that you get a sense of the candidate’s personality and characteristics. Additionally, it allows you to listen to your gut, to confirm that you feel like that person will interact and work well with your team.

Market Your Company to Applicants

Top candidates will do their research before they apply to a company. Recent reports show that 75 percent of job seekers consider an employer’s brand before even applying. They want to know about your company culture, mission, previous employee experiences, and more.

“[Optimize] your website first,” says Israel Gaudette, founder of Link Tracker Pro. “All of your company’s relevant information should be visible there—from the vision and mission to work culture up to the benefits you’ll be offering to new hires. Make it clear for the remote applicants what’s in it for them if they’ll decide to work with you.”

Also, make sure your social media pages are up-to-date. Your company’s digital brand presence is a candidate’s first impression. That same report found that 52 percent of candidates first seek out a company’s website then their social media profiles.

Put this advice in action: Consider this a digital brand “facelift” before you start recruiting.

Update your website to make it clear what services or products your business provides. If you can, add any positive testimonials—from clients, employees, or otherwise. If you can add some new content to your social feed, that would be best. But even if you don’t have the bandwidth to actively manage your social profiles, ensure that there isn’t out-of-date info, posts, or reviews.

Implement a Testing Process to Evaluate Skillsets

Throughout the hiring process, you want to mitigate risk. You don’t want to hire unqualified candidates with exaggerated resumes. Especially with technical positions, you may worry about losing the value of an in-person interview with assessments (i.e., whiteboarding, aptitude tests, etc.).

To vet qualifications, you can still create candidate tests in the virtual recruiting environment. Marja Verbon, COO and founder at Jump, offers advice on the process:

“Practical assessments are more important than ever. A good method is to give a task or assessment to do before the interview, then you can discuss how they tackled it in the interview itself. This will provide a clear picture of their approach to the work they would be doing, and hence help you make a better decision.”

Put this advice into action: Find a platform to streamline applicant testing (check out this list for the best options).

Then use test results to guide your recruiting. For example, if you have 50 applicants and only 15 take the initial test, you’ve already narrowed your pipeline to weed out unmotivated job seekers. You can then focus on the resumes of those who scored well on the assessment to select candidates for initial interviews.

Set Up Your Business for Hiring Success

This next year will likely continue to provide unique challenges for SMB owners and managers, including hiring. January is often a busy time for job searching. With the holidays over and resolutions in mind, many candidates start to look for new opportunities. Don’t miss out because you’re apprehensive to begin the hiring process during a pandemic. With the above tactics, you can attract top candidates and create a successful recruiting experience.

Once you onboard new team members, the real work of keeping them around with a positive culture and engaging environment begins. Happy recruiting!

Just Another Year, 2020

Just another year

This time last year, I doubt any one of us could imagine what was coming. We all had other plans. Ones that did not include spending the better part of a year trapped in our homes.

In March, again in April, and into May, we saw nearly 12,000 members in the RecruitingDaily community affected by the pandemic and resulting economic disaster. Lost employment, independent recruiters and sourcers eliminated from contracts.

Perhaps 2020 would have been less memorable if the threat of COVID and economic collapse was the only thing on our minds.

Instead, this nightmarish buffet of a year also offered up generous helpings of political division and fighting for basic human rights. Friends, family members, and neighbors became polarized sides clashing against each other, paralyzed with differences of belief.

There were protests, conspiracy theories and the dismissal of facts, a contested election, and for dessert, a national security breach hack on a massive scale.

The Silver Lining In Talent Acquisition: It’s You

With all of that, you’d think we would break. But we are a resilient community. Look around you! We’re all proof of that.

The industry, our community, all of you really stepped up.

Our friends at ERE and SourceCon, Talent Tech, TalentNet, Unleash, HR Tech, The Recruitment Events Co. – we’ve all faced a series of challenges that required our companies to remove IRL events and conferences.

Same for us. As industries froze and others burst beyond capacity we did our best to help and serve. Thousands of you joined in to share your stories, tell your tales, and attended our many online events.

We worked with some amazing sponsors and were able to host our HRTX events virtually at no cost to attendees. We are grateful for that opportunity to offer upskilling to the community.

Looking forward

The pandemic may not be over just yet, but a vaccine is moving its way outward. There just may be an end in sight.

We have a lot of great things coming for the next year that we can’t wait to share.

