6 New Talent Sourcing Tips You Need

6 New Talent Sourcing Tips You NeedBefore the Internet and social media dominated nearly every facet of life, hiring was fairly simple youd hang a sign in the front window of your business that read HELP WANTED in big bold letters. Then perhaps youd post a short description of the job you were hiring for in your local newspaper. A day or two later, youd be flooded with resumes.The hiring game has changed drastically though, and now it requires recruiters and hiring managers to become more proactive than ever before. Instead of blasting a job description out into the ether and waiting for an influx of responses, those in charge of talent acquisition need to dialogue with potential new employees. You need to focus on branding your business so that when its time to add to your team, people know why they should want to work for your company. Your businesss Internet presence is also an essential part of your hiring success. Now your company needs an authentic and engaging voice both on an d offline. So how should you go about recruiting in an era thats more unique and complex than ever before? Here are some tips1. Social media savvy counts in 2016We all know that social media is a fun way to stay connected with friends. Its a great strategy for building business connections, too. But beyond that, its probably one of your most powerful hiring assets. The2015 Recruiter Nation Survey found that 92 percent of recruiters are now relying on social media to find their next key hire. The study also revealed that 87 percent use LinkedIn, 55 percent use Facebook, and 47 percent use Twitter. These professionals arent shying away from newer platforms either, so they also turn to Vimeo, Tumblr, and Periscope to see what potential hires are up to. As an added bonus, those who use social media to recruit found a 49 percent improvement in candidate quality.If you want to join these individuals in using social media to recruit but are unsure where to departure, begin by simply using it as a conversation tool. If you sign up for Twitter and immediately start spamming everyone you follow with messages about your companys job openings, dont be surprised when you end up on a lot of block lists.If you only use Twitter to send outjob openings, dont be surprised when youreblockedClick To TweetPeople join Twitter to discover interesting and relevant information, leid to get harassed by those hoping to hire them. Be aware of this and choose your messaging carefully. To effectively recruit via social media, focus on finding key talent and then having a low-pressure dialogue with them. Once you establish real relationships, you can begin to recruit more effectively.You should also make it a point to become part of a larger community on social media. One-on-one relationships are great, but when you belong to something larger than yourself and your business, youre able to leverage your relationships more effectively. Twitter chats are an effective way to do this. Take some time and research Twitter chats that pertain to your industry. Nearly every field has at least a few that would be worth your time. Not only will you get to illustrate your expertise and build your database of connections, but you might also learn something highly valuable during these conversations. When people see you as someone who wants to share information and learn from others, theyre much more open to chatting with you.Facebook groups are another powerful way to use social media to recruit. Are there industry-specific groups that you can join? What about more generalized networking groups in your city? Use these forums as a way to connect with people you might not have met otherwise, both online or in person.2. Dont discount the power of job search sitesPlaces like Indeed, Monster, Craigslist, and Simply Hired can put you in touch with qualified candidates who are looking for new opportunities, so dont shy away from them when your business is ready to hire. Its important to p ut plans in place so that you can streamline the process when resumes and cover letters start coming in. This is especially important, as you will likely get dozens of resumes that simply arent applicable to what youre looking for. Youll need to quickly sort through these to find the individuals who truly are qualified. However, how you treat applicants matters today, regardless of whether theyre an appropriate fit. Letting applications sit for months without at least acknowledging them can do serious damage to your brand. CareerBuilders Candidate Behavior Study found that only 29 percent of applicants got an explanation when they didnt receive a job offer after bewerbungsinterviewing. This group also said that only 14 percent of companies have been responsive to them. While you might not think that failing to let applicants know when youve selected your final hire is important, you can set your company apart from the rest of the pack. At least send a courtesy e-mail to those who we re not selected letting them know so that they may move on in their job search process. You never know when you might want to extend an offer to someone in the future, so keeping a positive relationship is essential.3. Check the health of your companys websiteNearly every day theres an article written about the importance of company culture. People dont just want to clock in, collect a paycheck, and go home anymore. They want to work somewhere their time matters. Ideally theyll enjoy heading into the office each day and feel as if theyre a part of a team. For recruiters and hiring managers, this means that there needs to be a focus on telling your businesss story. Instead of hammering home which jobs are open, spend more time telling why your company is a wonderful place to work, and where your businesss values lie. Your companys website