9 ways to speed up hiring

Fast hiring does not mean cutting corners

From SeasonedPros.ca Insights Lab

In a candidate-driven market, the speed of hiring can make the difference between finding the right talent or missing out.

With businesses facing talent shortages, the best candidates are probably juggling several job opportunities and offers. 

Acting fast could mean securing the top-level talent an organization needs. Not acting fast could mean that candidate drops out to take another job.

Shortening the hiring cycle with on-demand talent

On-demand talent is emerging as an important tool to help a company achieve faster hires without making compromises.

Hiring an experienced business professional on contract can bring leadership and highly specialized knowledge to an organization within two weeks. 

When they arrive they hit the ground running, reducing the time spent on onboarding.

Here are 9 ways to speed up hiring:

1. Create a talent strategy – Reconfigure the workforce to blend on-demand contractors with full-time employees. Look one to two years forward and plot talent needs to achieve goals.
2. Develop an Employer Value Proposition (EVP) -The EVP is an employer’s promise to talent. It outlines values, company culture and other commitments an organization offers its workforce. This is a key tool for attracting, engaging and retaining the best talent.
3. Write a clear job description – Be specific on the role, duties and terms of engagement. Many candidates are searching for fractional positions. Highlighting this will expedite the hiring process.
4. Outsource search to agencies specializing in on-demand talent – Build a relationship with a business talent agency that specializes in searching, vetting and conducting initiation interviews. This can significantly cut down on the time it takes to make a hire.
5. Use LinkedIn and other social media – LinkedIn is of the most powerful recruitment tools available. It provides important insights into the lives and thoughts of potential candidates. Social media audits can help with screening. 
6. Hire boomerangs – Stay in touch with valued employees who have left the organization and may want to return to work on contract. The advantage is that the candidate is already known and the candidate is familiar with the organization. This reduces the time it takes to onboard and train the new employee.
7. Set timelines – If teams are motivated by deadlines, less time will be spent in the early stages of searches. Limit times on the initial interview and spend more time on the strongest candidates in the second and third interviews.
8. Use technology – Application Tracking Systems (ATS) are software tools that filter and analyze candidates based on keywords in their cover letters and resumes. ATS can help narrow the field in candidates.
9. Use networks – Tap colleagues, employees and personal contacts to get the word out that you need fractional talent with a specific skill set.

You don’t have to cut corners to speed things up. Screening and vetting candidates and contacting references are important steps in the hiring process.

Speed can be achieved with timelines and carefully planned interviews can reduce inefficiencies. Hiring contract or fractional executives and subject matter experts can reduce the hiring and onboarding times. 

SeasonedPros.ca is an on-demand business talent source. Clients with an immediate need for experienced talent trust us to source professionals for fractional, interim and part-time roles. Each professional in our national database has 20 + years of business experience. We provide our clients 2-4 four vetted professionals in 10 business days or less.