Posted by Shivali Anand
November 16, 2021 | 4-minute read (787 words)
Recruiting the ideal candidate can be difficult, especially in today's fast-paced and highly competitive world. Hiring is a time-consuming process that necessitates a significant amount of time, effort and resources.
A poor choice can cost your business a lot of money. As per the US Department of Labor, the average cost of a bad hiring choice is at least 30% of an employee's first-year estimated wages. This implies that to recruit someone at a $50,000 yearly salary; the cost of hiring may be as high as $15,000.
According to Undercover Recruiter, the cost of a terrible hire is $240,000, which includes the costs of the hiring process, pay and retention. Aside from financial costs, bad recruiting decisions consume time and hinder the organization's ability to do business. Nevertheless, some firms continue to make hiring decisions haphazardly with seemingly no defined recruiting strategy in place.
Consider these eight frequent hiring mistakes so you can adjust your hiring strategy to be more efficient.
Mistake #1 – Lack of an organized hiring process
Hiring new employees necessitates forethought; you must know what you require in the long run. Recruits should know what their companies want to accomplish in the next five years and how they will help achieve this.
A structured recruiting process is required for strategic hiring; otherwise, you risk employing ill-fitting people, which can lower productivity and increase attrition rates.
Remember that selecting the proper people takes time. However, to fill positions quickly, recruiters sometimes prioritize speed above quality, skipping important steps in the hiring process.
Mistake #2 – Failing to attract the right people
It's vital to choose the best prospects from a big pool of applications. According to PageUp research, just 4% of candidates across all industries were hired in 2020, implying that only 4 individuals were considered for every 100 applications submitted.
One of the most common causes for this is incomplete or ambiguous job descriptions, that lead to an excessive number of applications. A job description should be brief and to-the-point, explaining the position's function, duties and required credentials.
Mistake #3 – Avoiding candidate feedback
Recruiters frequently fail to obtain feedback from candidates, particularly those who have been rejected. This is due mainly to their belief that input from rejected candidates would always be negative or pointless.
Candidates may provide recommendations on how to enhance the methods you use. Feedback from all candidates, rejected or not, may improve the recruiting process.
Mistake #4 – Using the same job boards repeatedly
Another common blunder recruiters make is advertising job vacancies on the same employment boards repeatedly. The issue is that similar employment sites tend to attract the same type of candidates. Furthermore, not all job posting sites are relevant for all job openings.
Mistake #5 – Lengthening or shortening the hiring process beyond what is required
The capacity of a recruiter to fill vacancies swiftly and professionally can be impeded by a lengthy hiring procedure. Top applicants frequently lose interest and take offers from organizations that move more quickly. In fact, 60% of recruiters claim that they frequently lose applicants before they can even arrange an interview.
On the other hand, rushing through the recruiting process may be detrimental to a firm, particularly if they must repeatedly fill the same position.
Mistake #6 – Failing to engage candidates
While technology, like recruiting software, makes the hiring process more manageable, complete reliance on it is unwise. For some candidates, this makes the process feel impersonal.
In addition, job searchers may become frustrated due to a lack of response from potential employers during the job search. Surprisingly, after applying for an advertised position, 77% of job seekers receive no response from the employer after applying for an advertised position.
Mistake #7 – Not taking culture into account
It's great to have a candidate with all the necessary experience and abilities, but it's also crucial to consider personality and cultural fit. All team members need to be able to collaborate to achieve a common goal.
Mistake #8 – Making hiring decisions based on emotion
Most people operate on emotions and, as a result, make decisions that are biased. Biased judgments are made all the time in businesses, and they aren't just confined to recruiting.
Hiring decisions based on facts guarantee that judgments are made based on pure data, allowing companies to match candidates' job profiles with the skillsets necessary for a particular role and, as a result, identify the best-suited candidates.
Final words
The Great Resignation has brought on an unprecedented labor crunch. Many workers are reconsidering pay or conditions they may have accepted without question before the pandemic. Employees may receive a greater return on investment by acknowledging this shift while also taking a strategic approach in the form of full-cycle recruiting.