is an effective (and often underrated) way to do this.Instead of hammering home open jobs, use your website to share the company culture and values Click To TweetWhen you see your businesss website as a PR tool, youll be able to take full advantage of it. Interested applicants can visit your site anytime day or night, even when youre not there to take a phone call and answer their questions. By visiting the site, they can also find out mountains of information about your business, including what projects youre working on, what kinds of people work there, and what values are most important to the brand. However, if your businesss site is bland, outdated, or non-functioning, this PR tool fails to do its job.If youre ready to up your hiring efforts, start by taking an analytical look at your companys site. Does the content really express what your brand is all about? Is it written in a personal and engaging tone? Do you highlight employees and current projects? Do you showcase past accolades in a tasteful way? Most importantly, do you post current job openings and make it easy for individuals to submit their application? Creating an easy portal that requires only one or two steps for an individual to submit their materials is essential. From there, you should funnel all the resumes you receive into a place thats easy to go back to later should you decide that youd like to contact these applicants again when new positions become available.4. Tap your employees resourcesIf youve built a dependable team of employees who help power your business, it only makes sense to use these individuals when youre on the hunt for new talent. Employee referral programs are an effective way to find and keep your next great hire. In fact,one study shows that businesses with active employee referral rates have average retention rates of 46 percent. Dont be afraid to ask your current team members if theyve got former co-workers, friends, or other connections who might be interested in joining your organization. Instead of blindly leafing through resume after resume, working through referrals allows you to go into the interview pr ocess knowing more about the individual, and with the assurance that an employee you already know and trust believes they might be a good fit.One way to make employee referral programs more effective is to incentivize your team members. Offer a bonus if you hire their referral and this individual stays on with your company for a certain amount of time. A key point to the success of an employee referral program never pressure your current staff to participate or else youll end up getting flooded with resumes from candidates who are a poor fit, just so your employees can say they tried. Let it be an optional thing so you truly are getting the best of the best.5. Break out of your comfort zoneMany professionals inadvertently end up ansturmning in small circles, having the same conversations with the same people without fully realizing it. This can become dangerous when youre looking to hire, as your network is much more limited. You may end up extending offers to the same type of perso n over and over, or eventually youll run out of new talent to choose from.To prevent this from happening, make it a point to shake up your normal routine. Going to the same networking events every week is fine, but if you want to see different results with your recruiting, venture decidedly out of your comfort zone. Join organizations you wouldnt normally think to become a part of, and when you go to events force yourself to talk to people you wouldnt normally chat up. If youve never talked to a software developer before, seek out a professional who does just that. This is an easy way to ensure that youre not inadvertently homogenizing your workplace. Additionally, you never know who your new connections might know, which can become highly beneficial when its time to hire.6. Dont pigeonhole your current employeesSometimes well-meaning managers get shortsighted. Perhaps you hired someone as an assistant to the assistant when they were 22, and now theyre 30 and its hard for you to ful ly fathom how much professional development theyve accomplished in those years. Dont forget that promoting internally can be a powerful tool when used properly. To do this, you need to look at your current staff members with an open mind. Dont allow yourself to pigeonhole them based on who they were when you hired them years ago.Dont allow yourself to pigeonhole employees based on who they were when you hired them years agoClick To TweetWhen youre ready to expand your team, take a close look at who youve already got on-staff. Could any of these individuals be promoted to fill the open role? Just because someone is currently holding one position, doesnt mean that this is the only way in which they can serve your business. Take a look at skills, past experience, and your employees passions to see if you might be able to find a way to use their talents in a different way than before. Not only is promoting from within a good morale boost for both the individual and the rest of the team, but it also cuts down on transition time since theres no need to get this person up to speed on company policies and protocol.When it comes to finding your next great hire in 2016, its all about taking a proactive approach and building real relationships with professionals. You want to go after both active and passive candidates in order to increase your chances of finding someone who fits the role perfectly.However, beyond that, you want to engage in meaningful conversations with these individuals in order to build lasting connections. This way, even if the person isnt right for that particular job opening, you can keep the door open for opportunities down the road.What do you think?How are you finding the best new talent?