4 Mistake-Proof Ways to Set Your Hiring Team Up For Success

According to ManpowerGroup’s 2016-2017 Talent Shortage Survey, 40 percent of employers globally are having difficulty filling positions. This is the biggest reported talent shortage since 2007.

Many obstacles outside of a hiring team’s control can impact the recruiting process, so it’s crucial that hiring teams have the best of the best when it comes to resources within their control.

To win the war for talent, you need more than nice perks to offer candidates. Here are four mistake-proof ways to set your hiring team up for success:

1. Update Your Technology

Recruiting technology advances every day. Keeping your hiring team’s tech tools up to date is crucial.

Staying current with technology requires more than simply clicking “yes” on a system update dialogue box every couple of months. Your organization should be checking into new hiring software hitting the market every quarter.

Changing all of your systems every quarter would create more problems than solutions, but by keeping tabs on the market, you can make informed decisions about the tools your team really needs to stand out.

When considering new solutions, make sure hiring team members are involved in testing the software out. This will ensure the tools you adopt are truly helpful to the team.

2. Collaborate Frequently

Your hiring team is full of intelligent experts who know how to review candidates, what questions to ask, and the requirements for every position. Why waste anyone else’s time by bringing them into the hiring process?

The real truth is nobody knows the positions, inner workings of the company, and the organizational culture better than employees themselves. By inviting employees who are familiar with the open position to collaborate with the hiring time, you improve your chances of finding a candidate who really fits.

What’s more, candidates themselves want to interact with current team members throughout the hiring process. In fact, 81 percent of millennials  consider socializing with other employees of the company to be important during the pre-hire process.

Have the hiring team decide during which parts of the hiring process they’d like to bring in some current employees. Panel interviews are a good way to invite employee participation. Just be sure to give employees the chance to ask specific questions of the candidate, and remember to consider seriously any feedback employees offer on potential hires.

Bringing employees into the mix will not only give candidates a better look at the company’s culture, but it will also help your hiring team make better and faster decisions.

3. Be Flexible

In addition to talent shortages, hiring teams must also face competition from other organizations. According to LinkedIn’s Global Recruiting Trends 2017 report, 57 percent of recruiters believe competition for talent is the biggest challenge their teams face.

With so much competition, your hiring team needs more candidate options. This can be done by making the interview process easily accessible to anyone from anywhere. With video interviews, candidates can interview when they want without the hassle and expense of traveling.

Job seekers are no strangers to video interviews. In fact, they like them: A report from Lighthouse  found 49 percent of candidates say video interviews help them stand out.

In addition to providing your hiring team with video interview software, encourage them to expand their reach by looking at top candidates beyond their normal location boundaries. Be sure to let candidates know in your job posts that you’re open to considering people from outside your normal geographic range! Candidates will be more likely to apply if they know they don’t have to travel for the interview.

4. Show Support

Possibly the most important but overlooked tool HR leaders can give their hiring teams is support. In this highly competitive talent market, your hiring team members have a lot of weight on their shoulders.

Support your hiring team by getting employees all across the organization involved in employer branding efforts. Ask employees to record videos about their own personal successes and the things they love about the company. Share employee stories on your career site and social media accounts to draw in quality candidates who align with the company culture.

Josh Tolan is the CEO of video interview solution Spark Hire. Connect with Spark Hire on Facebook  and Twitter.