So, you’re hiring? Congratulations! *pops champagne*

Finding the perfect candidate for your open position can be daunting, but the time spent will be well worth it.

In this post, we’ll break the recruitment process down into six steps and explore employee recruitment strategies that will supercharge your efforts to find that dream candidate more efficiently. Good luck – and may the best candidate win!

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What is the recruitment process?

The recruitment process (also known as full life cycle recruiting) is a way of finding, interviewing, hiring, and onboarding the best-qualified talent for a job opening.
The recruitment process steps start with: 

  1. Job and task analysis: The first step is to understand what the job entails and what kind of person would be a good fit. Then a task analysis can identify the skills, knowledge, abilities, and qualifications (SKAQs) required for candidates.
  2. Sourcing and advertising: Once you have a clear understanding of the role, you can start sourcing where to find potential employees and advertising the vacancy.
  3. Screening: Once you have a pool of candidates, you need to ensure they meet the minimum requirements for the role through application screening and background checks.
  4. Selection: The next step is to select the best candidates for the role. This usually involves several rounds of interviews, tests, and assessments.
  5. Offer: Once you’ve selected your candidate, you need to make an offer of employment. This includes an offer letter, phone call, contract, and any necessary documents.
  6. Onboarding: The final step is to onboard the new employee and help them settle into their new role. This includes providing training and support and integration into their new team or department.

By following these 6 steps, HR departments can ensure that they find and hire the best possible candidate for each vacancy during recruiting operations.

Importance of a strong recruitment process

A company’s hiring and recruitment process is one of the most important aspects of its business. A well-designed process can help you find and secure the best employees all within a reasonable hiring process timeline. At the same time, a poorly designed process can waste time and resources – like spending way too much money on paid ads.

When you waste money, your cost per hire is high. ​​Cost per hire is a metric used by HR professionals to measure the cost of filling a vacant position. This metric is useful for assessing the efficiency of the recruitment process and highlighting areas where costs can be reduced. For example, if the cost per hire is high, it may be due to lengthy or excessive screening processes. On the other hand, if the cost per hire is low, it may be due to the effective use of social media or employee referral programs.

While there are many benefits in designing a strong recruitment process, there are three key elements that are essential for any successful system: attracting top talent, streamlining your recruiting funnel and hiring process so costs are low and resources aren’t wasted and maintaining a positive employer brand.

6 steps of the recruitment process explained!

1. Job and task analysis

In this first step of the recruiting process, HR analyzes the job role and identifies who would be the best fit. To start with, review job descriptions for similar positions within the company (or even at other organizations!) to get a refresher on the role and see what changes need to be made.

Next, consult with managers. They’re an essential part of this recruitment process step because they’ll know what someone in this role does on a day-to-day basis, what skills are essential, and how they work with other departments. At this point, you should have a job description with a list of responsibilities and duties, and your ideal candidate, in mind.

Now that you have the basic job description ready, it’s time for the task analysis: looking at each duty or responsibility on the list, breaking them down into smaller skills and actions, and identifying the specific SKAQs needed for it.

For example, if you’re hiring for a customer service representative position, one responsibility would be answering customer questions. To be successful at the tasks required, reps need strong verbal communication skills, problem-solving skills, emotional intelligence, and product knowledge. You may want them to have a degree in communications or business or experience with customer service software.

To fine-tune your work in this recruitment process step, connect with current employees in similar roles to learn their SKAQs. Ask them what’s helped them be successful in their role, or what top three skills they feel a new hire should have.

2. Sourcing and advertising

Where to look online and in-person for leads

The next step of the recruitment process is perhaps the most exciting: choosing the recruitment methods that will help you find the best people!

Today’s HR departments have a plethora of platforms at their disposal: job boards like Glassdoor or Indeed, social media like LinkedIn or Facebook, job fairs, industry events, and even referrals from current or past employees as a form of internal recruitment. The wider you advertise within your target market, the more qualified potentials you’ll find.

What is the process of recruitment when looking for lead locations? Try surveying and reviewing where your company has found its best candidates in the past!

