Ways to Improve Your Organization's Recruiting Strategy

Since the beginning of 2015, job openings in the United States have dipped above and below the 5.5 million mark. During this same period, employment has continued to grow at a consistent pace. Along with these trends, the average time to fill an opening has continued to rise. Although people make a lot of assumptions about hiring processes, data shows that when this process is slow, it has more to do with individuals than it does with economic data points.

Understanding What Holds Back Recruiting

There are some situations where skills and/or technology gaps create hiring obstacles. However, what's most often needed by recruiters is a robust talent acquisition strategy. More specifically, this type of strategy needs to combine both efficiency and detail.

Implementing an effective talent acquisition strategy starts with being proactive. Posting a job description and then waiting won't attract the types of candidates that a hiring manager needs. Instead, recruiters should use technology to their advantage. Given that 55% of organizations say that attracting the right candidates in the first place is the number one problem leading to a slow hiring process, it's clear that finding the right uses of technology is a stumbling block.

Plenty of companies have firsthand experience getting overwhelmed by the large number of candidates available to them and being unable to effectively sort through that pool. Given the significant cost associated with making the wrong hire, it's understandable why organizations aren't willing to rush when they feel uncertain.

5 Recruiting Strategy Improvements

The first way for organizations to improve their recruiting strategy by becoming more active is to embrace mobile platforms. Mobile is a tool that can be used from initial recruiting all the way through communicating with potential candidates about interviews. The second improvement is to embrace candidate-driven recruiting. This involves focusing more of the recruiting process around selling company culture than simply assessing candidates.

Another improvement is to explore ways to make room for great talent whenever it becomes available instead of being limited to only filling positions that suddenly open up. Although making this kind of shift can be very challenging, it's something that can pay off in a significant way.

Organizations should also think about the possibility of hiring remote. Keep in mind that this doesn't have to be an all or nothing decision. Hiring remote for certain positions can be a great solution for roles that have historically been especially challenging to fill. Finally, don't shun boomerang rehires. Given that this category is projected to account for 15% of all hires at large organizations, it's a topic worth examining in detail.

By understanding the factors that hold back recruiting and then taking steps to improve their current recruiting strategy, companies can streamline how long it takes to find the best talent.