They really come in all shapes and sizes. Some of them are Boomers looking to avoid retirement for whatever reason. Others might be Millennials, young and hip with a wealth of knowledge, but not quite enough experience to suit your company's needs. Some are rich. Some are dirt poor. There really is no telling who might try to get into your business.
This wide variety and a constant need for new talent can put a tremendous amount of pressure on an in-house or contract recruiter. Some folks that don't quite catch your fancy can slip through the cracks. But recruiters and talent acquisition people with the latest HR software aren't your only means of getting more people involved with your department.
There are also the current members of your workforce. Indeed, in an age when people are more connected than ever before, your standard employees can be a tremendous asset in acquiring fresh faces around the office. From the minimum wage janitor to the upper-level manager, everybody on your team can help bring in new talent and we're going to give you some reasons why this is the case.
The Power of the Internet
Any business owner knows that the Internet is the ideal way of getting your business out there and keeping it current. From company websites to digital job boards, the net is much bigger than before, and it would do a business no favors to ignore that potential.
But one of the most underutilized pieces of the Internet that has quickly become its central aspect is social media. While it is true that many businesses have Twitter and Facebook feeds now, less than a quarter of them are using it properly. Those that do have seen unbridled success.
This applies to recruitment as well. On LinkedIn, the biggest social network for professionals in the world, employees are responsible for 1/5 of a company's total social engagement. Just think about that: Of all the shares, likes, and comments you receive on your latest post, 20% of them come from employees. Couple that with the fact that employees typically have twice as many connections as a company page would have, and you get a tremendous number of people outside your marketing net who would see it as well.
In addition, content shared by your employees also gets twice as many clickthroughs, which means more people are reading what you post--including new job openings!
Outside of the Digital
But the power of employee recruiting expands beyond just social media engagement. They also serve as cheerleaders when they are out in the world. One of the most common conversation topics that pop up when two friends are sitting at a bar is work. As a result, employees talk about how much they love their job to peers who might share their same interests.
One of the oldest adages in the business world is: You gotta know somebody. That's especially true in the field of recruiting, where a large number of new hires are friends or acquaintances with somebody who is already sitting in your office. This leads to a number of benefits when it comes to talent acquisition.
The biggest one is that you have somebody to speak to about a new hire. Let's say you just got through interviewing a young graduate who performed fantastically in the interview. On his or her resume, they listed a current employee of yours as a reference. Would you not be more enthusiastic about hiring the new talent if that reference presented a glowing review that corroborated everything claimed in the interview?
Hiring on friends also contributes a great amount to teamwork and work ethic. Folks are always more enthusiastic about work on Monday morning if they adore the people they are working with. In the case of friends, the adoration is already there (not to mention the carpool opportunities!).
And that always helps to simplify things when making the formal introduction.
So if it's not clear, let's make it so: Employees are powerful tools both within and without the office. Their more significant, more loyal connections are a boon when a new job opens up and talent must be acquired. Whether they enjoy the environment or just raving fans of what they do as an employee can both be attributed to bringing more awareness to your company.
Recruiters and talent scouts are wonderful people to have around and prove a good membrane for filtering out undesired people. But don't ignore your employees. They just might bring in that new blood you've been looking for.