How to Solve Your Volume Recruitment Issues, Fast

Volume recruiting has always been a challenge for HR leaders, but in some ways it’s never been more difficult than it is right now.

With job ads at an all time high, and this trend seemingly only accelerating, the already intense competition for talent looks set to get even more full-on. We find ourselves in a new world post-pandemic; one where the war for talent has never been more fierce, and the need to gain an advantage over your competitors has never been more critical.Business leaders now face the difficult challenge of how to right-size their organisations, invest in talent acquisition, learning and development, and align cost bases to enable organisational growth.  

This situation is exacerbated if you need to hire large numbers of staff quickly, whether in response to unforeseen circumstances, seasonality, or, in a perfect world, spectacular growth. Your internal hiring managers are demanding that you fill the open headcount now, but in a job market desperate for them, you’re struggling to secure the help that you need, when you need it. 

The situation is challenging, but it’s not insurmountable. There are a number of ways your organisation can deal with its volume recruiting needs in such a candidate-led job market. 

Your TA team could increase their job adverts volume from 50 per month to 100 per month, however unfortunately the likely outcome will be increased duplicate applications with a low level of relevancy, that still need to be screened, communicated with, and ultimately rejected. 

Alternatively, you could ask your already stretched internal team to handle more work, however, an overworked TA team that are given more open jobs to fill have less time available

You could use an external recruitment agency, though such volume campaigns on contingency fees can end up costing a small fortune. To be honest, these common solutions generally leave you right back where you started.

While most companies want to gear up for growth, investment decisions will be closely scrutinised and return on spend must be justified.

Happily, there are other strategies that may prove far more effective to help navigate the impending talent opportunities and challenges. Today we’ll take a look at six of the best ways to hire in volume, and at pace.

1. Boost candidate diversity

If you need greater headcount, you should keep diversity front of mind. There may be a wealth of untapped talent sources out there that you may not have yet considered: gig workers, aging workers, graduate talent, or those with transferable skills. During COVID, for example, many countries realised that hospitality workers, who found themselves out of work, had the people skills to transition smoothly to carer roles for both the old and young.

Remember too that diversity can also result in increased productivity. This McKinsey study found that the top 25% of companies by executive diversity were 33% more likely to have industry-leading profitability, while companies in the bottom 25% were 29% less likely to achieve above-average profitability. 

It’s also interesting to note that according to this research by Gallup, employee engagement and inclusiveness are closely connected, with engaged employees far more likely to believe that their company values diverse ideas.

Use tech to gain insights about the diversity of your organisation, and hire in a way that breaks any identified homogeny.

2. Use data to predict your needs

As much as we hate using well-worn corporate clichés, the fact remains that prior planning prevents poor performance. Are you doing all that you can to identify your talent needs as early as you can? You might instinctively answer yes, but if you’re not leaning heavily on technology to do so, particularly when it comes to the often laborious task of volume recruiting, the answer will more likely be no.

As outlined above, are you using every sourcing channel you could? Take the time to understand where your target candidate personas spend time and make career decisions, and build an attraction strategy based around these insights.

Data can provide your business with talent insights. There will be subtle patterns hidden within the zeroes and ones that hint at an upcoming need for talent, and by using AI and business intelligence software, you’ll be able to identify them. Do it well, and you could generate insights that comprehensively predict your future talent pipeline needs.

Consider leaning on automation software where possible, whether online forms that automatically update your ATS, or chatbots that can handle basic candidate queries. Rather than replace recruiters, these technologies free them from the more robotic and low-value aspects of their job, freeing them up for the high-value and more human work, and reducing your need for extra hands in the process.

3. Have a well-planned selection process

You need to speak to your bank, but after 15 minutes on hold, with nothing more than crackly elevator music to keep you company, you give up and drop out of the queue.

The hiring process can be thought of in the same way: if it isn’t transparent and efficient, the candidates that you invested time and money in initially attracting will drop out of the process. In volume recruitment the cost of inefficient and candidate-unfriendly processes scales.

The screening and hiring process must be efficient, effective, and 100% transparent on the candidate side, through application, interview, offer and onboarding.

4. Become laser-focused on candidate quality and relevance

One of the greatest challenges of volume recruitment is... volume.

A shortage of talent for volume campaigns is one of the top three challenges facing APAC-based organisations and one of the top talent issues keeping HR leaders awake at night. Once again, talent technology is your friend. Leverage smart tools to pre-screen candidates, remembering to put a focus on diversity. Avoid setting arbitrary bars like X degree or X years of experience required, and instead, gain an understanding of the challenges presented by the job. More so find a tech solution that helps you review and assess the cultural and motivational fit of your applicants to your business, and even review their personality traits to understand if they will lend themselves well to success.

5. Maintain a high-end candidate experience

When was the last time you updated your volume hiring process? Is it smooth, simple and transparent? Can a candidate complete processes online and at their leisure? Do they get updated as the process moves forward, or if their application is declined?

The hiring process will usually be the candidate’s first time dealing with your organisation, so their first impression will be built upon the experience that you serve up. If it’s a good one, you’ll likely have an enthusiastic and committed worker on your hands. If it’s a bad one, the candidate will treat you with the same apathy as they feel they’re receiving. 60% of applicants will remove themselves from the hiring process if they feel it’s too long or complex. What’s more, 72% of candidates who have a bad experience will share that fact with others. In short, a bad candidate experience can torpedo your employer brand, particularly in volume recruiting, where it has the potential to build an army of detractors.

Adapt your process to the roles you’re hiring for, like being accessible at all hours if you recruit for industries like mining and healthcare. If you can’t be there 24/7 for your clients and candidates, offer complete support on your website through online troubleshooting, and chatbots that can answer basic questions.

6. Utilise Talent Acquisition as a Service (TAaaS) talent teams

While your organisation likely has an existing talent acquisition capability, there is a rapidly growing trend to engage a TAaaSteam for high-volume projects. 

This ‘on-demand’ approach to volume recruiting works because the costs are variable rather than fixed, and you can bring in expert capability for a defined timeframe and purpose.

If you are a business leader with the need to grow your headcount, to do it at pace, and are faced with the smallest ever talent pool, then now may be the time to consider engaging with external provider of talent solutions.  An outsourced talent solution will give you the opportunity to reduce your fixed costs and, if designed and managed well by an experienced provider, will also reduce spend on recruitment agency fees, advertising, technology and contingent workers. 

You could utilise a TAaaS team in any number of ways. To boost sourcing. To run your selection process. To implement tools that quicken volume recruitment processes.  To enhance the candidate experience. To ensure compliance and risk is managed. If you identify a need for additional skills or hands on deck, there’ll be a solution ready to fill it, and who will do so as a white-labelled service, using your branding and IP.

By leaning on data and technology, streamlining your processes, focusing your efforts, delivering a great candidate experience, and capitalising on the help of professionals where necessary, you’ll put your organisation in a far stronger overall position.

You’ll attract quality employees, in larger quantities, and fast.

This is your competitive advantage in this new post-pandemic “world of work”.

In this post-pandemic new world of work with server candidate shortages and fierce competition for the best talent, and your business poised for significant growth in terms of its headcount, then, speak to the team at Harrier Talent Solutions. With years of experience in the Australian market of providing fast, effective and outcome-driven on-demand solutions, we will ensure your business wins in the war for talent. . Contact us today to lock in a free assessment of your current talent attraction strategy.