Whether you’re recruiting for 1,000 positions or just for 10, there are some great lessons to be learned from the world of high-volume hiring that can be applied to a search for any number of candidates.
High-volume hiring — defined as needing 1,000 hires or receiving more than 1,000 applications per position — is most common in the restaurant, retail, delivery and manufacturing industries. However, even recruiters focused on knowledge-worker roles are facing unique challenges. Recruiters of all kinds can feel the frustration of too few candidates or losing out on the best candidates.
But is it a labor shortage, or a speed shortage? According to a recent report from human capital management research and advisory firm Aptitude Research, which surveyed 420 recruiting employees at the talent acquisition director level and above, if the application process takes longer than 30 minutes, nearly half the job candidates give up, leaving recruiters without enough candidates to fill the jobs.
You can improve the drop-off rate by first understanding why candidates are not moving forward. Think of your application as a “shopping cart” and take steps to guide candidates toward a successful “check-out.”
Optimize application process for mobile. Evaluate the mobile-friendliness of your current hiring process, and if it can’t be done on a mobile phone, consider making some changes. Are you asking candidates to sit at a computer or laptop to fill out the application? A mobile-friendly strategy meets candidates where they are, whether that’s on the bus on their way to work, on the couch after completing a late-night shift, or in their car during their lunch break.
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Follow up quickly. When asked about the most annoying part of the application process, many jobseekers complain about a lack of follow-up. Remember that most applicants are applying for multiple jobs so if they’re left wondering if they’ll make it to the next step, there’s a good chance they’ll quickly move on to something else.
Make texting primary tool. Make SMS your primary form of communication While email adds a sense of formality to the interview process, SMS is quickly becoming a more effective way to interact with candidates.
The average office worker gets over 100 emails a day with about a 20% open rate. Text messages, however, have an average open rate of 98%. Recruiters should strive for at least five candidate touchpoints within the first 48 hours in order to keep candidates fully engaged. It’s unlikely that you’ll be able to fully capture candidates’ attention unless you are communicating with them via text.
Enable video interviewing. One-way video interviews (or on-demand video interviews) can be a great way to shorten the time-to-hire. You set pre-selected interview questions, then candidates record their responses and send them back for the hiring team to review. This reduces the amount of travel involved with face-to-face interviews and, in the race to secure candidates, saves you a lot of time.
Speed defines success. The pressure recruiters face to secure talent is enormous and will most likely stay that way for a long time to come. Simplify, optimize and automate as much of the candidate journey as possible to decrease time-to-hire and you’ll speed your company toward success.
MORE: Retaining talent in a tight labor market
