Passive Candidate Development is a sourcing strategy used to find quality candidates who are currently employed, not actively looking for a new job and who have a particular desired skill set. Passive search is often used when candidates cannot be found by actively posting a job, hosting a job fair or searching for posted resumes of individuals who are job seeking. This entails identifying a candidate list from competitive companies and proactively calling on those candidates to present the new opportunity.

How is it used?

By directly sourcing management positions from targeted competitors within a similar industry and geography focused areas.

 Why would organization use it?

The Department of Labor says that 84 percent of the workforce is made up of Passive Candidates.  With Passive Candidates making up the majority of the work force, it is important for an organization to utilize this recruiting tool.  Using this approach is popular among hiring managers who specifically know what they want in a candidate. 

There are many benefits to using this approach.  First being it saves time and money.  It is very costly for a company to take on a new employee that needs extensive training, with this approach minimal training is necessary.  Because the candidate is already an expert in that field, they are highly knowledgeable about that position.  Due to the high cost of training, having to provide minimal training save an organization enormous amounts of money.  Training can be especially time consuming, especially if they are new within that field.  This approach allows an organization to focus on more pressing matters other than training.  Also an organization can be assured the job expectations are being met. Organizations use Passive Candidate Development to fill management positions.  Since they are some of the most important positions within a company, they need to be filled with candidates that will get the job done. 

Since the candidates are passive, they are currently not looking for a job, which makes it difficult to identify them.  The candidate will not be utilizing a job board to post their resume or any forms of social media to display their interest in a new position.  Also there are no other available options until you know who the person you are seeking is. Another drawback is making the connection since traditional communication is hindered it is important to use alternative ways.  A lot of RPO (Recruitment Process Outsourcing) companies rely on cold calling, in which scenarios will be created to first find out who the person is as well as make initial contact with them.

Passive Candidate Development will provide an organization with a high caliber of skilled, quality, and qualified candidates.

Not only can organizations benefit from using Social Networking but candidates can benefit as well. Candidates are gaining access to the hiring managers, CEO, and CFO of all types of organizations including fortune 500 companies.  It can allow candidates to get their foot in the door and gain knowledge about that organization and their staff.  If a candidate utilizes the resource they may discover some information about the hiring manager and the organization that can be beneficial during an interview.

Before an organization starts using Social Networking there is pertinent information to know to make Social Networking successful for your organization.

Make the commitment- Social Networking is not just a trend; it is becoming a main resource for recruiting.  Once an organization starts there is no turning back. Your organization needs to stay committed to it.  Make sure there is consistency in the tone and activity.  It is also important to comment on other organization’s blogs and posts; this is free advertisement for your organization.  When your comment is posted, it is now publicly seen on your organization’s site, which can attract viewers to your site.

Use resources within your organization- Become “social friends” with your organization’s current and past employees. Being social friends expands a company’s potential candidate pool by providing unlimited access to this network of “social friends”.   “Social friends” may share similar interests and work ethics as them and lead to potential recruiting opportunities.  Also use employees to promote the organization’s site and potential open positions.

Measure the success- Organizations depend on certain metrics to determine the success of a resource.  Social Networking gives your organization the ability to measure the success and customize how your organization chooses to measure the information.  An organization needs to set quantitative goals and then track the contacts, candidates, and referrals that result from their social media efforts.

Also organizations should have obtainable expectations from an RPO.  Many organizations make the mistake of having unrealistic goals, and are often left disappointed in the outcome.  Best in class RPO’s have typical results that include:

Higher offer acceptance rate- Overall 90% acceptance rate

 Higher new hire retention rate- 55% improvement in new hire

Time-to-fill- 60% reduction in time to fill

Higher staffing efficiency ratio- Significantly increases

Lower cost per hire- Reduce it by 48%

Quality of candidate- 97% improvement

Hiring manager satisfaction- 67% increase in hiring manager satisfaction

*Aberdeen Group report “RPO in 2009”

It is important for an organization to know what key metrics to use to follow the success of the RPO. Knowing how to measure can lead your organization to increased ROI as well as time saving.