For RecruitingDaily, 2021 will be exciting. There will be new faces, new opportunities, some pretty stellar content expansion, and growing our team.

So we look forward to this New Years’ Eve more than many. Auld Lang Syne will be sung with some real meaning this year’s end.

Thank you for reading, for your support, and for attending our events.

With love from all of us at RecruitingDaily, have a safe and happy New Year, and we’ll see you in 2021.

Millennial Candidates Want a Diverse Workplace

Millennials are the future and in some cases, the overwhelming present majority of the workforce. In fact, research shows that millennials are the largest generation ever in the US labor force. In reality, they are no longer the “approaching generation”; they currently make up a significant amount of job candidates.

So, when trying to attract top talent among the younger generation, it’s imperative that recruiters understand what matters the most to these candidates. While things like flexible hours, the ability to work remotely, and environmentally-friendly offices are all attractive to millennial workers, diversity among leadership and the overall workforce is an overwhelmingly important aspect in their decision to accept a position.

If candidates are recognizing the need for improved diversity, it’s critical that those looking to attract them to their organization are aware of their interests.

Recruiters should make themselves aware of these changing values, the intention behind them, and how to improve their organization in order to be more effective in their own work.

What does professional diversity mean?

Put plainly, a diverse workplace is one that has hired diverse individuals, meaning a workforce that is comprised of people from different cultural backgrounds, races, genders, sexualities, ideologies, etc. Additionally, and perhaps most importantly, a diverse workplace ensures that those individuals have equal access to participation and growth.

For example, a company with diverse employee backgrounds in one department but not at the executive level is not a truly diverse workplace.

Why do millennials want a diverse workforce?

The millennial generation is the most diverse generation currently in the workforce, with nearly half of the group identifying as belonging to a minority group. The group is more accustomed to having diverse voices around them than any other generation, and have seen the benefits of it first-hand.

Keep in mind that studies on workplace diversity only began in the early 2000s. Meaning, 24 to 35 year-olds grew up learning about the importance of diversity and viewing it as a critical aspect of a healthy organization.

Additionally, the majority of millennials believe that providing an equal opportunity to talented candidates, no matter their gender, race, sexuality, or background, make their company more competitive and innovative. And research backs this up as fact; one study found that diverse companies produce 19% more profit than those that lack diversity.

Research also shows that 83% of millennials feel more empowered and valued when they work at a company with diversity in its personnel. This in turn is more likely to make them feel more invested in their work, stay more productive, and be less inclined to leave the company.

Do business leaders agree?

While it’s true that 7 in 10 executives are white men, some business leaders are recognizing the desired change in diversity standards and the benefits of a more inclusive environment in the ever-expanding workforce. For example, Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook, founded Lean In, an organization that supports increasing gender diversity in executive positions, while also advocating for equal gender pay.

Additionally, Robert F. Smith, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Vista Equity Partners, the most active investor in the enterprise software market, has publicly spoken about the importance of increasing racial diversity in the STEM fields and has financially supported programs that connect diverse talent with large companies.

While there’s still a long way to go in achieving true diversity at the executive level of American businesses, many leaders are recognizing the importance of increased diversity and are advocating for change and paving the way for sustainable changes.

How to improve workplace diversity

There are several adjustments, both short and more long-term, that companies can make to improve their diversity and foster a more innovative and supportive environment.

Honor a variety of religious and cultural holidays. Company holidays don’t just have to be for Christmas and Thanksgiving. Consider recognizing occasions like Juneteenth, Rosh Hashanah, or Eid al-Fitr. Celebrating different holidays can normalize the diversity of your workforce and help honor your organization’s differences.

Listen to your employees. Organizations can learn a lot from their employees, especially from those who are of diverse backgrounds. Their experience within your company can be invaluable information to help understand areas in need of improvement and better direct corporate efforts.

Diversify the C-Suite. While this may not be an easy, overnight task, it’s important that those at the executive level are able to represent their workforce. Encourage your executives to use blind decision-making for executive promotions, and to include task forces of diverse voices in their executive decisions.

Bolster anti-discrimination policies. Strengthening your response to discrimination will help those who are minorities in your workforce feel valued and protected, while also helping foster a more inclusive office.

Millennials are looking to their potential employers to match the shifting social tone toward increased diversity and build workforces of different perspectives.

Therefore, for your organization’s future, and your own recruiting efforts– not to mention the benefit to the community as a whole– it’s crucial that your organization rises to meet the millennial generation’s desire for a more diverse workforce.

