You have made the decision to hire! Congratulations, this is the beginning of an important process and one best taken with a well qualified recruitment partner who can guide and advise you from start to finish.
Working in partnership and keeping communication channels open with recruiters and candidates throughout is really going to improve your success rates. To optimise success when working with your recruitment partner, these are the steps we recommend.
A Great Job Description is Key
A recruitment agency can do an amazing job of explaining and promoting your job and organisation to prospective employees, however, candidates want to see the care, approach, language, and emphasis the company and team have put into describing and relaying the requirements and opportunities. Applications are undoubtedly better calibre and a better fit when a really well-written and appealing job description is provided.
An effective job description serves several critical functions: It provides candidates with a clear vision of their day-to-day responsibilities and the expectations of the role. It outlines the necessary skills and qualifications, ensuring candidates can assess their own fit and readiness for the position. Furthermore, it communicates the company’s priorities, culture and values, helping candidates determine if they can see themselves thriving within the team.
By sharing a comprehensive job brief early in the interview process, employers facilitate a more informed dialogue with potential employees. It helps in setting a foundation for accountability and engagement from the moment the new hire steps into the role.
Creating an up-to-date and enticing profile and job description template is worth investing the time in. But ensure you personalise the role each time you hire and make the points of difference shine through.
The Briefing
So you know your recruiter well and they know you, so much of the background is already covered. But don’t forget companies, teams, roles, work and working directives evolve constantly so it's likely some information will need to be revised and improved upon. Talking to your recruitment consultant to brief the job is hugely beneficial and will save time in the interview process for each candidate. It can be hard to explain potential nuance in writing, which invariably every job has. Much of this extra information can be imparted before a candidate commits to the application, therefore saving a lot of time upfront and avoiding misunderstandings.
It’s likely your recruitment consultant will want to know why you are hiring, successes and pitfalls that you have faced in other recent recruitment campaigns, do you have sign-off with HR and Finance, can you provide employee policies, working directives, formal training and development opportunities and benefits packages up front? Providing these will minimise hitches and surprises along the way. Having up-to-date and best-practice employee policies will always maximise your chance of hiring the best employees. These are sometimes considered as secondary but it is surprising how often company-wide policies affect latter-stage decision-making for applicants. In practice, they are high on the list of requirements for more and more job applicants.
Interview Process
How tricky is your position to fill? Can you aim for five candidates at first interview and three at second interview? If so, then that’s an ideal scenario. But be flexible if you are in a candidate short market, as so many hirers in specialist markets are. You may need to interview just one candidate and be brave in making an offer to them if you think they are spot on. Chances are your competitors will think the same and whoever acts quickest will be successful in securing that candidate. Or commit more time by increasing the long list if you are considering variable scenarios for the same hire. If you have laid the groundwork on the profile you seek then having the confidence to be flexible at interview stage could be a wise choice.
It’s likely the best candidates will be in high demand elsewhere, so you need to keep them happy and engaged during the process and avoid lengthy delays.
Feedback
If you are in an industry with a tight-knit community as we are, it is essential the candidates have a good recruitment experience. They will be telling colleagues and friends about their experience with you, so make sure your employee brand is kept positive! Keep applicants informed, manage timings, be considerate about onerous interview processes and demanding tasks, and give constructive feedback. It could be the best company PR you ever do!
Making an offer
Using a recruitment consultant will be invaluable at the negotiation stage – it’s often a difficult process and an intermediary will ensure both parties feel they have been heard, have an ally in the process and are both happy with the outcome. Your consultant’s experience with the negotiation process will undoubtedly reduce the risk of losing your preferred candidate.
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