Attracting the right Candidate

This section looks at the process of persuading the right people to apply for jobs, from assessing what the right person might look like to making the job attractive to them. The following issues are covered:

Job analysis
Whether to recruit internally or externally
Sources of recruitment
Employer branding
The promotion of the organisation's employment package
The job pack

Job analysis
Before determining who to attract and select, it is essential that the organisation has a clear idea about what the job requires and the attributes of the person who will best meet these requirements. Traditionally, job or role descriptions and person specifications have been devised to enable the organisation to do this.

Job or role descriptions detail information about the job purpose, its position within the organisation and the work tasks and outputs. A person specification tends to set out in more detail what sort of skills, attributes, experience and qualifications are needed for an individual to meet the requirements of the job and how the organisation will assess the individual during the recruitment and selection process to determine whether they meet these requirements.

The process of job analysis is a good opportunity to have a thorough review of a job. The tendency is to look at the old job description and person specification and to re-issue them or at the most make marginal changes. This can be a missed opportunity. In particular, where an authority is engaged in a process of modernisation and is rethinking the way services are delivered, roles might need to change and/or different skills and experience might be required.

Organisations should also consider on what basis the post should be filled (e.g. full-time or part-time) and indeed, whether it needs filling at all.

Internal or external recruitment?
Internal candidates can be given the opportunity to apply for any vacancy. Potential advantages of internal recruitment are:

Internal appointments may be good for morale, sending a message that there are opportunities for advancement within the organisation;
The organisation will have more information about an internal candidate's capabilities and attitude;
An internal candidate may require less time to adjust to a new job, because they will already know about the organisation;
Appointing an internal candidate can speed up the selection process and reduce the costs involved.

However, there are also circumstances where external recruitment is felt to be necessary, for example:

The necessary skills and expertise may not already exist within the organsation and might require a substantial investment in training to achieve;
Where it is desired to change the culture and values of the organisation, it may only be possible to do this by bringing in someone externally from a different environment;
External applicants bring in the skills and knowledge of other organisations and thereby can encourage a cross-fertilisation of ideas and approaches;
Recruiting internally can restrict the pool of candidates and could be discriminatory if the existing mix does not match that of its catchment area, or if there are internal perceptions about who is able to carry out particular jobs.

Sources of recruitment

Redeployment

In many cases organisations will have a policy of redeployment where employees under notice of redundancy or unable to perform their current job because of health considerations will receive preferential treatment. Redeployment helps to retain the skills and experience of such employees. Considering redeployment is also necessary under the DDA where a disabled employee is unable to continue in his or her current role. However, a disadvantage is that it can slow up the recruitment process if redeployees have priority over all other candidates.

Advertisements
Job advertisements need to:

Attract a good response from suitably qualified people;
Discourage those people who would be unsuitable;
Promote a positive image of the organisation;
Comply with discrimination legislation.

Newspapers and Specialist Press/Magazines

Newspapers and specialist media are frequently used. However they can be expensive and it is therefore important to carefully consider the target audience. For example, national newspapers will probably only be used for managerial, professional or specialist jobs or where the local employment market is particularly buoyant.

Specialist magazines/press can be specialist in terms of specific professions, such as People Management or Computer Weekly or for particular groups of people, such as the ethnic press. Using these types of publication can ensure that the advertisement attracts those from within the profession/particular group.

Jobcentre Plus
The service includes:

Advice on recruitment methods and procedures;
Information about the availability of suitable applicants;
Circulation of the vacancy locally, nationally, or internationally via the Jobcentre Plus website, telephone helpline and interactive touch screens within Jobcentres;
Advice on employing people with disabilities;
Advice on New Deal.

Databases
If the organisation is frequently in need of the same type of skills it may be useful to retain the details of unsuccessful but suitable candidates, should a potentially suitable vacancy arise in the future. This can be a relatively speedy and inexpensive way of identifying suitable candidates as the marketing process has worked and these candidates are already potentially interested in working for the authority.

To comply with the requirements of the Data Protection Act candidates must give their consent to their details being held.