7 Tips for Recruiting Top Talent in Upcoming Industries

Recruiting new talent in companies can be quite challenging as sometimes job-seekers ace the interviews but are unable to perform well at the job. Also, the hiring process is quite an expensive affair. Organizations can’t take chances with faulty hiring and cause irreparable damage to business operations.

In order to find the best fit for your company, we’ve outlined 7 surefire tips for recruiters to find the best talent.

Make Your Candidates Feel As Important As Your Customers

First impressions of your company to your candidates are very important. You must be able to make them feel at ease and that you’re eager to get to know them. One way to do that is to treat them like your customers. Here are some points you can follow:

Be punctual: You must be considerate of their time, so make sure to never run late on your interview date, whether it’s during a video conference or even a phone call.

We always stress how the candidate should be mindful of the recruiter’s time as they have a long list of candidates to interview. But it’s equally important for employers to also value the time of the candidate as this leaves a good impression on the interviewee and encourages them to come on board.

You should be easy to contact: After your candidate’s first interview with you, they are bound to have questions or queries. Make sure that you provide them with your contact number that’s always active and working.

Be Active On Social Media

By having an active social media presence, you can share videos and pictures of your company events and other important announcements related to the work that your company does. This helps you attract the attention of potential candidates by giving them a glimpse of what it’s like working in your company.

For example, Instagram is one of the most used social media apps in the world today. Posting company and work-related content will surely help you gain exposure and be able to reach potential candidates that are interested in working for your company.

Offer Flexible Schedules

These days, job seekers are religiously working towards acquiring a work-life balance, so their days aren’t just spent on work. Work-life balance is important for young employees who also want to be able to find time to pursue their interests and indulge in productive activities.

If they are unable to balance either of them, then it will cause them to become exhausted mentally and physically. Burnout can result in underperforming at work, and result in them losing their job.

It’s also important for recruiters to understand that companies that offer flexibility have higher employee productivity and job satisfaction rates. When you present yourself as a firm that allows real work-life balance, potential employees will come knocking at your door.

Improve Your LinkedIn Company Page to Gain More Potential Candidates

LinkedIn is considered a valuable tool in connecting employers to a large pool of talents. For this, you need to have a professional and active presence on LinkedIn so job seekers can learn that you’re hiring. When writing your main message for your company’s profile, it’s important to make sure that it’s not more than 154 characters long. Otherwise, Google’s algorithm won’t show your profile in search results.

With more people using networks like LinkedIn and GlassDoor to build professional circles and search for jobs, recruiters have a higher chance of finding like-minded talents and candidates that appreciate their company’s goals.

For example, your company can leverage its LinkedIn profile to grow its professional network and look for potential candidates that can be a great addition to your team.

Promote A Progressive Work Environment

Candidates pay a lot of attention to the work culture, and this is where a lot of companies often miss out on acquiring some great contenders. Your work environment says a lot about your company, and if someone is put off by their work surrounding, then chances are they won’t return.

Show candidates how working for your company can create immense opportunities for growth as your company thrives on employee recognition. Talk about how important appreciation and rewarding employees is for the success of the company. Be transparent with them about the job’s scope and how they can succeed in their role.

If the candidate needs to develop or polish a set of skills, explain how the organization will train them to perfect those abilities and how they’ll benefit them in the long-run.

Provide Volunteer Work To Serve The Community

While this opportunity is rarely offered by workplaces, it can help you stand out from other recruiters in the market. The members of the present generation look forward to finding jobs that can help them give back to the community. However, many companies have overlooked this critical measure and have not included it in their list of recreational activities.

They don’t only want to carry out their task and call it a day, but to also pull their weight and bring a positive change in the company. Moreover, they keep a keen eye for the element of joy and fulfillment. If a specific job doesn’t fulfill them, there’s a higher likelihood of them quitting that position.

Therefore, various firms can take this in their stride by establishing paid volunteering projects for employees. This makes it a strong magnet to pull worthy job seekers to your business.

Ask Employees To Spread The Word About Job Openings

Any dedicated member of an organization would like devoted and talented people to work in their organization. Managers should discuss their recruiting plans within their teams and urge them to refer to any suitable candidates and spread the message about their hiring opportunities.

Come up with a rewarding strategy for those who bring worthy candidates to fill a position; this will entice more employees to carry out this task. This is a simple and economical approach to recruit suitable talent.