The first thing an organization considers when making a change from the status quo is the cost. An organization can increase their ROI with efficient employees and services that can save their organization large amounts of money. Most RPO’s offer customized packages that can fit an organization’s hiring process needs.

Most importantly, a company wants to see results; an organization will be able to see an expanded candidate pipeline, increased candidate quality, shortened cycle times, reduced cost-per-hire, and improved measurement of recruitment metrics. Hire Velocity was approached by an organization looking for diverse candidates.  In less than a month, more than 500 candidates were screened with over 90% of those screened being selected to move to the next stage. This is the type of results that an RPO can deliver as an extension of your team.

 HR departments are limited in their resources, while RPO’s typically have unlimited access to a multitude of paid and free job boards. RPO’s also use alternative ways to capture potential candidates and have recently been taking advantage of Social Media, which is a fairly new aspect in recruiting services.  Having these resources available presents your hiring manager with more choices for selecting top performing candidates. 

Hiring managers utilize RPO’s because it provides the best fit candidates.  It is a cost effective approach to an organization’s hiring needs. RPO’s are essential to acquiring top notch candidates while freeing up internal HR resources/recruiters and their hiring managers to perform other important tasks.

Candidates find the RPO process less stressful and more convenient. As a candidate, you are receiving more specialized attention, and the process is smoother. Some organizations are lacking the appropriate screening process which can leave candidates feeling like a small fish in a big pond.

Recruiters are able to use RPO’s as alternative resources giving them more access to sourcing resources than they would normally have.  Because RPO’s cast a wider net and handle all the screening and admin work, recruiters can focus on qualified, available and interested candidates versus weeding through piles of unqualified candidates.

RPO’s can save your organization time, money, and energy in your quest for quality talent. It will free up your staff to stay focused on their goals of increasing profits to your company’s bottom line. It is clear that RPO’s really do work and the results are tangible.

1). HR Marketer Blog

(http://hrmarketer.blogspot.com/)

 This blog aims to speak to the HR marketplace and touches on topics like PR, social media, recruiting and more.

2). I’m So Corporate

(http://imsocorporate.com/)

 This blogger shares ideas on how to use technology to facilitate hiring, recruiting and other HR practices.

3). Rehaul

(http://rehaul.com/)

Lance Haun has years of experience in HR recruiting and social media, making him a great resource for information on how business and people interact.

4). The Recruiter’s Lounge

(http://www.therecruiterslounge.com/)

Visit this blog to learn more about the recruiting process and how you can make it more successful.

5). The Talent Buzz

(http://thetalentbuzz.com/)

Learn more about hiring forecasts, technology, recruiting and more from this blog.

6). Six Degrees from Dave

(http://sixdegreesfromdave.com/)

Check out this blog from social media marketing, talent development and recruiting expert Dave Mendoza. (http://sixdegreesfromdave.com/)

7). Dr. John Sullivan’s

(http://www.drjohnsullivan.com/)

This blog is a great place to learn about talent management, leadership, marketing and recruitment.

8). HR Tests

(http://hrtests.blogspot.com/)

This blog focuses on HR testing so you can find employees that are truly right for the job.

9). Renegade HR

(http://renegadehr.net/)

From tips on creating HR TV to ideas on being a better leader, this site is a good source of HR information.

10). Michael Specht

(http://specht.com.au/michael/) 

This blog covers topics like technology, human resources, enterprise 2.0, recruitment and more.

First, let’s analyze your company’s level of sophistication with diversity recruiting.  We’ll use the analogy of snow skiing skill levels.

Beginner- This entails defining diversity within your organization whether it gender, lifestyle, or ethnicity. Such a simple question has the ability to lead your organization to success or downfall.

