5 tips for bringing out the inner-recruiter in your staff
Your current employees have an obvious and direct interest in who you decide to invite into the company. Not only is their work environment affected by new-hires, their livelihood is as well.
While the core benefits of employee referral programs are self-evident – without proper execution, you risk damaging your brand, or just wasting your time. Let’s further examine what you can do to engage your employees in the recruiting process.
5 ways of engaging employees in referral programs
Simply blasting out a company email to your staff announcing the job opening might seem nice and tidy – just don’t expect much of a return on your investment.
Effective referral programs transcend basic communication – they inform, educate, and inspire. To create a plan that accomplishes these goals, you need one of two things: an excellent plan, or copious amounts of luck.
Here’s how to make luck your servant:
- Let ‘em off the hook. Fear of being judged – or worse – because of their referral is a common obstacle for many employees. For most of your staff, assurance that such introductions are simply introductions – with no bearing on their job security – along with illustrating the depth of the vetting process, can help alleviate their anxiety. An alternative approach is to allow for anonymous referrals, however, that presents a challenge to incentive offers.
- Make the reward clear – and appealing. Two things can make rewards useless: ignorance, and lack of interest. If you’re offering a stuffed emoji for the winning referral, you’re probably just as well off as you would be if you didn’t tell anyone about your incentives. Make sure your referral program’s relevant, and effectively shared with your staff.
- Bring them in on the plan. Chances are your employees are already focusing on exactly what you want them to doing their jobs. Keeping them in the loop in regard to your company’s hiring-needs introduces your mission into their cycle of thoughts. Some HR departments even go as far as holding weekly recruiting meetings. Another option is a user-friendly database, or bi-weekly email, informing employees of the company’s current recruiting needs.
- Ambassadorship. Whether it’s part of your company’s culture or not, each of your employees are, in essence, brand ambassadors for your company. As your team progresses their way through the community at large, they’re a reflection of your company. With this in mind, some companies have started offering brand ambassador training. Educating your staff on how to approach talent whenever chance might manifest a convergence can help uncover unexpected candidates.
- Let them be social. Now that they’re armed and educated, let those birds fly! Whether your employees are at lunch, out dancing, or standing in line at the coffee shop – they just might bump elbows with the perfect match for your opening. This behavior can transcend to the online world as well, encourage them to spread the word on social media – personal networks can be bountiful recruiting resources.
Your recruiter can help
When your staff is properly educated on how to recruit effectively, they’re more likely to engage in the process. Your recruiting strategy plays a significant role in that education. Enlisting the advice of your recruiter is an excellent way to identify the most effective plan for your recruiting needs.
Mankuta | Gallagher offers a powerful arsenal of recruiting tools to help fine-tune your referral program. From organizational research to talent mapping our team can bring out the inner-recruiters in your team.
To learn more about our recruiting services, connect with us online – let’s start building your company’s tomorrow, today!