Why Recruiting Via Digital Should Be a Top Priority For Leaders

In today’s highly competitive business world, recruitment is all about the candidate. The increasing influence of technology means that leaders must recruit effectively via digital channels, or risk being left behind.  

FuturePeople’s Recruitment Trends Report 2017/2018 found that digital recruitment is not the top preference for HR and recruitment leaders. In Australia, over two-thirds of leaders recruit directly via their internal team and internal business managers [1]. In contrast, just 16 per cent currently recruit via digital technology.  

Given the overwhelming preference for digital recruitment among today’s candidates, it’s worrying that organisations are not responding to this demand. To expand the talent pool, recruiting via multiple digital channels and smart technologies is key. Leaders need to invest more in sophisticated and omni-channel platforms such as mobile, chat bots and virtual reality.  

Here are three key strategies that will help you improve your digital recruitment and source the best talent.   

1. Embrace mobile and new technologies. We are now in the digital age, and candidates have limitless information available at the touch of a button. To attract and retain the best talent – especially tech-savvy millennials – it’s crucial to be mobile-led and embrace new technologies.  

Almost 4 in 5 Australians now use a smart phone [2], so there’s a huge opportunity for organisations to attract talent via mobile marketing. If your online profile doesn’t translate to mobile and is difficult to navigate, candidates will not hesitate to seek opportunities elsewhere. Ensure that your recruitment strategies are mobile-friendly and adaptable across different platforms, and you will be able to maximise candidate engagement.   

2. Don’t rely on social media alone. While social media is a great platform for engaging with potential recruits, it’s important not to rely solely upon social media. A strong social media presence is not enough to truly disrupt HR and recruitment processes.  

 To deliver a targeted and personalised candidate experience, you need to have all bases covered, from online chat to video to virtual reality. Omni-channel engagement gives your brand credibility and authenticity, and positions you as a forward-thinking company that embraces cutting-edge platforms. 

 3. Innovate with Big Data and Emotional Intelligence (EI). According to our report findings, most organisations have not yet ventured into innovative forms of recruitment, such as Big Data and Emotional Intelligence (EI) benchmarking. In fact, just 5 per cent of companies are investing in Big Data and analytics to profile and recruit the best and brightest people [1].

The use of innovative and cutting-edge recruitment strategies can enable your organisation to track, profile and assess candidates with the right cultural and emotional ‘fit’ for the role. Given that emotionally intelligent people are the ‘secret sauce’ for success on the front line, leveraging innovative technologies to recruit for EI will be the fundamental ingredient for success in the digital age.