3 Signs It’s Time to Pivot Your Hiring Process

On the outside, recruiting may seem simple: put out a job posting, review applications, interview the best people, hire the best people, done! But anyone submersed in the world of hiring knows it’s never quite that easy.

Hiring is complex, which is why companies spend so much time creating an efficient, repeatable process for it. But how do you know when your current recruiting process needs an update or complete overhaul?

Since no two positions are exactly the same, successful recruiting requires flexibility and constant evolution. Below are three indicators that it’s time to pivot your hiring process.

Excessive Turnover

Companies experience turnover for numerous reasons: lack of growth, poor management, better pay. But one easily controllable factor is who you’re actually hiring.

If you’re hiring the wrong people from the start, it’s time to look into updating your process.

Do you conduct thorough due diligence on every potential hire? Have you offered them a chance to experience what the position will really be like and what their team’s future management style is? When a candidate says they want to grow, does the hiring team have a clear understanding of what exactly “growth” means to the candidate, and is that consistent with what the company can offer him or her?

If there’s a disparity between who you’re hiring and who actually fits your company and team, consider adding additional checks and balances before making a job offer. This might consist of an in-house test drive to provide a “day in the life,” or simply clarifying your job description requirements to attract the right talent from the start.

Slow Hiring Times

Another common hiring dilemma is having open positions that just don’t seem to get filled. If it’s taking months to hire for a position rather than a few weeks, there are improvements that can be made to your hiring process.

Certain positions generally require more time and effort to recruit for than others, but a slow time to hire can drastically impact future business success and be more costly than you realize. When your normal hiring time is doubled or even tripled, it’s time to pivot.

Shifting gears from passive to more active recruiting is one way to make your process more effective. Rather than sit and wait for candidates to apply for your jobs, start going to networking events that align with the type of candidate you’re looking to hire, join relevant LinkedIn groups, reach out to people who seem like a good fit, and pinpoint strategic ways to align with the candidates you want to hire.

But what if you already have an active recruiting strategy and hiring is still slow?

Then it could be a simple problem of using the wrong tools. A streamlined and integrated applicant tracking system (ATS) can make your recruiting hours much more effective. If you spend the majority of your time writing emails, scouring files for candidate applications, or individually posting jobs to major job boards, it may be time to compare recruiting software and find a better fit for your needs.

Your ATS should make your job easier, not harder! It’s likely the ATS your company has grown with won’t be the best option forever, so consider the value a new system can bring to your hiring team.

Outdated Ideals

When it comes to recruiting, change is good. If you’ve been doing the same 10-step hiring process for years, you should at least ask yourself if there are ways it can be improved. If a process is tried and true, it’s easy to get caught in the monotony and consider it the best way to hire — but that’s not always the case.

When companies stop innovating, they fall behind. Make sure you’ve not fallen guilty to that mentality when it comes to hiring.

Today’s candidates are different than they were even three years ago, and they have different wants and needs from a career and your company. Does your process address these factors as effectively as it could? Are you accommodating relevant changes for varying positions?

Social recruiting is a great example of why iterating on your hiring process is important. Companies that don’t stay current risk missing out on an entire generation of great talent, so don’t let that be you.

If you’re still not sure when it’s time to pivot your hiring process, the answer is probably now.

It may not be as drastic as ending all phone interviews the company ever does, but it could include providing hiring managers with a better list of questions to ask candidates, or implementing a new referral system, or maybe even removing a meaningless step in the process. When you’re consciously evaluating for improvements, you’ll ensure that your recruiting efforts are put to good use.