Getting to Yes: Why That Open Position Might Not Be So Easy to Fill (Part 2)
This is Part 2 of our series on finding qualified candidates to fill open positions at your organization. Be sure to check out Part 1, Why That Open Position May Not Be So Easy to Fill.
Hiring is never easy, even when the economy is sputtering and employees value stability and security. A recent Towers Watson Global Workforce Study of 32,000 employees worldwide found that job security is the second most important reason employees join a company, even though employers didn’t see that as a key driver of recruitment.
Many companies still believe that if the hiring manager likes the candidate and makes an offer the candidate will jump at it. The reality, says Hitendra Belani, Vice President of Global Recruiting Operations at Sysazzle, is that, “Candidates often have multiple interviews and offers at the same time. They’re looking for the best home for themselves and will take into consideration a variety of factors when deciding to take a job.”
Those factors, according to Belani, include:
• Salary and benefits
• Location of the company and its growth prospects
• The ability to use and learn cutting edge technologies
Today, hiring managers need to sell the company and not just dangle a job offer in front of a candidate. Everything the company does during the recruiting process needs to set the tone for what a candidate should expect, starting with the job description. Reinvent it! Use it to talk about the company and its values, what working there is really like, and what the growth potential is.
Focus on the future, not just the present position. Then bring it all home during the interview cycle.
“The interview cycle often is very long, and many times broken. Decisions are not made in due time,” Belani says. The Wall Street Journal recently reported that US employers are taking 25 days on average to fill vacant positions, according to the Dice-DFH Vacancy Duration Measure.
Created by University of Chicago economist Steven Davis, the Dice index also found that companies with 5,000 or more workers took over 58 days to fill vacancies. (The index defines working days as Monday through Saturday.)
Exciting, dynamic environments, cool technology, progressive and engaged management, and a speedy interview cycle are ideals that can be reached and are increasingly expected, Belani says. If you want outstanding candidates, your company needs to be outstanding when recruiting. That will make the hiring process better, and bring more qualified and committed employees.
