Catching Your Candidate’s Eye

With the sun shining again on the Irish job market it’s vitally important that companies are standing out in the crowd when attracting talent. We are now slap bang in the middle of a candidate driven market so its imperative companies are doing everything in their power to entice top talent in today’s market.

Here are some ideas companies should take on board:

Fun Job Specs

Jobseekers read through countless job specifications when deciding which role and company will be perfect for their next career move. Make sure the role sounds as interesting as possible and highlight how great a place your company is to work. Try to veer away from your standard job spec and highlight the good stuff that you know other companies won’t have.Think outside the box. Here is an example of a great job spec from a company who specialise in hiring socially talented people.

Your benefits will include a fully paid mobile phone, health insurance, company MacBook and uncapped holidays (yes, that’s right, unlimited holidays!), yoga classes on Tuesdays, a work environment that includes great banter and craic, 2 goldfish, a ukulele, a SMEG fridge (just because), a great ninja mascot called Hiroto and a tendency to drink beer on Friday afternoons in the office. 

Doesn’t that sound like a place you’d love to send your CV to? They had me at ukulele! While not all companies offer this every company has its perks so dig deep and attract the right staff for your company.

Graduate Recruitment Programmes

Most companies roll out graduate programmes each year with great success. So why should the superstars of tomorrow start their journey in your organisation? This is your opportunity to show candidates exactly what they are signing up for from day one. When Dublin based IT Company Version 1 needed to hire 40 graduates onto their graduate programme last year they came up with a very clever marketing ploy. They used social media to design a campaign based on the TV show, Breaking Bad, entitled “Breaking Grads”. Needless to say they were inundated with applicants. Candidates latched onto their tongue in cheek message and wished to work in a fun environment which would also enable them to get over the death of Hank (c’mon if you haven’t watched it by now you deserve all the spoilers coming your way).

Glassdoor

Today it’s very easy for candidates to find out just how great a place your company is to work with online tools such as Glassdoor and Irish Jobs Company Reviews at their fingertips. In the age of Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn everybody is a critic so make sure you are leaving a positive and lasting impression on every candidate and employee you encounter. Treat your employees more in the manner of Hank Scorpio and less like Montgomery Burns. Ask your current employees to review you online and allow them to take ownership of your company brand on their social media platforms by way of a referral programme.

Recruitment Agencies

You know those nasty recruitment agencies that contact you on a daily basis wanting your business and promising they can fill your roles. Well the majority of them are telling the truth! In a candidate driven market companies should be using all sources at their disposal in the hope of securing the best talent. Great recruitment consultants meet great candidates every day. Why not invite the next recruitment consultant you speak to down to your offices and sell your company to them. They can in turn sell you the best candidates. Even better, do your research and contact a recruiter that you think would suit your hiring needs.

Corporate Social Responsibility

Not every employee is motivated solely by money. A company’s Corporate Social Responsibility is extremely important when attracting the best talent. What work does your company do with the local community? What health and fitness programmes do you have in place for your employees? How ethical an organisation is yours? How environmentally friendly are you as an organisation? These are the questions the best candidates will be asking when determining which company to get behind. Make sure you are that company.

For more information on writing job descriptions and finding the right candidate for your job contact Rob on 01-4744671 or send a confidential email to rmelia@sigmar.ie