Employers, are you struggling to Attract and Retain Candidates in Today’s Challenging Market?

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Employers,are you struggling to Attract and Retain Candidates in Today’s Challenges Market?

Are you struggling to recruit the right staff, or find you are you having trouble attracting the right talent for your organisation?

September marks the end of the summer, and with everyone back to work, recruitment has never been so challenging and Now is the time to invest in your current staff and be open- minded when recruiting.

You can no longer rely on posting adverts online or on job boards: you need to widen your recruitment net, otherwise you won’t fill those important roles. Working with a Recruiter you trust can alleviate this, a trusted recruiter knows the market well.

  • The first thing to do is don’t delay in your recruitment process, it’s all about timing.
  • If you have CVs, start reviewing them asap and make contact with candidates even by telephone call to double- check they are still interested. You can do an initial screening call which will speed up the process.
  • If you have a closing date, do not wait until it has passed to review CVs: by then it could be too late.
  • Remember good candidates will not wait around the old saying, “ the early bird catches the worm” and applies equally in recruitment.
  • Start interviewing ASAP, and ideally at the start of the week. Remember most candidates who are in employment need to hand in 4 weeks’/ one month’s’ notice and if you wait until the middle or the end of the week , this could run into another week.
  • Don’t have candidates hanging on:, make decisions quickly. This reflects on your company and how you work. People like to work with companies that are decisive and don’t delay when making decisions. Your recruitment process reflects this.
  • Review your salary structure and make sure it’s competitive. You will no longer be able to pay below the market rate.
  • Review company benefits to attract candidates. Since the pandemic, this has made a game changer when candidates are moving jobs.
  • You need to not only offer a competitive rate but also additional benefits e.g., pension, health insurance and maybe additional holidays which can be accrued with service, rewarding loyalty:, things like giving candidates their birthday off can be a sweetener.
  • Flexible working or hybrid working is something that’s here to stay. This can be very difficult for companies that can’t offer this due to business demands. If this is the case there could be something else you could offer, even one day working at home or finishing early on a Friday.
  • Make sure when you are interviewing you are aware of candidates who are just using the opportunity to get more money from their current company.
  • This will depend on your interviewing techniques and how you ask the relevant questions of candidates. If you establish this at the start of the interview, it will save you a lot of time.
  • Make offers asap: don’t delay.
  • Check references immediately and even ask candidates if it is ok to ring their referees and get the reference confirmed on paper too.
  • Check when they can start, ideally the sooner the better. This is where it can all go wrong, so keep in touch during their notice period.
  • Send out an offer letter as they will want something in writing before they hand in their notice.
  • They will also want a contract, too. Most candidates prefer this before starting so you may have to adapt your procedures. Just because it’s been this way before, doesn’t mean you can’t change it now.
  • If you want the right candidate, you need to be flexible
  • Timing is everything in recruiting staff so ensure you keep in touch with candidates once they hand in their notice and confirm a start date.
  • Then make sure you are in touch regularly every week until they start. This is when they can change their mind right up until they start
  • You as an employer need to put an effort in to keep in contact during their notice period. They could have had another interview after they accepted your offer and decided to take it.
  • If this happens, you will have wasted anything from 4-12 weeks trying to recruit and then you have to start again, costly and very time consuming.
  • Once they start, make sure they have an induction to the company and are made to feel welcome. This doesn’t cost money but will ensure your candidate settles in well
  • In conclusion, recruiting is very time- consuming and costly, especially in today’s challenging market. Putting an advert online or job board is no longer enough, invest in a good Recruiter you trust who will spend their time focusing on filling your vacancy while you can get on with your business.
  • In today’s market, this is essential

If you need help, please get in touch, and please also check out my testimonials to hear what my clients and candidates say.

Email cm@cathymoranrecruitment.com or call 07751856436

Thanks Cathy