It seems like everyone is in a hurry today in our jobs and at home. For Human Resources (HR) the pressure to speed up the hiring process is almost constant. It’s the result of today’s faster pace but also because the unemployment rate is so low, that finding the right candidate often takes much more time than we’re willing to spend.
How can a hiring team speed up the process of sourcing and interviewing new candidates without skimping on quality?
Understanding Your Time To Hire
From the candidate perspective, any delay in the hiring process could add an element of stress to the job hunt. If Hiring Managers can counteract the effects of a long-winded process, it will help ensure that candidates won’t drop out to take other jobs or just get frustrated and continue their search. All of these things can happen in a tight labor market.
To improve your time to hire you first have to understand what it is. Your applicant tracking system may allow you to cull this data and study it, or you may have to gather the data by hand. Either way, you should look at your time to hire by the type of job you’re trying to fill. For example, finding a programmer is probably easier than a customer service representative. Once you have the numbers, it’s time to figure out what part of the process is working and what workflows could be streamlined.
Do Your Tools Help Or Hinder Recruiting?
Many times we see the technology slowing down the hiring process. Your applicant tracking system (ATS) should allow you to email or text a candidate and record it in their record. They should link to your calendar for ease of scheduling. If they don’t, consider using a mobile scheduling application that allows for automatic appointment booking on your calendar.
Consider what processes are currently automated. Are there activities that you do every day that could be automated and cut the time and effort you’re spending on tedious tasks? Instead of spending time on mundane tasks you should be building better relationships with passive job candidates.
Outsource When You Can
Here’s another idea: Can you outsource background checks? This process is very time-consuming. However, don’t skip this step because it could prevent you from making a bad hire. Instead, consider partnering with a firm that provides this service to free up your time.
Another idea is to speed up the interview process by using a third-party vendor for video conferencing for interviewing. You can even automate or outsource your testing processes to help move things along faster. Having an online third-party develop, administer, and even grade tests for developers, for example, could cut the time you spend interviewing and managing to that process.
Add Sourcing Power
Another way to speed up the time to hire is to partner with a recruiting firm like Blackstone. Staffing agencies have extensive networks, having spent years building a passive candidate pool. It’s one of the ways that a recruiting firm can help a busy hiring manager improve their time to hire without cutting quality out of the picture.