After getting a job offer, everyone who gets hired has to go through some kind of HR recruitment process. Still, most companies give it to the people in charge of hiring, and Human Resources is only in charge of administrative tasks. If it helps your business, then that’s great. But we want you to think about whether or not it’s working. Does it help your business get ahead? Saying “yes” may feel like an automatic response. But, give it some thought. Think about it.

How many bad hires and problems have you had in the past few years? If you can think of a lot but can’t say how many, that means you’ve been through this too often. It means that you are still living in the past. Just a few years ago, reactive recruitment was the norm, and it worked in the end. But work is the keyword in that sentence. Past tense. Reactive hiring is an old way of doing things that just don’t work anymore. We live in a time when technology is always changing and employee expectations are always changing, which has permanently changed the hiring landscape.

As the world changes and grows, so does the recruitment world. Using the same methods and approaches from just 10 years ago is just not good enough. If the job market changes, your HR recruitment process should change, too.

No business, no matter how big or small can do without an HR hiring process. Why? Because your rivals have already started using HR technology. Your company can’t afford to keep losing money because of the people you hire.

What are the different ways to get people to work for you?

Industries, businesses, and people are unique. With this in mind, the way we hire and the HR process for hiring should support the uniqueness of each person. So, there are different ways to find and hire people, and they all work depending on the industry, business, and people involved.

But no hiring process can be successful if it is haphazard and different for each hiring manager. How can you tell if your process for hiring people is working if nothing fits together?

Many people avoid data because they are afraid of it, but it is one of the most important parts of a business. When it comes down to it, it’s simple: you can’t improve something that you don’t measure. Most of the time, what people think at work is the exact opposite of what is going on.

It doesn’t have to take a lot of time or be hard to figure out how well your recruitment is going. No matter how you run your business and how you like to find new employees, putting everything in one place with an ATS gives you more control right away. An ATS can be set up to fit your specific needs, and it can also give you HR metrics that help you make better hiring decisions.

Here is a step-by-step guide that will help you start from scratch with your HR recruitment process

1) Know your job requirements

When they need to fill a position, many people don’t think enough about what the job requires. Most of the time, it’s because they’re short on time or using an old job description template.

This important first step in your HR hiring process will either make or break your hiring.

When you need to hire someone, you need to look at every job description again. Think about how the job has changed and how it is likely to continue to change. Also, have the people in charge and the way the group works changed?

Technology has probably also changed the skills that are needed. If your job description is wrong, you’ll get applications from the wrong kind of people.

2) Choosing the people to hire

There is no doubt about the benefits of hiring people together. It gets rid of bias and gives different points of view on whether a candidate is a good fit and what their strengths and weaknesses are.

The hiring manager, line managers or team members, a recruiter, and often a specialist in the field should all be on the hiring team. This is a great way to find out if the candidate fits in well with the team’s culture, has the right skills, and will improve the way the team works.

In smaller companies, you might not be able to choose a team of people from the same department to do the hiring. In that case, you should include employees who know what the job requires, know the company, and believe in the vision.

3) Put yourself in the shoes of the new employee

Now that you know what the job entails and what kind of person you want to hire, you need to figure out how to find them. The best way to do this is to put yourself in the shoes of your ideal candidate and think about how they might go about looking for a job.

Ask yourself if there are a lot of people with these skills and traits on the market. Entry-level, unskilled, or semi-skilled, and basic support and admin jobs.

Is this a job that only a few people can do well? Both hard skills and soft skills are in short supply around the world.

Does this role call for a certain type of person? Ability to work under a lot of pressure and make decisions that won’t please everyone

Where would someone like this look for new things to do? Social media, searching for jobs online through job boards, and likely a passive candidate.

What will get this person’s attention (and keep it)? Most likely unemployed and looking for more money, a challenge, or a position of power.

4) Let people know you’re looking for workers

This is much easier to do now that you know where to find the best candidates.

