Innovative Recruiting: 7 Things You Wish You Knew!

Description:
Are you staying up-to-date in the recruiting world? We sit down with MRA Manager of Recruiting Services, Kathy Seidel, as she shares the top “7 Things You Wish You Knew About Innovative Recruiting!” From search engine optimization, to salary information sharing, to having a “hunting mentality”, Kathy covers it all. 

Key Takeaways:

1. Search Engine Optimization is your best friend! Know the key words, and use them in your descriptions and postings!
2. Be transparent when recruiting! Share the important details of the job!
3. Sometimes you can get stuck doing the same recruiting process you’ve always done. Network with other recruiters inside and outside of your organization – They can help bring new ideas and solutions to your challenges!

Let's Connect:

Bio - Kathy Seidel

Kathy's LinkedIn Profile

 

Transcript:

Transcripts are computer generated -- not be 100% accurate word for word 

INTRO | 00;00;00;03 - 00;00;23;05

Hello hello, everybody and welcome to 30 minute Thrive, your go-to podcast for anything and everything H.R., powered by MRA, the Management Association. Looking to stay on top of the ever-changing world of HR? MRA has got you covered. We'll be the first to tell you what's hot and what's not. I'm your host, Sophie Boler, and we are so glad you're here.

Sophie Boler | 00:00:27:01 - 00:00:50:11

Hello, everybody. I’m here with Kathy Seidel today. She’s our manager for recruiting services team and she really started as a recruiting business partner and made her way up to leading the team. So, she comes with a lot of knowledge and expertise in the recruiting world, but she’s actually come prepared today with the top seven things people need to know about recruiting in today’s market.

Sophie Boler | 00:00:50:18 - 00:01:01:13

So, we’re going to cover that today. You’ll be able to walk away with seven points by the end of the episode, but thanks for being on the podcast, Kathy. I’m excited to talk recruiting with you today.

Kathy Seidel | 00:01:01:13 - 00:01:03:03

Yes, thank you so much for having me.

Sophie Boler | 00:01:04:10 - 00:01:17:22

Absolutely! But before we get into your top seven things that people need to know about recruiting in today’s market, let’s talk a little more big-picture ideas. So, what are some trends that you’ve been seeing in the recruiting world?

Kathy Seidel | 00:01:18:15 - 00:01:45:23

Yeah, it’s definitely been really difficult to recruit for probably the last 2 years. But we are seeing things lighten up a little bit. We’re seeing less jobs posted. Unemployment numbers are still really low. So, there’s not a lot of candidates in the market. And so, we’re really seeing a shift from passive recruiting to that really active recruiting. So, you have to be okay with reaching out to people who aren’t applying to your jobs or targeting that perfect candidate.

Kathy Seidel | 00:01:46:10 - 00:02:00:18

And it’s a scary place for some people. You kind of feel like you’re stalking at times! And so how do you know where that line between being a professional, you know, doing what’s best for your company, but also doing what you’re comfortable with when you’re recruiting.

Sophie Boler | 00:02:01:18 - 00:02:12:14

So, what’s going to your top seven list right now? The first thing you mentioned was search engine optimization for posting. So, what can you say about that?

Kathy Seidel | 00:02:12:15 - 00:02:37:19

Yes, definitely. Even though it is a very you have to be active, you do still want to make sure your postings are getting in front of people. And the job boards like Indeed and LinkedIn have leaned towards search engine optimization so that you’re showing up with things like Google searches. So, you want to make sure that your job posting is, or your job title is in your posting five to seven times, which seems really weird when you’re writing it.

Kathy Seidel | 00:02:38:01 - 00:02:57:13

You quite literally want to say, “As a recruiting business partner with MRA, you will be doing…” and then have your bulleted list to be a recruiting business partner with MRA, you need to have. It feels really weird as you’re writing it, but when you read it back, and if you think in a candidate mindset, it’s fine and it works really well.

Kathy Seidel | 00:02:58:01 - 00:03:20:21

So, but that will help your job perform better than jobs that don’t have the title in there as often. In addition, as you’re filling out those postings, you want to make sure you’re filling information into every single box that you can. If it’s a box, say, on Indeed it’s a searchable feature on Indeed. And so, if you don’t have information in there and a candidate search by shift, your job is not going to show up.

Kathy Seidel | 00:03:21:07 - 00:03:56:18

So, it’s just making sure that you’re filling in everything you can. You’re connecting it to that engine optimization, you have keywords in there, you don’t have like company jargon or company logo or lingo to really make sure that your job is getting seen by as many people as possible and that it’s at the top of the boards, because there’s a lot of jobs posted still and so candidates really only look in the first page or two, and using some of those things really keep you in that first page or two and don’t get you way down at the bottom of the list.

Sophie Boler | 00:03:57:12 - 00:04:07:17

Something that we have in our team, it’s like a keywords sheet, kind of like a cheat sheet. We try to incorporate into every post. So, this is helpful.

Kathy Seidel | 00:04:07:19 - 00:04:19:12

Yeah. Yeah. And that’s where like a conversation with your hiring manager when you’re just kicking off the role of what are some keywords, what are some things that I should be including is really helpful.

