In an employee's market, businesses need to be on top of recruitment trends

FROM MY EXPERIENCE as an ex-recruiter and co-founder of recruitment platform Occupop, candidates now drive the hiring process and companies’ employment systems and brands can be directly impacted as a result.

According to TalentLyft, a positive recruitment experience motivates 97% of candidates to refer other candidates, with over 50% of them likely to share their positive experiences via social media. 

Further to this, Deloitte reports that 87% of candidates say a great recruitment experience can change their mind about a company they once doubted.

On the flip side of that, 83% of individuals surveyed say a negative interview experience can change their mind about a role or company they once liked.

Harnessing AI

I believe artificial intelligence (AI) will act as a support system for HR Managers, and reduce hours wasted on administration tasks.

A recent survey by Modern Hire found that today 50% of firms use AI to source and screen candidates.

A common myth about AI screening is that the AI deletes any CVs that don’t meet the criteria. This is not the case for the majority of AI screening tools. The control remains in the recruiter’s hands.

Another AI-led trend that continues to grow is incorporating chatbots into the recruitment process. 

Watch out for soft skills

It has been estimated that between now and 2030, demand for social and emotional skills will grow across all industries by 22% in Europe.

From my experience, I think AI and automation will re-shape traditional roles with hard skills being most susceptible to automation.

According to Harvard Business Review, results-oriented, relationship-focused, process and rule followers, innovative and disruptive thinkers and pragmatic skills and emotional competencies are most advantageous for candidates to have. 

Automation can give HR teams time to focus on retention.

Certain HR trends remain key to employee retention, and ultimately attraction. I think, particularly this year, well-being, remote working, company culture and learning and development need to be prioritised more.

However, according to Career Builder, the average HR manager is losing 14 hours a week. This is through manually completing tasks that often take up a lot of time.

Automation is becoming a key recruitment tool to give HR teams more time to focus on retention strategies.

In the same Career Builder report, it was found that 72% of employers predict that elements of their talent acquisition will be automated within the next decade.

Such time-intensive processes that can now be significantly reduced including interview scheduling, workflows and hiring manager reviews. In addition to this, the automation of these processes also allows for more satisfied candidates.

Put your brand at the heart of candidate communication

Companies now have the opportunity to build up and promote a brand that is more social and ethically responsible, along with being a fun and inclusive place to work. 

The outcome of this is that companies with great employer brands receive 50% more qualified applicants and see a 50% reduction in cost-per-hire, according to LinkedIn research.

With 75% of jobseekers considering an employer’s brand before even applying, an attractive brand may be the difference between finding the perfect person for the role – or losing them to a competitor.  

I am always asked about the best ways to promote company brands. I would recommend businesses do this through their current employees and where their candidates are, such as social media.

A recent SHRM survey found that 84% of businesses are now using social media to attract new talent, often converting to hires.

Recruiting sideways

Research has shown that 93% of employees would stay at a company longer if it invested in their careers according to LinkedIn’s Workforce Learning Report.

As previously mentioned, soft skills are becoming more necessary in the workforce and career development is now a key factor in employee retention, therefore HR departments need to look at their current workforce for potential job opportunities. This is done through HR data and analytics. 

Caroline Gleeson is the chief executive and co-founder of Occupop.