Are You Wasting Your Time With These Old Recruiting Methods?

Advancements in technology have given job seekers more power than ever in the labor market. Considering this, employers can’t just bury their head in the sand and keep using their same old recruitment methods. They must adapt or risk losing top talent to the competition.

Recruiting methods become outdated when they become highly inefficient. For instance, you could cold email potential candidates when you have a job opportunity but is that approach isn’t very effective given that we’re used to seeing all kinds of opportunities in our Inboxes, many of which aren’t relevant to our current career objectives.

Below is a list of outdated recruiting methods and newer, more effective alternatives.

A hard-skills ‘obsession’

When looking at candidates, many recruiters lock in on applicants with the best-fit hard skills. Often, these recruiters are afraid of ‘getting it wrong’ and simply want the ability to defend their decision by saying, “Well, they looked good on paper!”

However, research has shown that focusing mostly on skills doesn’t translate to favorable odds for a ‘good hire’. Instead, research indicates that focusing on character first and abilities second is a much more successful approach to recruitment.

Cold emailing

For years, one of the most effective hiring tactics was to send emails to prospective applicants and then wait for a reply. This technique may have worked back in the early days of the internet. However, with the current job market favoring the professional and everyone’s Inboxes overflowing, this approach isn’t as effective.

As opposed to spraying out countless emails and praying for results, you should put more focus on referrals – both from staff members and trusted professionals in your network. These connections can get in touch with talent in their networks and connect them to your various job opportunities.

Standard interview questions

Everyone knows the standard interview questions and there are countless websites dedicated to providing job seekers with the ‘right answers’ to questions like, “What is your greatest weakness?”

Instead of asking the standard questions and finding out how well candidates can memorize an answer, you should be asking open-ended behavioral questions designed to get the information you need out of applicants. For instance, if you’re looking to assess conflict resolution abilities, you should ask candidates how they would handle a conflict between co-worker over a creative decision.

The interview as a one-way street

Some hiring managers treat the interview as a one-way street, expecting each candidate to come in and make a convincing case. However, lording over your applicants can leave them with a very bad impression of your company, one they might share with others.

You should be treating interviews as a two-way street so candidate who don’t end up getting hired walk out wanting to apply again and speak favorably about your organization.

At Career Concepts, we assist our clients with their recruitment process, so they can focus on their core business activities. Please contact us today to find out how we can help your company.