Sometimes it can be harder to find the right candidate for a job than you think it will be. Seasoned HR professionals can also sometimes struggle to fill certain jobs, even when there are plenty of people out there searching for something similar. It is all about being in the right place at the right time, and sometimes there is even a bit of luck needed! So whether you are looking to fill a retail role or want the best web designers to work for your business, here are a few ways to find the best candidates:
Look for specialist websites
Many companies use general job websites to list their vacancies, but these may not work for you as well as a specialist one would. For example, if you looked at recruiter.retailchoice.com you would find you could only list jobs in the retail sector, which attracts a targeted audience straight to the website. If you did something like this, it could save you from getting lots of under-qualified and irrelevant applications which can take some time to filter through.
Use business networking to your advantage
There are many networking events where you could connect with relevant people in the industry and those who are just starting out. Talk to people and find out what they’re doing currently and ask what their plans are for the future. It might be the case that you want to swap business cards if you have skills and opportunities in common. And even if they are not in the position to change jobs, they might know someone else who is looking. Do not forget to use business networks online such as LinkedIn to stay in touch and see what people are up to.
Social networks are vital
If you’re looking to advertise a job on a tight budget, you could look to the social networks too. Write a job ad and list it on your company’s website; then try and get people to visit the ad without paying extra for the privilege. Twitter can be ideal as people will share the job around to their own followers if they believe it would be of interest to them. Do some research into hashtags that would be appropriate for the role you are advertising. You could also look at other social networks such as Facebook if you can find the right audience on the platform.
Work with recruiters
Finally if you need a bit of help finding the right applicants, a recruitment agency could do this in your place. They will already have lots of specialists and professionals on their books that they can look at to see whether they’d suit the job specification. If they did not have any matches, they’d use all of their tricks to find people who do meet the requirements. They would then send you the CVs so you could say who you wanted to bring in for an interview.
Photo Credit: Flickr/Pascal
