Employers are increasingly losing out on ideal candidates due to lengthy recruitment timelines and indecision.

Unemployment is at its lowest in the UK since 1975[1] therefore candidates have more bargaining power than before.  Brexit has created uncertainty.  Candidates are less willing to move roles and the international candidate pool has shrunk.

The most impressive candidates have plenty of interviews and have high expectations of the offers they want to receive.  What can you as an employer do to help ensure you fill your role fast?

Before speaking to a recruitment agency:

Create a great offer

Decide on a realistic offer for your industry and role.  Check out our salary benchmarking https://nhbrecruitment.co.uk/candidates tool to ensure you remain competitive.

Focus on what the candidate will want from you.  How will you persuade them that you are the perfect organisation for them?  Employers too often think about what they want from a candidate rather than what the candidate wants.  Put yourself in their shoes, how will your offer stand out from others?  What benefits can you include that will help them choose you?

Prepare to articulate what your employer brand values are.  Similarly, you need to create a winning answer to “Why should I come and work for you?”

Get buy-in from all stakeholders

If you find someone you like, be ready to move fast with an offer.  Confirm all your stakeholders in advance because pulling in a busy executive at the last minute can cause delays.

Ask stakeholders in advance what they are looking for so that you can include this from the start.

Block out diary time in all stakeholders’ diaries

Skilled candidates are not short of options and are often interviewing with several companies at the same time.  If they receive a great offer elsewhere they won’t wait for weeks for your next interview round.

Highlighting your timelines and interview slots upfront will increase the likelihood that candidates will wait. As a result, they can block time in their own diaries to ensure they are available when you are.

Choose the right recruitment agency

Select an agency who will be honest with you and tell it like it is.

If your candidate expectations don’t match your offer a good agency will highlight this.  They can then guide you in making amendments.  There’s no point in wasting your time pushing on with interviews when your ideal attributes aren’t available at that price.

After instructing a recruitment agency:

Stick to the timelines and process you’ve agreed

Remember, you are interviewing a future employee.  Create trust and loyalty upfront by delivering what you promise.  Delays will see your ideal candidate lose faith and go elsewhere.

Be realistic

If you’ve done your preparation right, interviewees will arrive with the skillsets and attributes that best match your needs.  Don’t start to doubt it.  Many organisations start to focus on an unrealistic wish list and ignore reality.

Any decent recruitment agency won’t waste your time with candidates that are the wrong fit for your organisation.  Prioritise key attributes and keep those in mind when deciding.

Be decisive

Great initial groundwork and preparation will allow you to decide without delay.  Remember your priority list and don’t hesitate to make an offer if you’ve found someone that you like.

We will deliver great candidates fast enough to allow you to close the deal within six weeks.  We will also tell you if your offer isn’t attractive for your target candidate.

Get in touch for more information on hiring effectively.