HCI Blog

A passive candidate is a candidate who is not necessarily actively seeking a placement and is already employed. They are willing to listen to proposals, yet are selective.

Passive candidates comprise 84% of the potential workforce. Here’s how to reach this type of candidate!

1. Mine your applicant tracking system

• Search your applicant database back to one year and cross-reference with their personal data in social networks and people search engines. Today, they might have the necessary skills and be a good fit for you placement.

2. Start blogging

• Create a blog to write about industry topics, not the company itself. With a blog, aim to become an authority through the generation of relevant content which will be shared online, becoming visible to passive candidates.

3. Be good to your employees, and they will spread the word.

• Make employees cause a positive impact over potential passive candidates. Current employees should also be aware that the company is hiring so that the news can be spread through their community.

4. Inquire about specific talents, not job seekers

• Once inquiring about a person who is seeking for a job to a referrer, ask for someone with a specific set of abilities rather than for someone who is simply seeking a different placement opportunity.

5. Study and listen to candidates real motivators

• Many times, money isn’t the central motivator. Achieving a balance between personal life and work is important to passive job seekers.

6. Keep presenting opportunities and let the response guide you

• Passive candidates have the ball in their court, making it difficult to know exactly what they seek. Present them with opportunities and read their reaction and responses guide you.

7. Invite people to events

• Suggest to passive candidates possible networking events and meetings so that you can get to know him in an environment which offers less pressure.

8. Present yourself as a subject matter expert, not a recruiter.

• Do not treat passive candidates as passive candidates. Presenting yourself as an expert rather than recruiter will build a more informal relationship, causing the passive candidate not to feel as an applicant.

9. Build a candidate referral network with other recruiters

• Mutually exchanging candidate referrals with other managers will increase the odds of finding the best candidate possible.

10. Engage passives in a non-public talent community

• Many times, candidates remain passive because they don’t want their employer to know they are searching. Closed social networks are a good choice to search for candidates without them exposing themselves publicly.

11. Monitor online discussions for industry relevant conversations

• Keep an eye out for online groups which candidates may be a part of. This chatter might give you leads of candidates who are searching for a new placement. Approach them as an advisor rather than a recruiter.

12. Approach recruiting like dating

• Approach recruiting in a softer way. Let the candidate know you are interested in connecting with him and get them to like you.

SOURCE: Dice

10. Time consuming. Managers feel the traditional hiring process takes up too much of their time. The steps usually taken are sometimes seen as unnecessary.

9. Urgency. It is common for managers to require someone with a specific profile for a task which has already begun and is underway. As a result, they will not have the time (or focus) to gather all the information necessary to make the best possible decision for hiring the person which best fits their needs.

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8. Too much to choose from. Despite specifying the exact profile of the person you are looking for, you will often receive the CVs of unqualified individuals.

7. Labor Laws. Sometimes labor laws can be quite unclear and even make hiring difficult, depending on your country.

6. Hiring processes are designed by HR, not managers. Managers might have a hard time understanding all the steps necessary, as it is not their area of expertise.

5. The lack of honesty of some applicants. Some applicants may not be totally honest about their qualifications. Some special psychometric tests may help you to find the truth about some aspects of an applicant.

4. References won’t lay out the cards. Managers might traditionally rely on references, but for legal reasons, the referrers might abstain from saying anything about the applicant.

3. New application process, same questions. Applicants which have gone through a few selection processes will be experienced in knowing what to answer and how to answer your questions.

2. Using only their gut feeling as a selection criterion. Despite a candidate showing to be the best possible fit, they might discard such a person in favor of another applicant towards which they have a strong gut feeling to be the best choice.

1.Elevated costs for hiring. This is probably the main reason to why managers dislike hiring processes. Despite it being expensive, making a mistake might incur in double the costs! This is why using specialized outsourcing can be the most effective and safe choice.

Based on: TLNT

Here are four more essential tips on how to best use social media to recruit candidates.

This post is a continuation of Four tips on how to recruit candidates using social media.

5. Use Linkedin

This social network appeared after Facebook, focusing only on business networking and connecting with work colleagues. You must post a profile of yourself or create a company page for your business so that it can be seen by others. One important thing is to make sure that you ALWAYS keep your profile up to date! Nothing worse than show disinterest towards your personal image!

6. The more contacts the better…?

Not necessarily so. Sometimes it might be better to focus on building a more solid relationship with fewer candidates and other recruiters rather than have a network so big that you aren’t even sure who you know and where from. Yet having a large number of people in your network can help you extend your reach to help you find the perfect candidate! Try to find the adequate approach according to your social media and company strategy

7. Advanced searching techniques

To most people, the concept of searching something online involves simply typing a keyword and browsing through the results displayed. Using only keywords will often yield irrelevant results to your search. Have a look at google search string commands to find out some commands that a typically accepted in most search engines. They will help you narrow down and find that candidate you are looking for!

8. The searched becomes the searcher

Don’t forget that you, as a recruiter, are not the only one out on a search. Many potential candidates are always seeking out new job opportunities and researching about companies. Once again, never let your companies online profile slip into oblivion, always keep it up to date so that candidates can better understand your company.

Based on: Volt

The internet offers a wide variety of possibilities once it comes to the usage of social networking as a means to communicating and exposing your company’s brand.

A subject which is being actively discussed among recruiters today is the usage of social media for finding the best possible fit for a placement opportunity. Yet, at the same time, some confusion might arise once it comes to finding the appropriate tool for homing in on the candidates you want to attract to your company.

Here are four tips on how to effectively use social media for recruiting the right candidates:

1. Select a social network which best suits your needs

As mentioned before, the internet has a wide variety of social networks available. It is important to have in mind the industry and line of business your company is inserted into. For example, Facebook has extremely broad criteria for finding potential candidates while on the other hand, LinkedIn focuses specifically on an individual’s professional life rather than their personal life or hobbies.

2. Announce available placement opportunities on your profiles

Never forget that it is important to let the online world know that you are looking for someone to fill a specific position. Even though this might not directly target your specific candidate, someone might know that person you are seeking!

3. Your current employees are a good thermometer for the outside world

Your current employees are the perfect “showcase” to attract other potential candidates. Happy, motivated and well integrated workers will typically display a positive image of how your company works internally. Eventually, someone might see how well your employees speak of your company and ask them about a possible placement opportunity.

4. Always give a helping hand

If you see other companies or recruiters looking for a specific profile, help them by announcing their placement opportunity on your social network profile. This generates rapport and in the future an exchange of candidates among recruiters!

Based on: Volt

Over 92% of companies use Social Media networks for recruiting candidates.

Have a look at this graph by staff.com for some more interesting facts related to recruitment and social networks online.