Here at Coburg Banks, we post a lot of blogs based on tips and tricks on how to successfully recruit and keep staff happy.
However, one area we don’t always cover is what a candidate actually wants to see in an employer.
While the emphasis might typically be on the candidate to impress the interviewer or recruiter, there are also a lot of job seekers who set their standards very high as well.
This starts with the way you portray your company in the job description right through to the tone and attitude you use during the interview stages.
In other words, if your business looks dull, why should a candidate come and work for you?
They want to feel inspired and motivated to come to work.
After all, we spend a majority of our lives earning a living, so it’s hardly surprising that candidates want to get some sort of job satisfaction.
To help you get a better understanding, we’ve assembled some shocking and damn right frightening stats and facts from Glassdoor that might just make you rethink your next recruitment campaign.
The big five
Trying to establish what is important to a candidate isn’t always easy as we all have different preferences.
But there is a common theme.
As we recently mentioned in our blog, salary and compensation are at the top of their priority list, closely followed by career growth opportunities, work-life balance, location/commute and company culture/values.
Using this as a basis, do you think that you’re offering enough money to the new employee?
And can you give them the career growth opportunities they desire?
In regards to salary, a top tip to get an idea for a suitable amount to offer is to use Indeed’s salary checker, while creating an annual sustainable growth plan might give you more of an answer for the candidates wanting to hear about future opportunities.
Social media usage
The way we should advertise jobs is changing, especially when 79% of people are using social media platforms to look for work.
Yet despite this revelation, employees believe that two out of three businesses don’t know how to advertise via social media or don’t at all.
One of the best mediums for posting a job advert is LinkedIn.
With around 20 million professionals using it in the UK alone, you can tap into a hub buzzing with top talent.
If you don’t cover social media, you could be missing out on some of the most talented individuals within your industry.
As a starting point, you should:
- Set up a company page on LinkedIn
- Get your current employees to share your adverts
- Headhunt the best talent using LinkedIn Ads, Recruiter or Recruiter Lite
You can find out more about how to implement this here.
Satisfaction over money
As I previously mentioned, more and more candidates are searching for a job that satisfies them as a priority.
Contrary to the fact that salary is the most important factor to candidates, when Millennials were asked whether they’d rather make £30.5k a year at a job they love or £76k a year at a boring job, guess what 80% said?
That’s right, a large majority of Millennials are seeking satisfaction.
While money is still a priority, I believe once it gets past a certain threshold and age, individuals start to priorities their quality of life.
They realise they’re already earning well, so they no longer need to push for a couple of hundred pounds extra in their payslip every month.
The key to this point is developing a great work culture.
Get that right and combine it with a competitive salary, and you’ll have a loyal set of employees wanting to go above and beyond for you.
To do this, try considering:
- Employing people that are a right fit and complement your team
- Communicating effectively with your current employees to create a great level of honesty and banter
- Running team events to bring different departments together
Your reputation precedes you
It’s a famous saying, but it couldn’t ring any truer.
Glassdoor’s study found that 69% of job seekers wouldn’t take a job with a company that has a bad reputation – even if unemployed.
So it’s not only important to look after your candidates, but your current employees too.
Because if you don’t, you could pay the price further down the line.
This is where exit interviews come in handy.
They give departing employees a golden opportunity to provide honest feedback and reduce the chance of them ranting about your business on Glassdoor or social media.
It’s also completely free and gives you the chance to work on building a stronger work culture for your next set of employees.
Final thoughts
These facts and statistics highlight a real indicator of how to attract some of the most talented professionals.
If you fail to address them in your business, you could see a lot of candidates dropping out at the last minute, once they’ve had some time to reflect on their decision.
As a result, this can prolong the recruitment process and cost you a lot of money.
Or even worse, it may well just put job seekers off from applying altogether.
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