Hiring practices encompass the necessary steps that a company must take in order to find qualified talent for their open roles. For years, this process began with a candidate showing up to the corporate offices, résumé in hand, to meet with the hiring manager. Inevitably they'd be seated in a line with other candidates, nervously waiting their turn to impress the manager…

How things have changed.

Today, hiring practices mean that both sides are interviewing each other, with candidates putting an equal emphasis on their experience (CX) through the interview process as companies put on their hiring practices. With 70%+ workforce shortages across many key industries, how can companies make sure they're not missing out on great talent?

The obvious answer is to go digital. Companies need to understand that today’s job seekers have grown up in a different world—one where technology has taken over their lives and careers.

While these shortages put many highly talented candidates in the driver's seat, it also presents a great opportunity for companies. Companies can now create incredible hiring processes and practices that set themselves apart from other incumbents fighting for the same talent. From experiences and virtual tours of the office, to remote-friendly onboarding processes, companies can show that they are ready for the future of work.

Numerous "best" hiring practices exist, and they all fit into a general process. Here are some suggestions to improve recruitment processes:

1.) Find your company's true identity -  define what makes you unique, and use this to attract the right talent. This is something that's often overlooked in the generic hiring processes of traditional companies.
2.) Outline a process that blows away your competitors. At a recent CFA Society Meeting, Karen Karniol-Tambour the CIO of Bridgewater Associates (one of the world's largest hedge funds), said that they're one of the best in the business for many reasons- but one of the biggest is that their hiring processes are different (and far more difficult) than any of their competitors.
3.) Start within your company. The easiest hires to make are those that come from your existing network - which makes sense because if you already have a great team, they probably know people like themselves.
4.) Sourcing and Recruitment. Leverage different recruiting tactics such as local job boards and communities that support diverse hires, using Ai sourcing tools, and hiring people from social media sites like LinkedIn that are in-network and already users or fans of your business and products.
5.) Don't forget about the candidate's experience (CX). This includes making sure that your interview process is fair and transparent, inclusive - supporting diverse candidates so that every applicant feels valued throughout the process.
6.) Finally, use tools like interview scheduling software, and interview intelligence software. Really any platform that will help you automate as many tasks that don't require human connection so that you can focus on creating a great CX.

These are a few ways to improve the recruitment and selection process. It's important to understand that the hiring process is a two-way street - both sides should feel as if they are being valued and respected, so you can build meaningful relationships with potential employees and create a successful team.

By using these best practices, companies can be sure that they're not missing out on great talent!

Hiring Process Steps

Let's be honest with ourselves for just a moment. For most companies, interviewing is boring. The same questions are being asked in the same ways, and potentially in a similar order -  which can make the process tedious for both parties.

The good news is that there are plenty of ways to take the monotony out of interviewing and create a better experience for all involved. Here's an outline of some steps you can take to revamp your hiring process:

1.) Craft clear, inclusive, and concise job postings: Ensure that job posts are clearly outlining the job requirement, and realistic expectations, providing a comprehensive understanding of the role. Candidates should be able to grasp the position's essence and the necessary skills and experience required.
2.) Utilize relevant keywords: SEO is one of the most powerful things to help job seekers and companies connect. Incorporate keywords that are relevant to the job in your open roles. This practice can optimize the visibility of your job openings in search results when candidates are actively seeking suitable positions on Google, Indeed, and other sites.
3.) Diversify your promotion channels: In addition to utilizing traditional job boards, expand your reach by leveraging social media platforms, your organization's website, and networking opportunities to promote your job openings effectively. This goes to points #2 & 3 from the last section, get creative about finding people. If it requires a bit of work, most people won't do it, and that means the possibility of a fresh talent pool.
4.) Simplify the application process: Streamline the hiring process to ensure candidates find it straightforward and even simple. Platforms like Pillar's interview intelligence software can help you decrease the time-to-hire and costs.
5.) Promptly respond to inquiries: The faster you can get back to a candidate the better. If you're not fast, someone else may be - and losing talent when it's at a premium, is never a good idea.
6.) Establish an onboarding process: Build a strong onboarding process that lets new employees move at their own pace.

