We have already discussed the most important recruitment skills and how to find the best candidates for a job in previous parts of our Recruitment Tips series. After almost a decade in the business and thousands of interviews, it’s safe to say we also know what candidates like and dislike, and we’re also familiar with the latest trends of the market. One thing that can make your search significantly easier is making sure your company is attractive to the target workforce. People actually apply to your open positions for better reasons than money. But making this happen is easier said than done. As mediators between firms and applicants, we regularly come across honest concerns and wishes of job seekers, and we collected the most common ones in this article. Let’s jump right in!

1. Create a nice job posting

Whether you decide to publicly post one of your openings or try to look for potential professionals in your network, the representation of the opportunity is key. Postings and representative colleagues speak for your company, convey its key values and evoke an idea of your team in the heads of the people you come in contact with. We always advise our clients to take their time and study the position thoroughly before looking for people to fill it.

A good description of the job answers questions before they are even asked. Make sure to include the relevant skills, with special attention to soft skills that are relevant. Tell people how many hours of work you expect, where they have to be to fulfill those requirements, and what kind of experience you want them to have. Make sure to say how one can apply, how to pick up contact, and what documents (CV, resumé, cover letter…) you wish to obtain. Including the compensation package in the posting is a controversial topic. We recommend examining your resources and negotiating with the candidate, but salaries of entry-level positions and non-negotiable wages might be worth including. The most important is to create a posting that resembles the ones you like to see: down to the point, lifelike but still unique.

2. Allow remote workforce

The pandemic affected the market in many ways, people were forced to work from home and develop new skills to navigate through the unexpected challenges and difficulties. Many firms took the opportunity and redesigned their systems to allow remote working, and provided their colleagues with the necessary tools and freedom. As everything is slowly getting back to normal in parallel with the number of vaccinated people, offices also open their doors once again. However, many studies showed that employees are unwilling to return, and would rather quit their jobs than go back to their old desks 5 days a week. We see remote opportunities and hybrid settings as the way forward. As people are now familiar with the advantages and disadvantages of working from home, they are able to decide what is best for them, and how they can achieve the best results with minimal drawbacks. As many companies successfully adapted to being fully remote, it will be really difficult to convince anyone that it’s just not possible. Instead of focusing on directing the team to your office, try to develop methods that allow employees to make their own decisions in the working space. You’ll definitely be rewarded with a more motivated and focused team.

3. Have a competitive benefits package

Aside from remote opportunities, you can lure great talent with things they will not be able to get elsewhere. Whatever your field of expertise is, you can always offer some extra benefits for your employees. There are countless options to choose from: health coverage, sport benefits and in-office perks like free cafeteria are still in, but the new environment created a need for more personal solutions. Counseling and mental wellness stipends are heavily sought after, as well as a couple of extra day-offs for mental health reasons. We recommend keeping up with the changes and updating your benefits based on the newly surfacing needs of your employees.

4. Use employer branding

As work is taking up a great percentage of our lives, people usually want to work for companies they are happy to be associated with. This is exceptionally true in industries where personal beliefs and duties are more closely connected. Building your brand is essential to be attractive for job seekers. You will be identified and judged based on each and every element of your online presence, including social media posts, website appearance, and even interviews you were involved in. We recommend you pay special attention to every detail as a leader and employ competent talent to care for your company’s communication. Your brand also states the values your firm stands for and communicates them to the world. Diversity, environmental consciousness, and gender equality are all hot topics today, and taking a stand might make your company more favorable for many. However, your strategy’s focus should be showing your values to the world, not showing them values they like but you don’t associate with. Make sure to describe what’s important to you in a clear and concise manner, so people can understand what you’re all about. A nicely built brand always sells, the more people describe your company positively, the more certain you will receive fitting candidates.

5. Don’t forget transparency and clear communication

Lengthy and shady hiring practices tend to scare away even the most motivated applicants. We recommend you give great thought to how much time you really need to evaluate one’s application, how many rounds of interviews are absolutely necessary, and who you really want to give a chance to. Hiring character and training skills is one of our best practices. Healthy company culture is something no money can buy, so we advise our clients to consider soft skills just as important as hard skills. It’s also worth keeping regular contact with all of your applicants and candidates, it helps to create a more approachable image of your company in their eyes. Honest feedback is also greatly appreciated so that nobody’s time is wasted in the process. Telling your candidates that you will not be going forward with them may be hard, but it’s still better than keeping them in the dark. Learn to provide constructive criticism for all your applicants, and they will see your company as fair and knowledgeable. Moreover, a great candidate experience makes future colleagues more engaged and enthusiastic, so either way, you profited from the process too.

If you do all the steps above right, we guarantee you will remain in a great position in your market in the eyes of potential candidates. If you need further help or information on the matter, or you’d like to spare yourself the stress of all the above and work with a recruitment agency that helps you with everything, contact us anytime. We wish you all the best on your journey!