Wrapping up

Conduct thorough research and highlight the purpose of your organization when searching for the specialty your company targets. According to that specialty, make a list of all the capabilities and talents that your company searches for in an ideal candidate.

Keep observing in what areas your company is lacking and find those who have the skills to improve those procedures and bolster the performance of your organization.

Sourcing to learn: How curiosity drives an effective sourcing strategy

I read a great article not too long ago on “learning to source and sourcing to learn.” Which elaborated on how both learning and sourcing are necessary and complementary to one another to create an effective sourcing strategy. This insight got me thinking. As TA professionals, when it comes to sourcing, don’t we all strive to be as effective and efficient as possible?

Of course we do.

That said, while reflecting on my own journey in talent acquisition, I realized without a healthy dose of curiosity, there’s no foundation for a sourcing strategy to take shape.

When I first started my career in talent acquisition, I began in agency recruitment.

Right away, I was given a laptop, a phone, and a list of requisitions that needed to be filled. Through trial and error, I quickly learned what it meant to INVEST time in sourcing to learn first.

To get great results quickly with my sourcing approach, I needed to understand viability, candidate behaviors, talent supply and demand, hiring trends, geographic market analytics, and competitor insights. All so that I could be as calculated and strategic as possible.

I wasn’t nearly as productive trying to wing it or by diving headfirst into active sourcing. In fact, the art of crafting an effective sourcing strategy is built on research and planning. Which is driven by curiosity and savviness.

When it comes to sourcing, we are so much more productive and precise when we first have a solid understanding of both the target talent and the proverbial “lay of the land.”

Be the Candidate, Learn Talent Behaviors

In this new role, my curiosity led me to start researching talent persona behaviors. My ambition was to understand the professional world of a candidate the best I could as if I was in their shoes.

I sought to go beyond the job profile to fully grasp what viability means and how it’s defined in that industry sector and by that particular hiring manager. Here are things I did to help get in a candidate-first mindset:

Asked myself: What are deal breakers? What is highly desired?
Separated the “must-haves” from the “would like to haves.”
Investigated candidates’ common aspirations, challenges, and motivations.
Questioned general pain points or challenges in that role.
Questioned how or where candidates were commonly engaged outside of work and through work. (This includes groups or associations they would likely join and follow.)

When it comes to meeting candidates where they are at, you can see how curiosity serves well in talent acquisition. Anytime I was considering my candidate target pool, I would ask myself these questions and apply the strategy based on my findings and insights.

Know the Competition, Sell your EVP

At the time, I also quickly learned that one of the first things an engaged candidate does is look up an employer, either via Glassdoor or other equivalent sites. to peek at reviews and ratings in order to learn more about the workplace culture. On top of that, they are also cross comparing your represented employer with other competitors to find the best fit.

This meant I needed a solid pitch for the employee value proposition (EVP) I represented. And I needed to craft my positioning and representation in a way that uniquely addressed benefits and pain points with the candidates I approached and connected with.

By offering something very appealing and of value to those who may be more receptive based on their current employer, this approach was a strategic way to increase and boost my overall response and acceptance rates. After all, an EVP is extremely powerful.

Knowing how to pitch and sell an EVP can make all the difference in engaging and retaining viable candidates. I recall that I would also create pros/cons summary lists. Like employer battle cards, so I could be well prepared when engaging with candidates.

I reflected on what the pros were for the EVP I represented. What are admittedly some cons? Considering competitive insights, where does most of the talent target pool currently work?

What are three to five employers I can learn more about? What are their hiring demands and trends like?

Are there geographic differences in brand perception?

What do I know about their layoffs and attrition this year?

Being curious and remaining observant about relevant competitive intelligence (CI) and leveraging this to position your EVP outreach strategy was very effective in getting candidate responses quickly. Plus, you’ll surely impress peers and hiring managers along the way with your CI.

Learn to Source, Source to Learn

Over time, I’ve come to learn the importance of being mindful of innate traits such as curiosity, passion, and ambition. It’s what separates the solid player from the rockstar. How do these drive you as a talent acquisition professional?

I often hear of “have the will, develop the skill” or “be efficient and remain observant.” What great testaments to going back to fundamentals here and reflecting on what drives us, motivates us, and sparks passion in us when we source.

Investing time not only to learn more about sourcing, but to source to learn will pay in dividends as you maximize ROI to quickly and effectively deliver and drive results.