Today’s recruiting trends are radically different than they were just a year ago. The recent Covid-19 pandemic affected several areas of recruitment strategies worldwide. Changes that once happened in years are now taking place in months. Companies and businesses that previously did not hire virtual or remote workers had to shift to this trend almost immediately after the devastating effects of the Coronavirus surfaced.
In addition to that, upskilling programs and internal mobility are also among the latest recruiting trends.
Current Recruiting Trends
The latest recruitment trends offer a mix of conventional and digital hiring methodologies. Let’s delve deeper into some of the most popular and the latest trends in recruiting.
Offering Remote and Flexible Work
For many businesses, allowing their employees to work from home is no longer a choice but a necessity. In fact, companies that let work with remote work enjoy a 25% lower employee turnover than companies with in-house employees only.
However, remote working was gaining popularity even before the virus. Research findings from 2018 indicated that nearly 4.3 million remote workers are in the U.S., making 3.2% of the entire workforce. Between 2005 and 2015, telecommuting increased by 115%.
Findings from a recent survey reveal that 65% of the respondents preferred being full-time remote employees, post-pandemic. At the same time, nearly 31% would opt for a hybrid remote work environment.
The survey also revealed that 27% of workers valued the benefits that come with work from home so much that they don’t even mind a 10% to 20% pay cut. On top of that, almost 81% said they would be more loyal to their company if they had flexible work options.
As more employees are leaning towards work from home jobs, the current recruitment strategies must make room for remote and hybrid employees.
Psychometric Tests
Hiring remote writers is now a norm for thousands of businesses worldwide. Global HR professionals and recruiters now acknowledge the importance of using the best tools for accessing talent from a distance. That explains the rising demand for psychometric tests as a successful recruitment tool.
The scientifically-backed and data-driven psychometric tests save valuable time for zooming in the right candidate. Psychometric assessments offer employers more insights into potential prospects that other recruitment methodologies fail to deliver. Personality tests measure the strengths and weaknesses of applicants and are typically in the form of questionnaires with multiple-choice answers.
Recruiters are leveraging psychometric testing for employing transparent, efficient, and professional recruitment methods.
Skills-Based Hiring
There is a rising focus on the skill-set that a candidate brings to the table. In every sector, employees must have a range of overlapping skills such as virtual collaboration and new media literacy. Apart from strong communication skills, problem-solving, and decision-making, recruiters now look for a mix of skills such as social intelligence, proactive thinking, and systems thinking. Today’s HR professionals have the added responsibility of hiring prospects who have these make-or-break skills.
Virtual Interviews
Employers are already making the shift to an online hiring format to replace the standard hiring procedures. Online interviews do not pose any risks to effective hiring unless recruiters conduct them without preparation. Thus, maintaining crystal-clear communication before and after the interview is critical. Remember to take all steps to troubleshoot connectivity and technical issues before you start a virtual interview.
Talent Pools
The year 2021 is the year of the return of talent pools. A talent pool of external and internal candidates helps organizations and companies hire experienced and credible candidates. Internal hiring is witnessing resurgence because you are hiring someone who is already a part of your team and is aware of your work culture and policies. However, internal recruitment can backfire if you don’t do it the right way. Hence, relying too much on this strategy can also have a few negative outcomes, such as limiting your talent pool or the development of an inflexible culture.
Recruitment Tests/Assignments for Technical Staff
Hiring technical staff is different from hiring admin and HR resources. That’s because recruiters have to focus more on the applicants’ skills than their experience. For instance, if you are hiring a developer, you can test an applicant’s skills through a coding test designed according to his expertise level and experience. Such tests contain programming and real-life work sample tests. Another way to judge your applicant’s skill is to explore their professional portfolios.
Social Media Recruitment
Hiring through your social media accounts can save valuable costs and time. Instead of launching a full-fledge recruitment drive, companies now use social media platforms for accessing, screening, and hiring top talent. Since your competitors are leveraging social media to simplify their hiring procedures, you must design career packages that offer more benefits than your rivals do.
That’s why we are already witnessing more use of attention-grabbing content and popular hashtags, including videos and slogans. We are likely to see more businesses encouraging their employees to build an influential social media presence to lure in new employees. Hence, the trend of creating communities around organizations or a type of ‘fan club’ is increasing, helping more people connect to brands and businesses. Whenever hiring opportunities arise, suitable candidates from these communities can become part of your organization very organically.
Hiring for Diversity
Diverse teams perform better because they are smarter . According to a 2015 McKinsey report, a study comprising 366 public companies disclosed that those in the top quartile for diversity in management were more likely to earn above-average financial returns. When diverse teams work together, the members are able to replace stale ways of thinking and sharpen their focus.
That’s just one of the reasons why recruiting firms and staffing agencies are now aiming to increase diversity for boosting productivity and embracing the latest recruitment trends.
Employer Branding
Who wants to work for a company that doesn’t own its employees? According to CareerArc, nearly 75% of job seekers check a potential employer’s brand before they apply for their jobs. Building your brand and solidifying your online presence is crucial for attracting top talent.
That’s why today’s brands are focusing on sharing content such as employee and customer stories and strive to build a loyal fanbase.
Final Thoughts
There is no doubt that new recruiting trends will continue to change in the future. But moving into 2021, companies and organizations must change or adjust their conventional recruiting trends. Follow the cool recruiting trends we offered in this guide to design flexible and targeted recruitment strategies for attracting emerging, experienced, and top talent in your niche.