If you incorporate these hiring process steps into your hiring process checklist, you'll be better equipped to recruit great talent, quickly and effectively. Remember that the recruitment process is an ongoing effort. Set goals and measure performance regularly to stay on top of changes in the market so you can adjust your strategy as needed. By keeping up with emerging technologies, trends, and best practices, you

Standard Hiring Process

If you look at recruitment best practices, most industry experts would say that a standard hiring process example includes 7 steps in the recruitment process. These steps would be:

1.) Job Analysis: A job analysis helps you determine what tasks the role needs to accomplish, and which skill set is necessary for success in the position. This can be done with either a focus group or a survey of current or past employees who have held similar roles.
2.) Writing Job Descriptions: Once the job analysis is complete, you can craft a job description that outlines the qualifications, responsibilities, and expectations of the position.
3.) Collecting Applications: This step is usually handled by using online job boards or posting ads in newspapers and relevant publications.
4.) Screening Candidates: Here you would review applications for any red flags and conduct interviews either over the phone or in person.
5.) Administering Tests: Depending on the position, you may want to administer tests such as aptitude tests, personality assessments, etc. This would help narrow down your pool of applicants even further.
6.) Conducting Reference Checks: Before making a decision on who to hire, it’s important to conduct background checks and contact references from previous employers.
7.) Making a Hiring Decision: Once you have all the necessary information, it’s time for your team to make an informed decision on which candidate is the best fit for the position.

You can use these steps to shape your hiring process examples and create a hiring process checklist to follow. These steps define your overall recruitment and selection process and can help ensure you're finding the perfect candidate for each position as efficiently as possible. Pillar's Ai powered interview intelligence platform I'll help you unlock candidate insights and showcase their biggest strength and weaknesses throughout the recruitment and selection process steps you choose.

Importance of the Hiring Process

A great hiring process example will help lay the foundation for building a successful and cohesive team. An effective hiring process not only facilitates the sourcing, identification, and qualification of the best candidates but also plays a vital role in improving employee retention. The importance of the hiring process cannot be understated when considering what identified and engaged your best candidates.

How to improve the hiring process. Once you've done all of the things that we discussed above:

1.) Do thorough research on each candidate. Having a clear and complete overall of who you're about to meet with generates things to talk about, pointed questions, feedback loops, and more.
2.) Invest heavily in onboarding and training. Setting up a strong team means investing in the right tools to help them get up to speed quickly. Look for online courses, tutorials, mentorship opportunities, and other resources that can provide a solid foundation on which new employees can build their knowledge.
3.) Keep open lines of communication between teams. Siloed teams can cut communication and slow the progress of the entire organization.
4.) Encourage cross-functional collaboration and feedback so that everyone is aware of what's going on.
5.) Diversify your recruiting techniques. You want to find the best candidates, not just the ones who are easy to find.
6.) Reach out to local universities and technical schools, and use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.
7.) Work with local organizations like Indy Women in Tech, or the Orr Fellowship to identify new talent close to home.

These are all ways that you can improve the hiring process. Doing these steps properly will ensure that you find the best candidates and build a strong team.

How to Improve Recruitment Processes

Improving your recruitment process is not hard- and the easiest way to start is by taking a look at what's not working to figure out what you must change in order to find the right candidates. Here are some tips to help you get started - How to improve the recruitment processes for candidates:

1.) Get clear on what type of candidate you’re looking for: What skills, qualifications, and experiences do they need to have in order to thrive in the role you place them into?
2.) Make sure your job descriptions are up to date and accurately reflect the expectations of the position, are inclusive, and use clear language.
3.) Use a variety of recruitment methods to cast a wide net and attract the most qualified candidates.
4.) Streamline your application process, making it easy for applicants to submit their resumes and complete task-based assessments or self-recorded video interviews.
5.) Utilize automated applicant tracking systems (ATS), integrated with video interview platforms, and onboarding tools to keep customers engages and unlock insights on each candidate.
6.) Utilize social media platforms to share job postings and company wins that will attract new talent.

Overall, having a good recruitment process in place will help you attract and retain the best talent. By taking the time to improve your recruitment processes, you can ensure that you are always hiring the right people for the job and building a strong team.

Using an AI-powered review intelligence platform like ours will give you access to data-driven insights into each candidate and help you make better hiring decisions. Book your demo of Pillar to see how we've helped our customers lower employee turnover by 50% in the last 12 months.