If you choose job boards, choose ones that are right for your industry and needs. Use the people you know who have skills and get involved in social media. If you have a careers site, it should match your employer brand and work with your applicant tracking system (ATS).

If the person you want to hire isn’t actively looking for a new job and has short skills, you’ll have to be very creative to find them. It will be a waste of money to post a lot of ads on job boards. You’ll have to look for them on social media and in the industries and companies where they work. You’ll also have to get in touch with them directly. Headhunting is not for the faint of heart, and it needs to be well-planned and done in a skilled and professional way.

5) Refine your application process

Be available and easy to get in touch with. Make sure your application process is simple and fun. In this case, automation saves the day. Set up automated responses that respond to every application and add a chatbot that can answer frequently asked questions. This is great for your company’s reputation and makes applicants feel like they are valued.

Don’t forget that you started the process by asking for applications. You don’t want people who respond to your invitation to be ignored or to have to try too hard to get their information through. If you don’t pay attention to the application process, you’ll miss out on talented people.

6) A short list of candidates

If you follow the steps above, you should be able to quickly come up with a short list of candidates.

Candidates must still be interested in the job when the shortlist is made. If you ignore applicants and candidates for a few weeks and then contact them out of the blue, they probably won’t be interested anymore.

Make a short list of candidates, then do a quick screening interview (by phone or online) and set up dates for interviews. Tell all of the candidates and everyone on the hiring team about all of the dates, times, and details. Tell applicants what to expect from the interview and how much time they should set aside. Remind the people in charge of hiring to put together their interview questions and share them so that everyone is on the same page.

7) Meetings

Make the candidate feel welcome and introduce them to the hiring team, no matter how the interview is done—by video conference, conference call, or in person.

The hiring team should talk as soon as possible after each interview to decide if the candidate moves on to the next round, is turned down, or is given an offer. Always let unsuitable candidates know that their application was turned down. Do this with kindness and ask if you can add them to your pool of talent.

8) References, evaluations, and checks for a job

If a candidate impresses you during an interview, you might want to skip this step, but don’t! People aren’t always what they seem to be, which is sad.

If you want to get the job of your dreams, you might lie about yourself or try to scam your way into a job offer. The risk for your organization goes up with the level of the job and the amount of responsibility it has.

Talk to your past employers and ask if they will write you a good reference. The best way to do this is to give them a quick call to introduce yourself and ask if you can email them with your questions. Most people are happy to do what is asked and give honest references.

Skill tests are important for technical jobs, and psychometric tests are great when you need to find out specifics about a person’s personality.

9) The offer of a job

If you do this step wrong, you might miss out on a great candidate.

The most important thing is for everyone on the hiring team to agree on who the best candidate is and what salary and benefits they should get. If there is any doubt, it needs to be worked out ahead of time. If a candidate wants more money than they can afford, come up with some creative job offers to keep them interested.

Think carefully about who will make the offer, because that person must be able to negotiate with the candidate if they have questions. Even if a candidate seems interested during an interview, that doesn’t mean they’ll take the job. Don’t be too sure of yourself, and always try to have a backup candidate.

10) Onboarding

This is the one that almost nobody remembers during the HR hiring process.

It’s not always as simple as saying, “Yay, they’ve signed and agreed, so we’ll see them next month.” You need to check in with the new employee often and make sure they have all the necessary paperwork before they start. Keeping in touch with the person shows that you’re looking forward to having them join your team. It can also warn you if they lose interest and decide not to start after all.

The best way to do this is to make a “welcome checklist” for new employees. So, nothing will fall through the cracks. Make sure you are there when the new employee starts to welcome them and introduce them to the rest of the team.

The world of HRM recruitment has changed a lot, and it needs to be set up in a certain way to attract the best people. With a clear HR recruitment process, you’ll be able to hire better people and keep your competitors from hiring the best people.

Read More: What You Need to Know About Virtual Recruiting

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