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Three Recruitment Technologies to Adopt in a Virtual Environment
We’ve nearly made it halfway through 2020, where the overall theme has largely been about change and how we adapt to it. In the midst of crises and social distancing, we’ve endured sweeping changes to both personal and professional practices. But for many recruiters, the show must go on nonetheless. Some normalcy remains intact such as how we source candidates online, whether it’s through social media, careers pages, or job boards. However, as in-person methods for engaging and interviewing candidates have halted, adjustments have been necessary to ensure recruiting continues in the latter phase of the process.
Thankfully we live in an era with an abundance of technology that allows a socially distant model for hiring. Though remote methods for communication have been available for years, social distancing protocols have increased the need to embrace technology in all stages of the recruitment cycle. Consider these methods you may not have thought of to engage, assess, and onboard in a virtual environment.
Text Messaging
Once you’ve read a promising resume or sourced an ideal candidate, how do you engage and funnel them to the next step of the process without in-person interactions? Even in a socially distant model you have many accessible options to consider, from tried and true email and phone calls to newer text messaging technologies.
You know your careers page and application process should be optimized for mobile, but are you providing a mobile-friendly candidate experience in the initial engagement or screening process? Though text messaging has become a standard method of communication in our personal lives, you may not have implemented it as a way to engage candidates yet. Text messaging in the recruitment process has been gaining traction, even prior to the COVID-19 era due to the quick turnaround it offers. If your ATS doesn’t have texting capabilities built in, there are several third party solutions you can use to text multiple candidates directly from your computer. Instead of playing phone tag or sending an email to a flooded inbox, consider using text messages in the early screening stage to connect with candidates quickly.
On average, people pick up their phones more than 50 times per day. Unfortunately, this doesn’t translate to how often people actually answer an incoming call, especially from unknown numbers. But open rates on text messages are as high as 98%1. Sending a text message to a prospective candidate is a great way to get them to read and respond to your messages quickly.
No one wants to read paragraph after paragraph in a text message, so you might wonder how effective this format can actually be. But in that initial phase of engagement, you don’t need to cover everything in great detail to determine if you should move forward with a candidate.
Similarly, ClearedJobs.Net adopted virtual job fairs using text-based chat technology this year. In roughly ten minutes of messaging, recruiters were able to “basically speed date candidates and get needed information like salaries, career goals, and availability,” said a participating virtual job fair employer. This same style of quick and efficient communication can translate to traditional text messaging as you prescreen applicants before moving to more formal interview methods. Additionally, this form of communication can help combat bias in the recruitment process as you form initial impressions.
On-Demand Video Interviewing
If you need to gather more information and assess physical behavior, especially for public-facing positions, video conferencing is a go-to tool to use during times of social distancing and beyond. Video interviewing has been on the rise in recent years due to the many benefits these platforms offer, such as savings on travel expenses and reduced time-to-hire.
In recent months you’ve likely become comfortable with the standard video conferencing process, but have you used on-demand video technology? On-demand video options add another layer of convenience and flexibility, as scheduling is removed from the equation all together. Unlike a live interview where the recruiter or hiring manager is on the other end asking questions in real-time, the candidate instead responds to a set of given questions on their own time, in a recording that you can watch later. This can be especially helpful when juggling a large number of candidates at once.
You eliminate the need to schedule a time that works for all parties involved and can watch the recording at your convenience. This not only reduces time spent on scheduling, but also saves precious time if the candidate isn’t right for the position. If you identify fit issues in the first few minutes, you can simply move on to the next candidate’s recording. But be sure to follow up with those you won’t be moving forward with too, to close the loop and provide a good candidate experience for all applicants.
Onboarding Technology
In a time of limited in-person interactions and large transitions to remote work, onboarding technology has become more valuable than ever. From the hiring process to the onboarding phase, it’s important that candidates remain engaged. While accepting an offer is typically an exciting time for a candidate, anticipation and anxiety can follow—especially if there fails to be interactions between signing and a new hire’s start date. Bridge the gap between a great candidate experience and a successful employee experience with the help of onboarding technology.
Luckily, a market for onboarding platforms has surged giving you many options to standardize the process and support your virtual onboarding endeavors. Some of the benefits include:
- This technology can pair with your ATS and other HRIS software, requiring minimal data entry.
- These platforms allow you to implement a structured and consistent process for preboarding, onboarding, and even employee departures.
- These resources decrease needs for collecting paperwork and the time new employees spend before profitable productivity can begin.
- Once a new hire has signed on, this technology can assist you in setting expectations for how the process will move forward, supporting a clear and satisfying transition.
Preboard for Productivity
In order to get new hires up to speed as quickly as possible, begin onboarding as soon as a job offer is accepted. Onboarding technology can greatly assist your efforts by streamlining this process.
- Minimize lost productivity by getting paperwork out of the way upfront through an automated platform.
- The new employee can begin progress on a wide array of activities spanning training, direct deposit setup, and learning about their role.
- Preboarding serves as a great opportunity to set the tone of the employee-employer relationship, while also communicating necessary tasks through an online schedule.
- Digital platforms allow you to easily track the progress of new hires to ensure organized and continuous communication.
- Many onboarding platforms offer new hires the options to read testimonials from other employees, learn about their teammates and manager, and take training courses. These resources foster the flow of information, increased communication, and better engagement. All of which improve performance, satisfaction, and overall retention.
Through a little search engine exploration you will come across providers such as Appical, Talmundo, Personably, and many more that can help you automate your onboarding process. Find the platform that best integrates with the needs of your organization to help you onboard new hires—with the added bonus of shrinking the costs of lost productivity and turnover.
Recruiting and hiring in a virtual environment doesn’t mean you must learn a whole new set of tech or change your strategy completely. Many of the tools you’ve used throughout your recruiting career will continue to apply to the way you connect with candidates, even in a time of social distancing. Phone and email are prime examples of tools that remain relevant in the midst of technological advancement and changing societal habits. The key is to use the technology that works for you, while also being mindful of your candidates’ and company’s needs.
