In recent years, the labour market has developed strongly in favour of candidates in the battle for IT talent. Top talents have the choice between excellent positions and companies. In the context of digitalisation, companies are looking for very similar IT specialist profiles. This so-called "battle for IT talent" poses new challenges for many companies. Employers are therefore prepared to attract candidates with above-average remuneration and additional benefits. Recruiting is playing an increasingly important role in this. But what can you do as a hiring manager to attract talent?
Battle for talent
Yawn. Buzzword. It's hackneyed. But a fact!
No matter what we want to call it, it exists: the battle for talent.
Ilka Szentkiralyi, founder of indiv HR GmbH, which specialises in the placement of IT specialists in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, puts it in a nutshell: "IT specialists are approached by recruitment consultants and headhunters almost every day.". Whereas ten years ago, a hiring company would place a job advert and process the incoming applications, today it is the candidate who makes the selection.
Fast application process
Companies that want to win the battle for IT talent need to ensure that the application process is short and fast. We have observed that many of our clients lose candidates because the application process takes a long time, candidates do not feel that they have been met or communication leaves a lot to be desired.
Quick appointments - not only by email
Have you received an interesting CV? Then what are you waiting for? Pick up the phone and make an appointment! There are many companies with rigid processes. Time and time again we hear companies say things like "our Recruiting Shared Services Centre will set up an appointment" or "we are still waiting to hear back from the candidate on our email with suggested dates", etc. Really? In the meantime, five more companies contact this very candidate. Why don't you just send the candidate an SMS or WhatsApp? You don't only communicate with your friends, colleagues and family via email, do you? Show the candidate your interest and that you would like to discuss the open role quickly.
Interview? No. An exchange. Or getting to know each other.
You are welcome to conduct the initial meeting over the phone! This can be set up quickly and at short notice to discuss the key points and determine whether a face-to-face meeting makes sense. During the initial contact, explain what your application process looks like and approximately how long it will take. Make the discussions with the candidates an interesting exchange. The experts at indiv HR have long since stopped using the outdated word interview. After all, the conversations are not interrogations or one-sided interviews, but rather a mutual exchange. An appreciative conversation about the role, responsibilities and mutual expectations.
Modern meeting formats
Does it really always have to be a face-to-face meeting? Use modern meeting formats for interviews with candidates. In times of Skype video, Google Hangouts etc., you can speed up the application process massively if you only meet candidates in person in the final round. Save on travel costs and travelling time! Make the organisational process easy for your candidates too. Offer online meeting formats - with or without video, as you wish.
Don't forget feedback
At the end of the interview, always give candidates a deadline by which you will get back to them. Do you? Very well! But do you always meet this deadline? Even if you have not yet been able to make a decision at the time: let them know this too. The candidate will feel that they have been met and informed. And therefore valued. You can also simply send a WhatsApp message with a weekend greeting on a Friday afternoon.
And always remember: it is no longer the candidate who applies to you, but you who applies to the candidates.
Active sourcing with indivHR
indivHR offers HR managers the opportunity to proactively search for candidates. Be it for current vacancies or to build up a candidate pipeline for the future. We support you with our team and over 15 years of experience in German-speaking countries. Customised and precise. Fast and efficient.
