Recruitment
ATTRACT EMPLOYEES 51
Recruitment
MATT ROCK
yourself, where possible, to the head of department / instructor of the relevant course or programme, explain what you need and ask for recommendations. By pro-actively engaging in this way you may build a relationship that will ensure a steady stream of talent to your business.
Employment agencies are an obvious route to finding the employees you need. If your budget permits, employment agencies can take care of the preliminary weeding of applicants for you and just send you those that clearly match your job and person specification. In terms of workload, the cost of using an agency may far outweigh doing it all yourself. Put the word out on the street( word of mouth). Basic, I know, but if you’ re not in a rush to recruit, spreading the word through other business contacts, friends and colleagues, telling them exactly what you are looking for, can reap results.
Be real about your qualification criteria. If you need to ask for qualifications, make sure they are relevant to the job i. e. don’ t ask for proficiency in excel if no-one in the company actually uses it.
Make lifestyle part of your recruitment offer. Recent survey’ s in the UK have revealed that people are concerned about their quality of life. You can make your offer more attractive by offering flexibility of hours or working from home options.
Create an employee incentive package. People are encouraged by knowing there is scope to earn more for good performance and / or good ideas- it will give prospective employees something to look forward to.
Offer prospective employees career progression. Most people are not looking for a job that they will do for the next twenty years. If you don’ t have scope in your business to offer clear progression, consider enticing candidates with the opportunity to learn new skills, perhaps some travel, and more money after a certain amount of time in the job.
By bearing these simple guidance points in mind, you can be sure that you have prepared the best possible advert to compete for talented staff.
In the next issue we will discuss the interview process and how to get it right.
SPRING ISSUE 2006 engage