Creative ways of recruiting talent

Read time: 00:02:13

Standard methods of recruiting are just that, standard. But these 'standard' methods of recruiting don't always get the most out of the candidate hence some employers are now integrating new methods of finding talent like gamification and searching in unusual places, basically embracing the creative recruiting process.

If you are planning to hire a new employee and are certain a traditional method of recruiting will not work, here are some of the things you can do to help identify the exact candidate to bring on board.

Create candidate personas
Develop candidate personas. Candidate personas are fictional, generalized characters that encompass the various needs, goals, and observed behavior patterns of your ideal candidate. You do this first before you start developing the job description.

Developing candidate personas will allow you to identify core candidate segments, understand their goals, and tailor content for them. When developing these, ideally, you will combine the qualities of a real candidate and those of an ideal one. This approach will help you attract and engage with the individuals you want to hire.

Get more intel 
You need to gain deep insights into your potential candidates and try to uncover who they are beyond their qualifications and clean social media profiles. Simply, because some of the information will not be available if you follow the traditional route of recruiting. 

In an attempt to get more 'insight' from their candidates Heineken, the famous drinks company created a set of scenarios that prospective employees did not expect during an interview. In the first scenario, the interviewer pretended to have a heart attack. In the second scenario, there was a fake fire drill and once they got outside there was someone stuck on the roof and the staff members had to catch him. They observed each candidate - how they reacted to each situation, their engagement, and so forth. One candidate wanted to know how much the salary was while the interviewer was having a 'heart attack.'

Not every company can carry out such unorthodox methods in their hiring process, but unlikely approaches help to get to know the candidates a little more.

Have a strong vetting process
Once you have identified the ideal candidate, take these last steps to ensure that they have everything they mentioned in their resume. You can do this via the vetting process, it will ensure that the candidate is a solid match for the job. The vetting process verifies a candidate's qualifications and confirms that they possess the personality, skills, and character to do the job well. Processes such as these will give you more confidence about who you decide to offer the job to.

These days, employers are always looking to find ways of discovering the real person behind the 'well prepared' answers in an interview. Adding an employee to the payroll isn't cheap, no matter how you look at it. There is a multitude of both direct and indirect costs that quickly add up. It's, therefore, more important than ever to ensure you hire the right candidates. If you need assistance with your hiring, we can help.

Communicate Recruitment is a specialist recruitment company with over 3 decades of experience. We connect great people in the IT, Finance, Engineering, Supply Chain, and Freight industries throughout Africa and South Africa on a permanent or part-time basis.