Recruitment: One Goal, a Million Paths to Get There

Recruitment has and will always be a buzzword in HR, but it's also been surrounded with controversy. What controversy, you may ask? Well, throughout our newsfeeds, email subscriptions, and other morning coffee reads, it's always safe to say that we'll see some article on the "5 Best Recruitment Practices" or "Recruiting the Right Way," etc. Clearly, there's controversy as everyone thinks they've struck gold with their latest-and-greatest recruitment breakthrough. People will always talk, and we will always listen…until we tune out due to a lack of statistical or at least "meaningful" evidence. Trust me, we're skeptics too when we read recruitment hot topics, but I think we've hit the recruitment jackpot when we observe the company named Zappos, an Amazon-owned retail business, and their recruitment model. I mean seriously, the jackpot is not proverbial in this sense; HR could be saving their companies a lot of money by infusing their organizations with new recruitment zen.

Recruitment Starts with Employee Engagement

According to Zappos, recruitment starts with employee engagement and appreciation. Zappos seemingly puts their employees first, often offering incentives and creating an environment where an employee feels appreciated and excited to work. They focus organically to create this sense of trust and dedication to the company and the brand. With a loyal workforce, Zappos allows potential new hires to chat with current employees, yielding tremendous amounts of applicants after hearing workplace praises from current employees. For years, Zappos has been listed as one of the "Best Companies to Work For," hands down due to the environment they've created by putting people first. In turn, they've ramped up their social presence and have taken to these mediums to turn up the volume of their happy community to 11 for the world to see. And what do you know, people are responding to it.

Recruitment Works Inside Out

This is the kind of environment we should all try to simulate. By focusing internally, you're ultimately assisting your external perception. In turn, recruitment sort of works itself out. Posting on job boards and using recruitment services are great; don't think we're anti-traditional hiring practice. However, the difference between the major and minor leagues of recruitment is your companies' work environment. Would your employees speak highly of your workplace? Could you rely on them to attract applicants? Do you have a strong, lasting relationship with your workforce? If you’re unsure or answer no to any of these questions, maybe it's time to reevaluate your recruitment strategies, starting internally.

Source: Talent Culture

5 Tips to Improving Diversity in the Workforce

Whether we want to believe it or not, we desire change in our workforce. We hire, fire, and strategize to change and shift our workforces into the ultimate dream teams. However, when we refer to the word "change," people seem to seize up or go wide-eyed, maybe a deep shiver runs the length of their spine. Most of us, some way or another, have learned the notion that change is bad and takes seemingly inconceivable measures to adapt to it. In HR, our job is to stir the pot, create change, but we do this in a positive way. Especially recently, OFCCP is asking us to bring diversity to our workforces, hire minorities, and seek out underutilized workforce professionals to recruit locally. Not only do we strive to keep OFCCP off our backs, but we have the responsibility to fluidly mesh the generationally different employees with one another. The list goes on and on but we're constantly striving to change and shift to improve our organization. However, that's more easily said than done, so what are some tips to improve these processes?

• Be flexible. Especially when dealing with diversity (e.g., people with disabilities), advertising flexibility as a company is key. Whether flexibility means telecommuting or providing appropriate accommodations, this aspect can attract top talent and ensure you're meeting your hiring goals.
• Find commonalities. Bridging the gap between generations is never easy. In every human conflict, the key to bridging the difference and mending the relationship is to focus on the similarities the individuals share. With commonalities, we find solutions catered to both parties.
• Embrace technology. As technology is changing, you need employees that either know the trade or can quickly catch on. People like veterans will be your best friends. They have dealt with some of the most advanced technology available, so they are both pretty well equipped and quick learners.
• Get social. If you're having trouble finding targeted candidates, maybe you need to reevaluate your tactics. Are you utilizing your social media to its potential?

The majority of candidates are job searching on devices such as their phones, so are your sites mobile-friendly? Also, what does your recruiting branding look like on social media? Are your application forms accessible by screen readers?

These are just a few tips to help bring about the change and diversity you're trying to implement into your organizations. With more and more regulations either springing up or tightening, recruitment will need to continue improving and evolving. Change is something we all need but ask yourself, are you causing the change in your organization that you want or need to see? If not, maybe your recruitment strategy can add these tips or they can help you jump-start your research into new, diverse recruitment tactics.