Using external organisations
Recruitment and advertising agencies and consultants

External recruitment agencies may be useful to the organisation if it does not have adequate recruitment resources in-house or if it is looking for a particular type of person.

Agencies and consultants provide the following services:

Advertising agencies design advertisements or campaigns and advise and arrange for adverts to be placed in the appropriate media;
Employment/recruitment agencies supply details of candidates held on their records to the organisation;
Recruitment consultants find candidates by advertising on behalf of the organisation and after assessing the response, provide the organisation with a final shortlist (known as executive selection).

Executive search (headhunters)

With equalities issues at the forefront of many organisations' practices, it is recommended that executive search should follow from open recruitment, unless it is already clear that the skills required are not available and that this has already been tested. Executive search may provide the answer to recruitment difficulties.

Checklist

Does the firm belong to a professional body (Recruitment and Employment Confederation, Management Consultancies Association (MCA), etc.)? If so, request a copy of the professional code of conduct. If not, ask what quality procedures are in place and how client disputes are resolved;
Check whether there will be a dedicated consultant for the post through whom all queries can be answered;
Check the consultant's availability throughout the process;
Find out whether the consultants have experience in working in the sector;
Find out what level of posts they specialise in;
Ask what their level of success is like in filling a post and how they measure that success;
Find out how long it takes on average to fill a vacancy;
Ask what happens if they cannot find a suitable candidate or if the candidate proves unsuitable after they have started work;
Find out about their fees and whether there are any other expenses, e.g. advertising rates, interviewing expenses;
Ask what guarantees you will have that they will not seek to poach your new employee for another company in the future;
Speak to recent past clients (ask them to provide names).

Using the Internet
The Internet can be used during the recruitment and selection process to:

Advertise jobs;

Provide information on the job and its requirements (such as copies of the job description and person specification);
Provide information on the organisation;
Enable applicants to send their CV or complete and send an application form online;
Enable the organisation to respond to the application online.

Use of the Internet to advertise jobs can provide the following advantages:

It provides easy access to information by potential applicants;
It allows a speedy response by applicants and the authority which can help to speed up the whole recruitment process;
It is much cheaper than, for example, placing an advertisement in the national or local press;
It may provide a larger potential recruitment market;
It may help to streamline the recruitment process, for example through less paper, reductions in collating and posting job packs, etc;
It provides the authority with a more up-to-date image;
It provides global coverage, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

However, there may also be disadvantages in using this method, such as:

It involves time, finances and other resources to set up effectively (if using the organisation's own website);
It may be viewed as impersonal by some potential applicants;
It may require changes in staffing roles and responsibilities.

Where can jobs be advertised on the Internet?

Jobs can be advertised on the Internet via:

The organisation's website - which is quick to set up and relatively inexpensive. However potential job applicants will probably only see the jobs advertised if they are already interested in working for the organisation (or are an internal applicant).
A recruitment site - this is a specialist site, usually linked to a recruitment agency. This approach will generally attract more potential job applicants, particularly if the site is well known and focuses on the types of jobs that the organisation wishes to advertise. However this approach can be more expensive.
A media site - this is a website, which is linked to traditional press advertising. The site may carry full details of the advertisement, or just a copy of the advertisement that appeared in the publication. This may be helpful in attracting a wider number of candidates, but is also dependent on the publication's promotion of its website and jobs normally have to be advertised in the publication (with its related costs) before being placed on the website.

It is also possible to link between sites. For example, a job could be advertised on a recruitment site and when the job is selected, it links with the organisation's own website.

Overseas recruitment
The recruitment of workers from other countries can be a useful recruitment source, particularly where there are specific skills shortages. A wider audience of potential workers is established, who may bring new ideas and skills to the organisation.

However, this approach can prove costly and time consuming to implement, because of, for example, the levels of paperwork and administration required and the training and support the overseas worker will require. In addition, it is important to consider how the recruitment and selection process will be undertaken and how the individual will be integrated into the existing team.

Work permits will also need to be obtained for some overseas workers.

Developing the local workforce
For some organisations, a major problem in recruitment is the fact that the local workforce does not have the skills and experience necessary for the types of employment available. This may be a general problem or concentrated in particular groups, for example, women who have been out of the workforce for some time. Initiatives which aim to help these groups find work may also have the effect of helping alleviate an organisation's own recruitment difficulties.

