2020 was a challenging year for most people, and by most, we mean probably everyone. But it’s been an absolutely crazy year for recruiters and HR professionals. It started with an almost immediate stop of all new hires, including candidates already in the pipe. Redundancies and furloughs weren’t too late to follow. Simultaneously, social distancing and travel limitations sent existing personnel to work from home, presenting HR teams with unfamiliar challenges. And if all that isn’t enough, the recruitment process, in those companies lucky enough to resume hiring, became entirely online.
At this point, you might be thinking: “Wait, I get everything else, but how did virtual recruitment make that list?“ And in some ways, you’re right. Video communication might still lack some real-life advantages (working on it), but it sure helped save the year, coming on strong with some chief plusses that it’ll be hard to go back from (good-bye travel time). Furthermore, digital employee/talent/candidate experiences have been on the rise long before the crisis, streamlining processes and eliminating a lot of the punishing administrative work that comes with the job.
Still, until now, talent acquisition teams could ease into new workflows and tools in a well-known business-as-usual environment. The pandemic offered no such perk, rather thrusting everyone into hurried on-the-fly adoption. Even with the vaccines now in hand, working from home clinches digital and video experiences as unavoidable, not voluntary, with no time to waste. To complicate matters a little more, it’s all happening in the thick of economic unrest and high unemployment levels; meaning applications will be coming in droves.
No change is easy, especially one that’s sudden, quick, and epoch-making, even if it is fundamentally for the better. But what could help in times of change is support and direction. That’s why it’s up to HR platforms to integrate the technology to help them do their job better in every part of the recruitment process.
Employer Branding
“Wait, we’re not going to talk about hiring?“ We are. But since 84% of job applicants consider a company’s reputation as an employer when making career decisions, and a whopping 96% of companies believe that employer branding impacts their revenue, let’s discuss that first.
Employer branding is about communicating the workplace culture, values, and advantages to the outside world. Companies sell their products as valuable solutions, and employers need to sell themselves as an excellent place to work. Yes, it helps when people know your product, as do slick advertisements. Even so, candidates will want to know what their everyday lives will look like once they join the team: the company’s stand on work-life balance, perks and benefits, staff quality, managing philosophy, promotion opportunities, and suchlike.
Consequently, HR teams need a medium suited to deliver intricate messages effectively.
Can you think of a better way to show that than videos? Neither can we. It’s a lot of information to take in, and we can’t stress enough the momentous decision it could lead to. So no, not something you can be scanty about. And while these videos will eventually live and play on different channels, connecting their creation, distribution, and performance to the systems HR professionals use daily can be of incredible service.
Expanding Talent Reach
“Wait, you said applications aren’t going to be a problem.“ Well, not exactly. I said there’s not going to be a shortage of applications. Reaching the right candidates, especially passive ones (i.e., working and not looking), is as much of a challenge as it’s always been. And it’s vital for recruiters to do so if they want to have their pick of the talent.
There’s no magic trick here, just making sure job listings pop up in more places. We’re pretty used to seeing them on LinkedIn and a few more social media outlets, as well as company pages. But the internet is a little bigger than that. Let’s help recruiters create a sourcing strategy that’s genuinely omnichannel and doesn’t only fall back on the usual suspects. The same video creation, distribution, and performance tools already in place (for employer branding) are a great starting point. By the way, employer branding in itself will help expand companies’ reach.
But that’s not all. You know how useful employee referrals are, helping the word spread fast, tapping into hidden talent pools, and even taking care of the initial screening? It’s time to make them bigger than shareable links. Help employees record videos where they explain the job and the company and then send them directly to friends or share them wherever they want. Not everyone will play along, but those who do are just the champions companies wish for anyway.
Last but not least – career events. Employer presentations, to be more specific. These are great to get candidates’ full and undivided attention. Doing them online offers most of the benefits of the physical event, only with a much wider reach, befitting a global economy.
Improving Candidate Interviewing
“Wait, Improving??“ Fair question, but the answer is yes. While it’s true that some of the intimacy, body language, and the vibe is lost on video, on-site interviews are time-consuming. More importantly, they’re susceptible to personal bias and often go off-script, marring the process.
In an offline or recorded interview, employers ask candidates to record their answers to a subset of recorded questions. Another option would be to send questions in writing but seeing the interviewer would undoubtedly feel more personal. It’s also a prime opportunity to talk about the company and the role in detail. Interviewing this way, at least in the initial phases, is cost-effective and inevitably structured.
Doing a live interview is a lot more like the real version, along with all the potential faults. Still, digital interviews help avoid the inherent downtime and tend to follow a stricter timeline and pre-meditated guidelines by nature of the format.
Either way, recordings are available for other team members to watch. When would that come in handy? In case a hiring manager lacks the knowledge and expertise needed for interviews, wouldn’t it be great if a recruiter could watch the interview too and vice-versa? And that’s just one example – many more personnel will benefit from being able to consult with others “for real“ and re-watching in case of doubts and after-thoughts. Additional features, such as auto-transcription and in-video commenting, can clear the way for a collaborative process without complicating matters in any way.
Finally, around 90% of people state that the candidate experience can change their minds about accepting a company’s job offer. Regardless of the result, the screening process should pick out unsuitable candidates yet still feel pleasant and positive. But using interactive features and gamification can even make it fun. Techie candidates and Gen–Zers would surely appreciate this forward-thinking approach and smart use of technology.
Employee Onboarding
“Wait, we were talking about recruitment.“ True, but onboarding is arguably part of it too. And Now that the HR team found the perfect person for the role, it’s time to build a first day to remember, followed by careful on-the-job training, meeting the team, and admin stuff.
Even in a pre-Corona world, employers couldn’t expect the team to be fully available for new employees to do all that. Onboarding new employees is critical to their success, but so is taking care of your other tasks and responsibilities. Creating an ‘onboarding playlist‘ that will get recruits up to speed and introduce them to different team responsibilities is a compelling solution. It’s also a great way to systemize the process and make it consistent, reproducible, and efficient. Thanks to user-friendly video creation features, employees and managers can contribute to this library independently and effortlessly.
From a newcomer’s perspective, it’s an ideal way to take everything in at their own pace. Further, choose-your-own-adventure type videos are much more will keep them leaning in. Simultaneously, video quizzes will help check the employee’s grip on things at key points in the process.
As you can see, video platforms empower HR teams to break the mold and bring creative thinking to the recruitment process, as well as streamline tasks and improve on pain points. Thanks to an abundance of capabilities and lots of creative freedom, each team can use the platform differently. They serve as a base for companies to fill with content and make their own, proving that sometimes, technology is the missing ingredient in human resources.
Are You Working on HR Solutions?
