Recruitment is no longer just posting and praying for the results. Instead, you need to know your target group inside out, utilize data and modern tech effectively, and create positive candidate experiences. Also, you must recruit proactively and grow your talent community.
“Yesterday’s recruiters’ role is different today and tomorrow. Armed with efficient technological tools and know-how, they’re more empowered to better engage with candidates and colleagues.
“Strategic recruiters search outside and inside their companies to fill vacancies. They know that untapped talents abound internally. They’re proactively developing internal mobility and career paths, too.”
We all know the saying: “What gets measured, gets managed.” If you don’t have data about your target group and recruitment processes, you’re pretty much just guessing what could be done differently. Alternatively, if you fall into the worst-case scenario, you are not even guessing, you are doing nothing.
By gathering data, analyzing it, and making changes based on the results, you can improve your actions. For example, by measuring candidate experience in real-time, you can quickly see what your candidates appreciate in your recruitment process and what they do not really like. Maybe your processes take too long or the candidates feel like they don’t get feedback? The data will show you the reality.
How to find the data? Your ATS or HR system must have data you can view and analyze. If not, it’s about time to change the system to something more modern (checkpoint 5). Also, you can conduct surveys of your own. You can interview your candidates and your employees or make tests for a certain target group. For example, you can explore what your target group thinks of your career site or job ads.
Welcome back, readers! If you’ve landed on this article, you’re likely interested in transitioning into a strategic recruiting role. As someone who has worked in recruiting for many years, I’m excited to share my tips for becoming a truly strategic recruiter.
Whether you’re just starting out or looking to take your recruiting skills to the next level, this comprehensive guide will walk you through the must-have strategic skills, mindsets, and best practices for recruitment success. Let’s get to it!
What is a Strategic Recruiter?
First, what exactly is a strategic recruiter?
In essence, strategic recruiters take a big-picture, data-driven approach to hiring top talent. While a regular recruiter focuses on filling open roles, a strategic recruiter analyzes workforce needs and recruitment strategies to build a strong talent pipeline.
Some key qualities of strategic recruiters include
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Thinking long-term about overall workforce planning
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Collaborating with stakeholders across the organization
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Leveraging data and analytics to inform recruitment
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Crafting competitive and compelling employer brands
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Advising on best practices for talent acquisition
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Developing relationships with passive candidates
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Aligning recruitment with wider business objectives
Step 1: Collect and Analyze Recruitment Data
My first tip is to become obsessed with recruitment data. The best strategic recruiters constantly analyze metrics to inform better hiring.
Important recruitment data to gather includes:
- Time to fill roles
- Cost per hire
- Source of candidates
- Screening and assessment results
- Offer acceptance rates
- New hire retention rates
- Recruitment funnel drop-off
Look for trends and patterns in this data to pinpoint what’s working well and what needs improvement. You can use Google Sheets orExcel to compile and visualize the data.
Pro Tip: Calculate your quality of hire by relating hiring data to performance metrics. This shows which sources and methods bring in top performers.
Step 2: Define Your Employee Value Proposition
Next, get crystal clear on your organization’s employee value proposition (EVP) – what makes it compelling to work there?
Research and analyze factors like:
- Company mission and values
- Culture and work environment
- Leadership style
- Development opportunities
- Compensation and benefits
- Workplace flexibility
Define your EVP by highlighting the key advantages of working for your company. This boosts your ability to communicate your brand and attract candidates.
Step 3: Map the Candidate Journey
Think like a user and map out the end-to-end candidate experience with your recruiting process.
Look at key touchpoints like:
- Initial job awareness
- Application
- Screening
- Interviews
- Assessments
- Offer and negotiation
- Onboarding
Identify pain points and look for ways to optimize each step. Improving the journey leads to better engagement and acceptance rates.
Pro Tip: Survey new hires on their recruitment experience and use feedback to improve.
Step 4: Build Your Talent Pool
Savvy strategic recruiters are always nurturing their talent pool – both active and passive candidates.
Great ways to build your pool include:
- Maintaining candidate relationships in your ATS
- Engaging followers on LinkedIn
- Attending industry events and conferences
- Running referral campaigns internally
- Promoting your EVP on career sites
This gives you a ready talent pipeline to tap into for future roles.
Step 5: Choose the Right Recruitment Tech
The right recruitment tech stack is a game-changer. Strategic recruiters leverage technology like:
- Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) to organize candidates
- CRM software to manage relationships
- Video interviewing tools to streamline screening
- Assessment platforms to validate skills
- Hiring analytics to extract data and insights
Take time to evaluate and choose solutions that suit your needs rather than going with the first option that pops up.
Pro Tip: Look for integrations between your tech tools for a seamless experience.
