Job seekers today aren’t searching through newspaper classifieds and circling their dream jobs to mail in a resume. The job market we are in is talent-driven, with candidates holding the cards when it comes to their career options.
That means recruiters and employers do not get to pick talent anymore. Talent picks them.
Consequently, companies are left in a brutally competitive marketplace and an arms race to attract top talent.
While this is happening, baby boomers born between 1946 through 1964 are expected to retire within the next five years.
Millennials, or those who have been classified under the term Generation Y, are freelancing away. Generation Z, or those born from 1998 onward, have only just started to enter the workforce.
To combat this talent gap, employers will have to combine experience with a bit of creativity and flexibility to find innovative ways to recruit.
Below are five innovative ways to recruit talent some top companies are already implementing to tip the scales and get more job applicants.
5 Innovative Ways to Recruit Talent
Virtual Reality
When you think about virtual reality (VR), chances are gaming and entertainment come to mind first. But did you know that more and more companies are leveraging VR technology to identify, enable, and retain top candidates?
The best candidates, more often than not, want to build a full picture of a company ahead of applying for a job there.
With VR, you can give your prospective recruits an immersive tour of your dynamic work environment, as well as show them that your company is an exciting and innovative place to work.
Reportedly, using VR technology in businesses not only results in improving candidate experience but also breaks down the barriers of time and space.
Gig Economy
The gig economy has been around for a long time but has evolved immensely in the last few years.
The term “gig” is a slang word that means “a job for a specified period of time.”
In such an economy, temporary and flexible jobs are commonplace and companies tend toward hiring independent contractors and freelancers instead of full-time employees.
The concept has been a burgeoning segment of the workforce that is continuously reshaping the careers of younger generations.
Studies noted that in the United States alone, 35 percent of Americans freelanced in 2018. In just five years, this number grew 7 percent, from 53 million people to 56.7 million. In that same time span, the non-freelance workforce only grew by 2 percent, from 103 million people to 105.3 million.
Most people tend to shift careers multiple times during their working lives, so the gig economy can be viewed as a reflection of this occurring on a large scale.
Recruiters in today’s technology-saturated world need to continuously evaluate whether a full-time employee is the best option or a project-based contractor would be more effective.
Social Media
Social media is a hot platform for professionals from every industry to converge. So it’s also likely that the most qualified, talented, and largest pool of applicants is there.
Thanks to the far reach of social media, smart companies have turned to it as a recruitment tool.
You should be familiar with LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter. When combined, these three platforms alone have more than 535 million users. That’s a lot of potential for your organization.
If you have not done so already, go ahead and maximize social media as part of your recruiting efforts at little to no cost.
Employee Referrals
Employee referrals are rated as one of the most commonly used and best recruitment methods. This is because current employees value their reputation so much that they will only refer individuals they believe would make good employees.
To do this successfully, employers must first figure out how to keep their current talent pool happy.
Employer Review Sites
We can’t just have enough of everything. Like, talent acquisition strategies while working with a tight budget. Fortunately, there are a number of free employer review sites to shake up your recruiting efforts without having to empty your account.
Sites like Glassdoor, Indeed, and Great Place to Work, among others, are the first places potential hires look when assessing whether or not to join your team.
Further, these aren’t just a way for employees to share their thoughts on their workplaces—they are an avenue for employers to amplify the pros of working for the company and how committed they are to bettering it.
So, as a recruiter, you’ll want to check out what former employees say about your organization. If there are certain issues here and there, now is the time to straighten things out.
Expanding your manpower can be a tough nut to crack, especially when the talent pool is shallow. Getting innovative in your search, however, can help you showcase your company’s nonconventional methods and grow your staff with unique employees.
Do you have innovative recruiting strategies of your own? Comment down below!