How to set goals when hiring 

Goals are usually the first step on the road to success, and recruiting goals are no different. What does your company hope to achieve through recruiting? Do you want to increase the number of applicants, improve candidate quality, or something else? Once you’ve decided, you can begin to set recruiting KPIs (key performance indicators) to measure your progress.

For example, if your goal is more applicants, your KPI might be receiving 50 qualified applications per open position. By setting and measuring recruiting goals, you can ensure that your recruiting efforts are truly effective!

What to include in the listing to attract qualified leads

In the recruitment process, how you write the job listing is as important as who you advertise to. Follow these tips to catch your best candidates’ attention and have them smashing that apply button.

  • Be clear and concise about what the job entails. Include a detailed description of the role and don’t hold back when listing the responsibilities. This helps weed out any recruitment leads who won’t be a good fit (e.g., if you don’t like to travel, maybe this travel sales consultant role is not for you).
  • Include information about company culture. Explaining your company culture is important to the recruitment process and job seekers – for example, it tells them whether your workplace is fast-paced, corporate, or relaxed, so they can see whether they’ll be a good fit.
  • Include a salary range and benefits package. This will help to attract top talent who are looking for compensation, bonuses, and retirement plans that meet their needs.
  • Try paid ads. Programmatic job advertising is a form of online job advertising that uses automation to place ads on job boards and other websites. It can be used to target specific audiences, for example, people who live in a certain zip code or who have a certain job title.
  • Use cold email campaigns. They can be an effective way to get noticed by top candidates since they can be customized and personalized better than a regular job board listing. Create a cold recruiting email template that can be used for multiple targeted candidates.
  • Outsource your labor. Recruitment process outsourcing is when you let an external provider handle some or all these steps. This could be an individual recruitment consultant, a specialist agency or a large consultancy firm. Potential benefits include improving the quality of hire, speeding up the recruitment process, and reducing costs.
  • Get the right software. Nothing gets in the way more than the wrong HR management tools. If you don’t know where to start, try Lusha, an email finder for recruiters that delivers the contact information (email + phone number) on your candidates as well as enriches their profiles with past job history details. It’s a Google Chrome extension that can be used when prospecting for talent on LinkedIn or inside your Gmail inbox.

3. Screening candidates

In this stage of recruitment, it’s time to filter and review applications as well as do background checks on candidates.

If you’ve been successful at steps 1 and 2, you’ll likely have a very large stack of applications to sift through. That’s a good thing, though – use these tips to make the process easier:

  • Use an applicant tracking system: An applicant tracking system (ATS) is software that helps recruiters to manage job applications. It can be used to filter and search for specific keywords or candidates, and only show you the resumes that meet your criteria.
  • Compare applicants: When reviewing job applications, recruiters should compare applicants who have similar qualifications. Outline what makes you choose one over the other: more job experience, company prestige, more success in a previous role, etc.
  • Check references: Have you ever applied for a job and had a glowing reference lined up, only to have the employer not bother to call them? Don’t neglect this crucial step in the job application process. References can verify the information the applicant provided and talk about the applicant’s character, work ethic, and performance.
  • Beware of hiring biases: Hiring biases are the unconscious judgments and assumptions that we make about people during the hiring and recruitment process. For example, we may assume that a candidate who went to a prestigious school is more qualified than one who didn’t. These biases can lead us to overlook great talent who may be a perfect fit for the job.

Do a thorough background check

You’ve probably gone through one or more background checks – where an individual’s criminal history, employment history, and other relevant personal information are examined to determine whether they’re suitable for a particular job. Background checks are important during the recruitment process because they ensure only the most qualified and trustworthy candidates are hired, and those who may pose a risk to the company or to their co-workers – or even bring future lawsuits due to criminal history – are left behind.

You’ll likely also want to take the time to do a social media background check. This can give insights into an applicant’s character and professionalism; for example, if an applicant has a history of making racist or sexist comments online or posts pictures of partying, this could be indicative of poor judgment and a lack of respect for others. Overall, social media background checks are valuable is this stage of the recruitment process.