Intermediate- This consists of three important questions: 1)  Where and why do we need diversity?, 2) What are the demographics?, 3) Are the needs and demographics aligned? At the intermediate level, your organization is thinking in terms of long term success.  Knowing where your organization is in terms of your diversity strategy is key to establishing the staff you need.

Advanced- This level is where you are putting your plans into action. You are actively finding talent and pipelining talent.  The most action is happening at this level. You are finding out what is working for your company and what isn’t by y identifying the organization’s failure points and correcting them.

Expert- This is the final level where you are able to define and measure ROI. The ultimate goal of your organization is to be at this level.  This is where you have answered all the necessary questions and performed all the tasks.

Most would think organizations would consider themselves advanced or expert. Not to our surprise, our live poll showed 30% of webinar participants were beginners and 48% intermediate. With organizations finding themselves at the beginner or intermediate level, there is a definite need for help.

Below are some important tips from the webinar to aid in diversifying your organization:

Do some investigation: Establish relationships with those who are happy in their current organization. Establishing the relationship can lead to potentially having them join your team at a future time. Take advantage of situations that may lead them to leave their current position, such as not gaining a promotion or a poor quarter in sales.

Be willing to train: While the diverse candidate you are looking for may not have the exact background you want, keep in mind that doesn’t mean they can’t meet your expectations. Be willing to train those who have potential and be flexible with your needs.

Be realistic with your expectations: Many organizations are looking for the quick fix. Often having this mentality will lead you to instant failure.  You need to understand this is a multi-year approach and time needs to be dedicated to develop the right candidate pool.

One new social media tool can be a great aid in diversifying your organization. LinkedIn has become a resource that organizations shouldn’t live without; it has become the life line needed to ensure you are getting the diverse staff that is needed. One major aspect of LinkedIn is that you have a photo of the potential candidate, and since the information is being published online, the chance of discrepancies is greatly reduced. It is a database full of potential candidates, and you can narrow your search to tailor your specific needs.  Oh and did I mention it’s free!

Using these tools as a map can lead your organization to a successful and diverse workplace. “Diversity is no longer the right thing to do.”  It is something that helps organizations grow and develop the strength they need to establish and remain.

At the end of April 2010, the major job aggregation sites released hiring data and analysis, indicating slow but measurable growth. Below is a summary job report from Indeed.com, SimplyHired.com, and Execunet.com. 

 The slow job growth demonstrates some early signs of a recovery. However, job growth was inconsistent, effecting some cities, industries and job functions more than others. Indeed.com publishes a monthly report of where the jobs are, giving insights into which job market is strongest and which is weakest. Indeed’s job market survey shows slightly stronger job advertising activity, demonstrating slow growth.

Indeed’s April 2010 survey of job advertisements show the job market is strongest in Washington DC and San Jose CA.  Washington has been at the top of the list for a while, as Federal government spending has been high. However, San Jose CA improved in April to sharing a 1:1 ratio of unemployed per job advertisements. The top 10 job markets are geographically spread throughout the US (with the exception of the Southeast US). Baltimore, NYC, Salt Lake City UT, Oklahoma City OK, Hartford CT, Boston MA are all at 1:2 ratio of unemployed to job advertisements. Seattle WA & Austin TX, both at 1:3, round out the 10 best job markets.

At the opposite end of the spectrum is Detroit MI (#48, 1:7), Los Angeles CA (#49, 1:8), and Miami FL (#50, 1:9). Florida has the unfortunate distinction of having 4 of the worst 10 job markets – Tampa (#40, 1:5), Orlando (#42, 1:5), Jacksonville (#44, 1:6) and Miami (#50, 1:9). California has 3 of the worst 10 job markets – Sacramento (#46, 1:6), Riverside (#47, 1:7), and Los Angeles (#49, 1:8).

It’s interesting to note that these ratios have been slowly improving month over month through 2010. This indicates that there is some job growth, but it’s growing at a very slow pace.

