Finding talent is probably the #1 topic when discussing employment issues these days. At one time, recruiting was primarily a task for an organization’s Human Resources team, or maybe the hiring manager. To be successful these days, organizations should get everyone engaged in the recruiting effort. With the urgency often affiliated with the need to fill roles within an organization, the task of recruiting is most effective when all sectors of the organization are committed to the efforts.

Let’s look at two ways to recruit:

1. Active Recruiting is thinking creatively and critically about what is needed for the position and getting everyone in the organization involved in filling open positions.
2. Passive Recruiting is considered the traditional approach to recruiting – advertising a job post and receiving applications/resumes from those interested in the position.

Although our recommendation would be to combine Active and Passive Recruiting to ensure you cast a wide net, we suggest focusing more on Active Recruiting efforts. When staff and management are actively recruiting – sharing the job posting on their social media, networking, making referrals – you may entice people to apply who might not have otherwise noticed the job posting or might not have been actively looking for a new opportunity.

Using social media to communicate your organization’s vacancies and reviewing your network to find likely candidates can result in connecting with individuals that may be the perfect fit for a current position or possibly future employment opportunities. Utilizing your current workforce to share a job opportunity with their professional network can be very effective and does not cost anything to the organization. Want to incentivize word of mouth recruiting? Think about offering a referral bonus to current staff.

Another Active Recruiting method is to look at your staff internally and identify growth potential or interest in learning new skills. Maybe there’s someone on staff who can – and wants – to fill the open position. Yes, this leaves another opening, but you’re being a great employer by focusing more on keeping your current staff than only focusing on who you don’t have.

If you need assistance thinking creatively about your recruiting strategy, talk to the Human Resource Resource: Contact us at The Employer Group.