Adopting a Strategic Mindset
Beyond the tactical steps, developing a truly strategic mindset is key for long-term success as a recruiter. Here are some principles to embrace:
Think long-term – Have a vision for building an “employment brand” and talent pipeline over years, not just filling immediate needs.
Collaborate across the business – Work with stakeholders in other departments to incorporate their needs into workforce planning.
Be proactive, not reactive – Get ahead of hiring demands before they become urgent issues. Anticipate and prepare.
Leverage data – Let data, not hunches, guide your recruitment strategy. Experiment and pivot as needed.
Know your metrics – Define and track metrics like quality of hire to maximize recruitment ROI.
Stay ahead of trends – Keep up with developments affecting hiring, like new tech and regulations. Apply lessons.
By keeping these principles in mind, you’ll be able to provide maximum strategic value as a recruiter.
Helpful Tips for Recruitment Success
Here are some final helpful tips to set you up for success:
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Master candidate relationship management – Nurture talent pools by personalizing your outreach and building connections.
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Keep refining processes – Continuously look for minor tweaks to improve efficiencies in hiring workflows.
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Monitor the competition – Pay attention to what peer companies are offering talent in terms of rewards and experiences.
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Brush up on sourcing techniques – Learn tips like Boolean search strings to uncover more candidate prospects.
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Practice active listening – When screening and interviewing, listen closely to discover candidate motivations.
With the right strategic approach, mindset, and helpful tips, you’ll be well on your way to recruitment excellence.
Let’s Recap How to Become a Strategic Recruiter
We’ve covered a lot of ground, so let’s do a quick recap on how to become a strategic talent acquisition pro:
- Analyze key recruitment metrics and data
- Craft your employee value proposition
- Map out the end-to-end candidate journey
- Build a robust talent pool and network
- Implement the best recruitment tech stack
- Adopt strategic thinking for the long-term
- Utilize helpful tips for ongoing success
When you apply this comprehensive strategic approach, you’ll see great results in your ability to attract, engage, and hire top talent.
Over time and with practice, you’ll move from simply filling roles to providing huge value through strategic workforce planning and talent optimization.
So get ready to become a data-driven, big picture thinker who has a seat at the leadership table! I hope these tips have gotten you excited about elevating your recruiting skills and career.
Attract the Right Talent
A core part of being a strategic recruiter is to know who it is that you need to target. Thus, you need to build your candidate personas and answer questions like these: What motivates them? What goals do they have? In which channels do they spend time? How are they looking for a job? And so on.
When you know who to target, you will also discover how to attract the right candidates. Create a meaningful Employee Value Proposition (EVP) that resonates. What does EVP mean? It’s simple. It pretty much answers to this question ‘Why would the people we need want to join, do their best work here, and stay?’.
One example of an Employee Value Proposition (EVP):
“From empowering mentorships to customized coaching, PwC provides you with the support you need to help you develop your career. You’ll work with people from diverse backgrounds and industries to solve important problems. Are you ready to grow?” PwC
What would be yours?
Invest in Candidate Experience
We can no longer just close our eyes and trust the candidates will apply no matter what we do. Candidates know to expect more.
How to improve Candidate Experience? The most important thing is communication. Based on the study by Career Arc, 69% of the job seekers believe the response time to candidates awaiting a recruiting decision can be improved the most.
During the recruitment process, let the candidate know how the process is going forward. If the candidate is not hired, offer feedback by phone or email. Could you also reward the candidate somehow? Invite to a Talent Community, send movie tickets, or refer her to your colleague.
Also, the first touchpoints with the company matter. 60% of job seekers report they have quit an application due to its length or complexity. Thus, make sure that candidates do not need to answer too many questions or register for any system. The application process should be as simple as possible.
How to master recruiting | Mads Faurholt-Jorgensen | TEDxWarwick
How do I become a recruiter?
Any professional experience in HR, communications, customer service, or sales can help you to become a recruiter. Skills gained in these areas will assist you in developing networking, relationship-building, and interviewing skills. Start with an HR internship to learn the basics of job posting, interviewing, and employee management.
How can recruiters become more strategic?
Strategic does not mean being innovative. Business executives want speed, quality and diversity.” He shared six low-cost, practical things recruiters can do to become more strategic and to improve the hiring process at their organizations. [SHRM members-only toolkit: Recruiting Internally and Externally] 1. Get Hiring Managers Involved Early
What is strategic recruiting?
Strategic recruiting is the use of skilled selling, employer branding and recruitment-directed marketing in sourcing talent, which allows a company to respond effectively to dynamic market conditions. In 2008, Dr. John Sullivan developed 20 principles of strategic recruiting that remain relevant today.
How do I create a successful recruitment strategy?
Define recruitment channels: Determine which recruitment channels are most effective for reaching your target candidates. This may include job boards, social media, employee referrals, or other channels. Develop candidate personas: Develop candidate personas that represent your ideal candidates, including their motivations and preferences.
