An Effective Recruitment Process in 7 Steps

The way you conduct each step of your recruiting process will affect two critical aspects of hiring: the fit of the candidate you find and the stability of the employer-employee relationship.

During the recruitment process, it is certainly advisable to consider several elements, including skills, experience, the match between the offer and what the candidate is looking for, and, above all, the personality of the potential employee. But the process can be laborious if you don’t know exactly how to go about it.

This article will introduce you to the 7 steps of an effective recruitment process:

1. Conducting a needs analysis
2. Drafting the job offer
3. Posting the job offer
4. Sorting applications
5. Holding an in-person selection interview
6. Hiring
7. Preparing for the new employee’s arrival

1. Examine Your Workforce Needs

The first step in the recruitment process is to establish the company’s needs. Need a new floor clerk? Start by clarifying a few things:

• What level of education is required?
• What work experience is needed?
• For which shifts?
• Does the employee always have to be available at the same time?
• What will be their tasks?
• Will the person have to own a vehicle?

💡 Be as specific as possible in your needs. The clearer they are, the less likely you and the employee will be to have unmet expectations.

2. Stand Out With an Appealing Offer

After examining your recruitment needs, think about what you have to offer your future employee. Sit down and really take the time to think this over.

The job offer is nothing short of a charm offensive. Here are a few items to include:

• The name of the position to be filled (keep it straight to the point);
• Duties and responsibilities: not the ones that the future employee will do once a month but the ones that best reflect their everyday work;
• The sought-after requirements and qualities;
• Salary range: this is a must if you don’t want to waste your and the candidate’s time if the salary doesn’t meet their expectations;
• Anything about you that might appeal to a potential employee: examples can include competitive working conditions (RRSP, employment insurance, team activities, budget for sports activities, schedule flexibility, work atmosphere, etc.); and
• Instructions on how to apply for the job.

Remember: the job posting must at all costs be attractive in order to stand out.

3. Publicize Your Offer to Boost Visibility

Now that you’ve written the job posting, it’s time to get it out there.

A job posting can be featured on your website, on job boards in your industry, as well as on your social media.

Don’t hesitate to be original. On social media, take advantage of the casual tone of certain platforms, such as Facebook, to speak directly to your potential candidates in ways that will connect with them.

At Agendrix, we once used the following wording to recruit a business development specialist:

We’re looking for someone to round out our business development team.

Do you have great interpersonal skills? Are you known for your persuasiveness?

Join a youthful, vibrant and highly competent team. We want to meet you!

Come and reinvent the world of work with us!

💡 Opt for eye-catching, even bold and daring posts that connect with your target audience and give an idea of your company’s vibe.

4. Sort Applications Like a Boss

So your job offer has generated some interest and the ball is in your court. There’s no time to lose! There are several ways to sort through the applications. Some managers have few or no guidelines and simply rely on their gut feeling. At Agendrix, we are rather methodical in our approach.

Our needs analysis is transposed into a table, where we tick off the boxes as the applications are reviewed.

For example, we might be looking for someone who:

• Has customer service experience;
• Likes to work as part of a team;
• Is highly organized;
• Manages stress effectively;
• Is comfortable with programs such as Maitre’D;
• Is available on weekends;
• Is smiling and sociable.

It’s a good idea to establish what elements should qualify someone for an interview, but also to name certain criteria that, although not necessarily musts, would be serious assets—i.e., a particular skill. These elements will help you decide between two equally promising candidates.

💡 Draw up a recruitment strategy for sorting applications before you get to this stage, and also have an idea of how many candidates you ideally want to meet. If you have a larger number of promising resumes than you were expecting, why not set up phone interviews first, as a first layer of screening?

5. Get To Know the Candidates

At the interview stage, go beyond the almost kneejerk habit of asking candidates questions and noting down answers.

Instead, try to really get to know the person in front of you. Are their personality, values, and work style compatible with the rest of your team?

This is what ensures strong synergy that will stand the test of time—the new employee’s fit with the rest of your team and with the company’s mission and values.

It’s also important to make sure that the company’s offer matches the candidate’s expectations and aspirations, because if the job offer doesn’t correspond to their needs, the employee is not likely to commit to the company.

In addition to questions for candidates, be sure to talk about your company and the role the potential employee would fill; describe a typical day so they know if this is what they are looking for. Ask what they think about it.

💡 Carefully prepare for the interview by checking out our 7 Practical Tips to Hire the Right Candidate.

6. Time for Pomp and Circumstance… You’ve Found Your New Employee!

Before all else, contact the chosen person in order to confirm their interest and finalize their hiring. That way, if they ultimately turn down the job, you can move on to your second choice.

Once you’ve chosen the employee who will be joining your team, you have to announce the good news, but also notify the people who were not selected. Informing unsuccessful candidates, however, can be reserved for those who were interviewed.

You can contact them orally or by email. Thank them for their time and interest, and explain that you decided on another candidate. If you found them particularly interesting, feel free to tell them so directly and suggest that they keep an eye out for other job offers from your company in the future.

💡 When you tell your selected employee the good news, be prepared to provide them with all the information they need for the next step in the process. Are you giving them some time to think things over before confirming their answer? Would you like to meet with them to sign a contract and negotiate the salary or other conditions? When will they be starting? Would they like to discuss any of the conditions again before making their official decision?

7. Roll Out the Red Carpet

The stage of welcoming a new employee is crucial. Did you know that 22% of new employees leave the job within the first 45 days of their employment? Sometimes this is all the time it takes to realize that the job or work environment is not a good fit for them after all, or the new employee might have a hard time integrating into the team or developing workplace engagement.

This twofold challenge can be mitigated by a well-designed onboarding and integration process.

Here are our best tips for successfully welcoming and integrating your new employee:

1. Plan for the new employee’s arrival: make sure they will have everything they need when they get there (To celebrate new additions to the team, you can design an eye-catching QR code featuring the company logo, which, when scanned, directs visitors to a personalized landing page revealing the likes and dislikes of our latest hires);
2. Offer a light schedule for the first week;
3. Pair up your new employee with an experienced employee, and make sure to choose someone friendly and approachable;
4. Organize team activities to promote cohesion;
5. Offer a gift featuring the company image; and
6. Be sure to follow up.

A Recruitment Process That Reflects You

We encourage you to be authentic throughout all stages of the recruitment process. If you don’t plan to continue to charm your employee on a regular basis, don’t overdo it before and during hiring; this could put across a misleading image.

This being said, the key takeaway from this article is definitely to apply yourself during the recruitment process. You’re better off taking the time it takes to find an employee who will become a full-fledged member of your team—a dedicated employee that you will want to hold on to.