4. Interview and select candidates

Next, it’s time for the interview. This is one of the most important tools in an HR professional’s box, as it’s a chance to learn about the candidate on a personal level and ask specific questions about their qualifications for the job. The interviewer can also gauge the candidate’s interest in the position and their authenticity.

Here are some interviewing tips to select the right candidate:

  • Get to know your candidates through social media: One of the best ways to get to know your top candidates is to research them online before the interview and interact with them on social media. You’ll get insights into their personality and interests.
  • Make the interview process fun: Interviews don’t have to be all business. Try creative recruitment by incorporating some games or activities into the process to see how candidates react under pressure. These could include icebreakers or memory games to test their industry knowledge.
  • Use virtual interviews: Virtual recruitment can take many forms, but often includes conducting interviews via videoconferencing platforms like Zoom. The benefits to virtual recruitment include increased flexibility and convenience; it offers a more level playing field for candidates, as there is no need to travel.

5. Make the offer

As you near the end of the hiring and recruitment process, it’s important to move quickly and make an attractive offer. The best way to do this is to send a letter or make a phone call as soon as you know you want to make an offer. This way, the candidate knows they’re your top choice and that you’re serious about hiring them.

In the letter or phone call, be sure to outline the offer in detail, including salary, benefits, and start date. If possible, include a signing bonus or other incentive to seal the deal. By making a quick and generous offer, you’ll increase your chances of recruiting the best candidates for your open positions.

6. Onboarding

The recruitment process doesn’t end when an offer is accepted; to ensure new hires are set up for success, you’ll want to have a well-defined onboarding process. In addition to orienting new employees to their new roles and responsibilities, good onboarding introduces them to company culture and values.

Here are a few tips for onboarding new hires:

  • Define expectations upfront. Make sure new hires understand what’s expected of them in their role. This will help prevent any confusion or misunderstandings down the road.
  • Set up regular check-ins. Check-in with new hires often over their first few weeks. Ask how they’re settling into their role and answer any questions that come up.
  • Provide resources and support. Give new hires access to the resources and support they need to be successful in their role. This might include things like training materials, reference documents, or contact info for key people they need to know.
  • Help them get acclimated. New hires may feel a bit overwhelmed at first, so it’s important to help them acclimate to their new surroundings. This might involve giving them a tour of the office, introducing them to other team members, or showing them where they can find things they need (e.g., the coffee machine).
  • Encourage feedback. New hires may have fresh perspectives that can be valuable for your team or organization, so encourage them to share their thoughts and ideas openly in this stage of recruitment.

Need an example of the recruitment process in action? Here you go!

A fast-growing accounting firm needs to fill 20 vacancies for entry-level accountant roles. They’ve had problems in the past with junior accountants not having enough real-life experience, and they’re looking to increase the number of applications with at least 5 years of experience.

They post a job ad and receive 300 applications. They narrow it down to the top 100 candidates and invite them to an assessment center. Fifty of the candidates are selected to move on to the next stage: an interview with the hiring manager.

From there, 10 candidates are chosen for a second interview with the firm’s partners. After that, 5 candidates are asked to come in for a final interview and presentation.

The last stage of the process is a job offer extended to the candidate who has the most years of experience. During onboarding, they’ll be enrolled in a mentorship program to help them transition into their new accounting role and grow their skillset.

Key takeaways

  • What is the 6-step recruitment and hiring process? Job and task analysis, sourcing and advertising, screening, selection, making an offer and onboarding.
  • Why is a strong recruitment process important? By taking a systematic approach to recruitment and hiring, organizations can select the best candidates for their needs while minimizing wasted money and resources.
  • What are the best-recruiting tools? When choosing the best recruiting tool for your company, it’s important to consider your needs and objectives. Recruiters will always need to find contact information. Lusha is a Google Chrome extension and HR management tool that locates accurate and up-to-date email addresses and phone numbers on your candidates. It’ll help you deliver email campaigns and offers to the right talent quickly and prevent slowing down your outreach and wasting resources.

Sign up for Lusha today – it has a free version and lets you get started within minutes.

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    This information should not be mistaken for legal advice. Please ensure that you are prospecting and selling in compliance with all applicable laws.

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