A marketing opportunity - Employer branding
An important part of attracting the best candidates is to promote the organisation as an 'employer of choice'. Employer branding is the concept of applying to the recruitment process the same marketing process used in the management of customers.

Influences on the development of an employer brand come from the organisation itself, its competitors and the community which it serves. An organisation can market its vision, culture and values during the recruitment process to differentiate it from its competitors and attract the right sort of candidates.

Promotion of organisation's employment package
Employer branding is not just a marketing exercise - it is the beginning of an employment relationship.

Highly talented graduates can always find work, even in an economic slowdown. Organisations looking to tap into this talent and recruit excellent people must ensure they have an excellent recruitment process.

Employer branding is the company's image as seen through the eyes of its associates and potential hires.

It is concerned with the need for employees to 'live the brand'. This is centred on engaging employee loyalty to the brand and developing commitment to the organisation.

Your employer brand is the voice and image of the communication you implement to attract and retain employees.

The employer brand is defined by the three stages of the attraction process; reputation (emotional), career offer (rational) and corporate culture (emotional). The key messages are:

Reputation = Successful international company, growth industry popular in an applicant's home country
Career offer = Challenging job, international work, career development opportunities, good pay
Corporate culture = Fair and open, non-hierarchical, inspiring people.

A brand is an announcement- it provides and advance calling card for the customer and also for potential applicants. Employer branding tells the labour market something that might otherwise be hidden, or takes time to find out. Brands attempt to take the choice out of choosing.

'Employer brand power' adds value to the recruitment process and real money to organisations. It gets you noticed and creates an the 'employer of choice'. As the number of possible choices graduates can make is becoming even greater in the marketplace and as globalisation impacts increaingly, employer branding strategies prove critical. Employer brands act as a psychological trigger in candidate's heads. These are very powerful triggers in the job market and can play a key role in candidate's job choice.

Job applicants are attracted by a strong employer brand. This is essentially a sub-set of the general corporate brand, encompassing the organisation's values, systems, policies and behaviours with a view to attracting, motivating and retaining good people. The aim is to convey the personality of the organisation as that external candidates can develop a sense of what it might be like to work there.

It is critical for HR and recruiting staff to develop a compelling story for existing and potential employees about working for the organisation.

Employer branding strategy must be aligned with your product branding, and deliver every aspect of its implementation. Strengthen your employer brand by presenting consistent, positive messages and images about life inside the organisation, whether in job adverts, recruitment presentations, brochures, applicant literature, or interviews- in fact, throughout the recruitment process.

For example, if your employer brand claims that the organisation is a fun and dynamic place to be, your recruitment process must be efficient, slick and involved the kind of interviewers and assessors who present the appropriate image and style of working.

The most believable forms of communication are the adverts, literature and websites but also the behaviours of employees and the accounts of their own work experience. So, the greatest risk for an employer is too invest too much on mass media promotion and too little on ensuring that personal contacts are effective and that they can actually 'deliver on promises'.

In the so-called 'weightless economy' the brand has become the critical source of competitive advantage.

The job pack
The most frequently used method of getting information to potential applicants is via recruitment packs, often sent out with application forms. These packs may include information about:

The job: the job description, a copy of the person specification, the key objectives and targets;
The section or department in which the job is located;
Terms and conditions of employment, including an indication of the salary range, and, if the job is being advertised nationally, what the organisation's policy is on relocation;
The organisation: its size, services it provides, history, values, people, etc;
The location of the organisation and details about the surrounding area.

It is important to consider the 'employer brand' and promotion of organisation's employment package when putting together the job pack.

Producing job packs can be time consuming and expensive. Therefore, the cost of sending this information needs to be balanced with the benefits it accrues. It is therefore important to monitor and review the success of the job pack.

It may also be possible to use other methods of getting information to potential candidates in order for them to determine whether they wish to apply for the job and whether they are suitable. Information placed on the Internet, for example, can provide a more cost-effective approach, although it is important to remember the target audience and that not all potential candidates may have access to the Internet.

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