Finding the right talent for your business is never a straightforward task, particularly in today’s market. Despite the current dip in vacancies across all sectors in the UK, compared to pre-pandemic levels, recruitment activity is still very much prevalent.

According to research presented by Korn Ferry, by 2030, around 85 million roles could go unfilled, simply because there aren’t enough skilled people out there to take them. At the same time, employees are becoming a lot more discerning about where they choose to work.

With candidates now spoilt for choice when looking for their preferred position they can afford to be more particular about things like company culture, benefits, and even employer branding. If you want to attract, engage, and retain the best people for your team, it could be time to update your strategy.

Here are several steps to get you started.

1. Refine Your Employer Brand

Your employer brand is what separates your business from all of the other top competitors vying for the same talent. It’s how you ensure you appeal to your candidates with what your company has to offer, whether that be an excellent salary and benefit options, a sense of meaning, or shared values.

It is well recognised that employer branding is essential to success in today’s hiring landscape. Yet many companies are still struggling to position themselves effectively in front of the right candidates. So, what do you need to do?

Start by defining what makes people actually want to work with you. Ask your team members what convinced them to stick with your business over the years.

• Do you have a fantastic leadership team?
• Various excellent opportunities for development and growth?
• Maybe you show more empathy and support to your team than most companies, reducing the risk of burnout.

Once you know what makes you special, highlight this to your recruiting partner, put it on your website, in job descriptions, and in the content you share across social media.

2. Work on Your Digital Presence

Having a great employer brand is fantastic when you want to attract top talent, but it can’t deliver results unless you’re also positioning your branding in front of the right people. A strong digital presence is essential for any business in today’s landscape.

After all, around 79% of job seekers are using social media in their job search today, and countless candidates also use the web to search for reviews and insights into the company culture of an employer they are considering joining.

Make sure your website offers a behind-the-scenes view of everything you do as a business. Outline your values, mission statement, and vision to capture the interest of your candidates. At the same time, it’s worth ensuring you have a consistent presence on all the social channels your candidates may use. Don’t forget to assess and update your appearance on job review boards too.

3. Utilise Your Existing Employees

Your current staff members aren’t just crucial to the performance of your business when it comes to making sales and generating revenue. They can also help you to attract new talent.

Give your employees a voice that provides potential candidates with insights into your company culture and the experiences you offer. Share stories about your staff member’s achievements on your website and social media pages. Ask team members to share links to your recent job postings when they’re active online, to help expand your reach.

4. Update Your Hiring Strategy with a Focus on Candidate Care

While the priorities of each professional in the current landscape can vary from one candidate to the next, virtually all job seekers are searching for one thing: empathy. They want to see evidence the employer they work with is going to keep their best interests in mind.

Show your candidates you’re going to deliver the right level of support, by implementing strategies for better candidate care into your hiring process. Think about how you can make interviews more efficient and straightforward, by offering video and remote sessions, as well as face-to-face conversations. This could be ideal if you want to hire remote and hybrid employees.

Ask yourself how you can engage your candidates, by gamifying the hiring process with challenges and competition. Think about how you can streamline the selection journey, by using standard operating procedures to narrow down options.

Remember to implement ways of staying consistently connected with your candidates throughout the hiring process too. Regular communication is key to a good candidate experience.

5. Work With A Recruitment Agency

A recruitment partner could be the most powerful tool you have in your arsenal when it comes to attracting new talent. Not only will they help to position your business in front of the right candidates across a multitude of job boards, social media channels, and in-person events, but they can also help you to build a comprehensive talent pipeline. Amongst several other benefits that come with working with a recruiting partner, perhaps one of the most beneficial is that the longer you work with them, the better they can understand the needs of your company, and the better the fit and quality of candidates they can find for your business as a result.

Our team at Clayton Recruitment are dedicated to working with businesses such as yours to consistently seek out talented professionals they can add to their pool, so that they’re never lacking in options when they need a new employee, as well as helping them in reaching out to and engaging passive candidates.

6. Update Your Job Descriptions

Your job descriptions are one of the first things potential candidates will examine when deciding whether they want to work with you. With this in mind, it’s important to ensure you’re conveying the right information. Don’t make the mistake of putting off talented employees by listing too many unnecessary or “preferred” skills.

Highlight only the characteristics and qualities you know you’re going to need most. At the same time, make sure you’re avoiding any language in your descriptions that may show unintentional bias towards a specific audience.

When writing your descriptions, don’t forget to showcase reasons why your candidates might want to work for you. Draw attention to your unique company culture, your salary package, and even the available training opportunities in place. For more tips on how to make a job description that attracts the best talent, check out our detailed guide here.

Improve your Chances of Attracting Talent

Most employers know that talent in the market is valuable but scarce. However, the unfortunate truth according to data from McKinsey is around 82% of people don’t feel they’re prepared to hire and recruit talented staff. Updating your hiring strategy with the steps above should improve your chances of attracting the right talent in today’s competitive landscape.

Remember, if you’re looking for an extra boost, the best strategy may be to start working with a recruitment agency to expand your reach and unlock new opportunities.  Even an informal conversation about market conditions and the movement of talent in your region or practice area should add value to your hiring strategy, and enable you to take the steps you need in line with business goals and objectives.

About Clayton Recruitment

Clayton Recruitment has been partnering with organisations across the country since 1989 and during that time has built up an excellent reputation for trust and reliability.

With specialist divisions covering Commercial, Financial, and Engineering appointments, on a permanent basis.

If you are building your existing team or looking for your next career move, we can help. And, if you are currently employed, you can be assured of complete confidentiality, professionalism, and honesty throughout the process – as standard.

Click here to speak to one of our experienced specialists or call 01772 259121 for more information on how our exceptional recruitment experience can help your career aspirations.