Instead, find a recruiting partner that can build relationships with prospective applicants and passive candidates in order to streamline the hiring process. The University of Illinois at Chicago did a study on proactive recruiting particularly pertaining to finding qualified female candidates. In two different job searches for the same position, proactive recruiting nearly doubled the number of qualified applicants and showed a huge increase in the number of female applicants. Proactive recruiting was defined as an aggressive search for talent rather than a simple job post.

In recent years, Technology has eased the pains of creating an effective proactive recruiting process. Applicant tracking systems such as Silk Road’s Open Hire, iCims, and Taleo, (for example) have enabled companies to build robust talent pools and ease the process of finding qualified passive candidates. Leveraging the right technologies can create the infrastructure and foundation needed to lower your recruiting costs and enhance your recruiting process. Thus, it’s essential to look past the “reactive” recruiting methods such as job postings, and create a proactive recruiting process that will build a much more qualified talent pool.

Finally, remember that it is always a good practice to continuously promote your brand from a recruiting perspective.   Your career site is the door to your company and should display the goals, values and culture of your company.  Once you do proactively get the candidate to your front door, make sure you leave a great impression!

Valeri Marks
CEO
Your trusted HIRING PARTNER
Let us help you HIRE the BEST, FASTER and PAY LESS

The past few years have been hard on the recruiting industry, especially in the technology industry. With companies like Microsoft and Intel having mass layoffs last year, the industry seemed to get hit hard by the recession. However, many tech companies began a hiring spree late last year and continue to be actively hiring. ISI Group, a research firm, says that they believe overall revenues will rise more than 10% for the first quarter for many large tech companies. That is a major improvement when looking at a 16% decline just last year.

Take a look at Intel, a company that laid off 79,800 employees at the end of 2009. The popular computer chip maker said that it plans to hire 1,000 to 2,000 people in 2010, the first substantial hiring spree for the company in five years. Google, the world’s leading search engine company, said that it hired 786 new employees in the first quarter and that it expects to continue hiring.

The hiring spree in the technology industry is not just affecting the big players, smaller startups are also beginning to hire. LinkedIn, the social networking website for professionals, hired 184 people last year and 154 so far this year to bring its employee count to about 500. The company said it also plans to add an additional 300 hires this year. Another social media startup, Twitter, said it hired about 125 employees since last May, which brings the company to a total of 170 employees.

Source: Wall Street Journal

Twitter is a great tool for businesses looking to have direct contact with consumers. With over 15 million active users, businesses have cited the social media network as a way to let users know about new products or services. Twitter even has a dedicated page for businesses explaining how the service can be used. But can Twitter be used in the recruiting industry? The answer is yes. Twitter is a fantastic resource for companies looking to reach an endless amount of users with little effort.

Many companies have dedicated an entire Twitter account to listing available jobs. For example, MTV (@MTVnetworksjobs) tweets its open positions and is always willing to answer questions about job related questions. The account has over 21,000 followers, this means that every time the network posts a job, over 21,000 people see it. Furthermore, if one of those over 21,000 people retweet the job listing, every one of his or her followers sees it too. This is a fantastic approach to promoting your open positions to an endless amount of candidates.

For the average business, getting over 21,000 followers like MTV Networks is not an easy task. It takes quality posts and strategic timing to acquire a following. It is important to take into consideration when people will be using Twitter before posting a job listing. For example, tweeting a job posting at 3am on a Monday night is not likely to have a large reach because many users are asleep and may have work early the next morning. Instead you may want to think about tweeting it at 7:30am when many users are waking up to check their Twitter timeline before getting ready to start the work day. You may want to also think about retweeting the job posting later in the day at around 6:30pm when users are getting out of work and home to browse the Internet. Don’t be discouraged if you don’t acquire a large following at first, keep tweeting on a regular basis and the following will surely come.

You can always check out Hire Velocity’s on Twitter @HireVelocity and @HVJobListings.

Byron West
President
Your trusted HIRING PARTNER
Let us help you HIRE the BEST, FASTER and PAY LESS