As employers work to fill EHS positions with candidates who have the skills and attitude necessary to do the job, they seek “informed” candidates the most, according to a 2018 survey conducted by Glassdoor. These are the job applicants who have researched your company and know they want to work for you. They are the people who will be most engaged and productive.
However, if the informed candidate doesn’t like what he hears about your organization, he may steer clear of working for you.
The Top Hiring Challenge for Employers
Employers report that their biggest hiring challenge is attracting quality EHS job applicants who are knowledgeable about the industry, job role and your company.
If you’re trying to fill an EHS position, you might want to make some changes to your recruiting strategy because informed candidates research potential employers before they accept a new job.
“Recruiting strategies of the past are no longer enough to attract today’s candidates who are more informed than ever before thanks to transparency and more company information available online,” said Carmel Galvin, CHRO at Glassdoor.
Informed Job Candidates Make a Positive Impact on Your Workplace
Informed candidates save you time throughout the hiring process, improving the interview experience and decreasing costs. Hiring decision makers say the largest benefits of hiring informed candidates is an improved experience for potential employees (38 percent of those surveyed), reduced time to hire (34 percent) and improved satisfaction of hiring managers (34 percent), according to the Glassdoor survey.
Once informed candidates are hired, they positively influence employee engagement and retention. The top benefits of hiring an informed applicant are improved employee retention (42 percent of those surveyed), and a more productive (42 percent) and engaged (41 percent) employee.
How to Attract Informed Job Candidates
Hiring decision makers say the biggest influences on whether a job applicant joins their company is salary and compensation (48 percent of those surveyed), workplace culture (37 percent), and company reputation/employer brand (36 percent).
Here are some important things you can do increase your company’s chances of attracting quality job applicants:
1. Provide your candidates with the right information they need to make the decision to work for you. When you’re hiring an EHS professional, make sure to explain the importance of occupational safety, health and environment to your organization and its leaders. Talk with the applicant about the safety and health investments your company makes, your strategy for improvement, and how the role they’re interviewing for will contribute to improved safety performance. Additionally, highlight your company’s values, such as staff engagement, environmental management and community leadership, because candidates look for organizations with values similar to their own.
2. Invest in better employer branding. Hiring decision makers are investing more in employer branding to make sure applicants have the information they need about their organization and workplace culture. When potential employees recognize a company’s brand, it’s easier for that company to recruit them and to attract informed applicants. According to another Glassdoor study, 65 percent of users surveyed were more likely to respond to a recruiter from an organization they know than from one they don’t recognize.
3. Look to current employees to spread the word about job openings. Hiring decision makers are also asking current employees to share with their network details about open positions and their work experiences.
Job seekers are no longer simply looking for a job, according to Galvin. They’re looking for work that is meaningful and a company that shares their values. Hiring managers need to invest in creating a positive workplace culture and making their brand recognizable to attract quality job candidates for their organization.
Adapted from: Attracting Top Quality Candidates Is a Challenge (Even for Safety Leaders), EHS Today.