Recruitment: Be efficient and attract the right people

Recruitment can be difficult and cost a lot of money. This has especially been the case in recent years, where there has been a shortage in labour. In this blog post, you will get good advice for the recruitment process in your company so that you can achieve better results, better productivity and positive experiences.

According to Statistics Denmark, the lack of qualified labour has been on the rise in most industries in recent years. At the same time, several professors, media and political parties predict bottlenecks and growth inhibitors in the Danish labour market.

Thus, the battle for talent and qualified resources is underway. And companies will have to work extra hard – and invest significantly more money – to attract and retain the right profiles.

Match with the right candidate

Something worse than lacking resources is hiring the wrong person for the job – and this can cost both time and money – in some cases even critically so.

Official calculations show that the total time spent by everyone involved in a recruitment process costs 1% of the monthly salary per hour. These are the costs incurred when recruiting the right person, but in the case of hiring the wrong person the costs are considerably higher. According to recruitment firm Randstad, hiring the wrong person costs more than DKK 500,000.

It is important to find the right candidate for the position. Equally crucial is the run-in period and the company's culture. If the match between the new employee's values and working mentality and the company's culture is not good, then it won't be long before the next phase is a resignation or dismissal.

But how do you, as the owner or manager of a company, ensure that you have qualified labour for the tasks of the future? What should you pay particular attention to when recruiting candidates for the company? And how do you make the recruitment process easier and more manageable for both applicants and the HR department?

The answers to these questions naturally vary depending on industry and functions. Below, we provide inspiration for the optimal recruitment process as well as what you should pay particular attention to. We will also discuss how, with its systematic and analytical approach, an HR system can lend a helping hand when it comes to retention.

Match the requirements to the right profile

The most important thing in a recruitment process is actually what happens before the process really starts. In order to hire the right person for a given position, it is important to completely clarify what skills the position requires. This may seem obvious, but nevertheless it happens that hiring firms are not fully aware and specific about the need for competence.

That means you risk hiring with the heart rather than the brain – which in the worst case can result in having to recruit another employee with the skills that are missing.

Spend time on an accurate job advert – and job descriptions

The detailed job description is a natural extension of the above and focuses on which competences the tasks of a given position require.

We've all tried to explain to others what we do for work – and it's not always easy to make it specific. The same is true of job descriptions. Therefore, a comprehensible job description is important.

As society changes, and with technological developments in mind, I would recommend that you regularly update all the company's job descriptions. In addition to making future recruitment easier, it also gives management a useful overview.

The above overview is an advantage when the job posting itself is written. Here, it is advantageous to focus on the framework and core tasks as well as the expected results – both short and long term.

At the same time, be specific and include only the skills that are relevant to the position. An accurate job advert makes it easier to select candidates for interview.

Remember: the posting is not only for recruitment, but also for branding the company.

It is therefore important to highlight the interesting aspects of the position, while at the same time presenting the company as a workplace that people will want to be a part of.

This is especially important when recruiting during a period of low unemployment.

Leave out the platitudes

But do away with the platitudes! The employee must be a team player and able to work independently, and in addition they must be able to juggle several balls, be focused – and be able to work with deadlines.

In addition to being contradictory, the above is also very imprecise. You risk muddying the job posting so that the essential competence requirements disappear in the amount of platitudes.

Most candidates are able to spot platitudes from afar. This gives a lower credibility. It is therefore important to match the competence requirements with the concrete tasks involved in the position.

Professionalise recruitment

With the job advert in place, the next phase of the recruitment process follows. The most important thing here is that all candidates feel that the process is both professional and transparent.

A small detail such as a quick acknowledgment of a candidate’s application being received is important for the candidate to feel that the application they spent time preparing is being taken seriously. This is also where the first impression of the company as a professional workplace is established.

A great help in systematising the recruitment process is a recruitment system that helps to streamline workflows. Among other things, the system can screen the applications, send uniform reply emails, rate the candidates based on given parameters, save interesting candidates for possible future positions and handle personal data in accordance with personal data regulations.

Therefore, a modern recruitment system is a good help for companies that regularly advertise positions, but actually also for companies that receive unsolicited applications.

Remember the culture and the soft values

Once applications have been taken, the actual job interview follows. By holding interviews with candidates with the professional skills in place, there is room to focus on the 'softer' personal skills. And this is where the culture of the company and the existing staff group comes into play.

The softer values can be difficult to put into words. Nevertheless, studies show that softer values are most often the basis for terminations from both the company's and the employee's side. Therefore, these values should be emphasised during the interview.

At the same time, the personal values of a new employee are also a good way to shape the company's future culture. However, there must be a balance.

If the candidate differs too greatly in relation to the existing employee group, there is a risk that the new employee will be stigmatised.

In such cases, it can have the opposite effect, namely that the existing staff group clings to 'what is' instead of seeing 'what might be'.

Do you need help with recruitment?

Azets carries out recruitment for all functions within finance, accounting, payroll and HR. Our insight into the market and large networks mean that we can attract and select the right employee for specific positions.

Recruitment can be a difficult and not least resource-intensive process. We have many years of experience and access to the right tools. Therefore, we can streamline your recruitment process and find the right employee.

You are very welcome to contact us if you need help with recruitment.