Sophie Boler | 00:04:19:16 - 00:04:27:11

Yeah, absolutely. So, your key point number two revolves around salary information sharing. So why did you include this on your list?

Kathy Seidel | 00:04:27:19 - 00:04:53:13

And it was kind of strategically placed here too, because Indeed and LinkedIn especially are now requiring salary information on their postings or they’re going to put in an estimate. And the estimates are almost always wrong, especially here in the Midwest, because it’s using national salary data. And so, it’s comparing us to East Coast and West Coast, and the numbers show we’re typically a little lower.

Kathy Seidel | 00:04:54:00 - 00:05:17:00

And so, candidates are going in thinking, “Oh, wow, I can make $70,000 to $90,000!” when you might be thinking $60,000 to $70,000, and that’s setting you up not for success. So, making sure that you are including accurate information, you’ve got to really make sure that you’re prepared for that. People in your company might go look for your jobs that are posted and say, “Hey, I’m in a similar role.

Kathy Seidel | 00:05:17:00 - 00:05:38:03

I’m not making this range. What’s up with that?” So, you have to prepare for some wage studies, make sure you’re paying equitably, whether it’s someone who’s just joining or someone who’s been in your team for 10 years. But these boards are making you do it because there are other states that are making it required as part of job postings with some pretty hefty fines if you don’t include it.

Kathy Seidel | 00:05:38:03 - 00:05:42:22

So, they’re trying to protect themselves. So, you have to kind of get on top of it here.

Sophie Boler | 00:05:43:04 - 00:05:53:23

All right. So, going along with that, do you think it’s important to be pretty transparent when it comes to salary sharing and postings or …?

Kathy Seidel

Yes.

Sophie Boler

… Leaning more toward the conservative side? What are your thoughts on that?

Kathy Seidel | 00:05:54:05 – 00:06:16:04

I think transparency is the best way to go, especially because it’s one of the first questions that almost all candidates ask. You know, if you are reaching out to them on LinkedIn, sometimes the first thing you hear is, “Well, what’s the pay?” So, you’ve got to have your answer to that question, whether it’s in a LinkedIn message, in a phone screen, in person, in an interview, you have to be ready to answer that.

Kathy Seidel | 00:06:16:07 - 00:06:23:00

So that just kind of doing it really early on the posting end sets you up for success the whole rest of the way through the process.

Sophie Boler | 00:06:23:08 - 00:06:32:05

And then going along with that, the third thing you need to know about recruiting in today’s market, you mentioned, are referral bonuses. Can you talk a little about that, too?

Kathy Seidel | 00:06:32:05 - 00:06:52:01

Yes, yeah. So, we’ve been seeing over the last couple of years the most successful way to find candidates is through referrals. Number one, you’re getting people in your team currently who are saying, “I know this job and I know this person can do it.” It’s great because in some cases they might not be exactly what you’re looking for.

Kathy Seidel | 00:06:52:12 - 00:07:17:08

We’ve had a few people on the team who have been referred by someone. They’re not in recruiting, but they’ve got really similar skills that transferred over well, and now they’re doing great on our team. And so having some kind of structure in place to allow people to refer is going to get you more candidates and get you people who already know about your company, in most cases, already know about the job.

Kathy Seidel | 00:07:17:18 - 00:07:43:17

And it’s going to make that person who referred that other candidate stick more because they want to see that person succeed and they want to see them grow. I always say best case is the referral bonus gives a bonus to both the person who referred and the person who was referred. So, it’s kind of a referral/sign-on bonus and it can definitely be, you know, 6 months after the person starts. It doesn’t have to be right away.

Kathy Seidel | 00:07:44:04 - 00:07:50:11

But like I said, that helps kind of make some stickiness to both people and that’s going to lead to long-term success.

Sophie Boler | 00:07:50:19 - 00:07:55:08

And that’s a huge incentive for the employee too, go out there and find some great workers.

Kathy Seidel | 00:07:55:14 – 00:07:56:07

Yeah. Yeah.

Sophie Boler | 00:07:56:21 – 00:08:03:01

You mentioned SEO, salary sharing and referral bonuses now. So, what’s next on the list?

Kathy Seidel | 00:08:03:05 - 00:08:25:11

Yeah. So, what we’re hearing from candidates after the salary question is what are we talking about in terms of hybrid, remote, in-person flexibility? I, all the candidates that I talk to and that my team talks to, they’re not looking to be 100 percent remote. It can be a little, make you a little stir crazy if you’re 100 percent remote.

Kathy Seidel | 00:08:25:18 - 00:08:46:19

What people are really looking for now is flexibility. They got a taste of being able to be home for 4 hours because the plumber gave a window and you don’t know when he’s going to show up, and not having to take a whole day off for it or a half day off for it. You know vet appointments—they’re typically only open during business hours, doctor’s appointments, too.

Kathy Seidel | 00:08:46:19 - 00:09:08:21

So having that flexibility of either shifting your schedule around so maybe they can start a little earlier or wrap up their day later in the night or to be in person versus remote is really what people are looking for these days because they got a taste of it, and it was great. And clearly people showed they were still able to get their work done, too.

Sophie Boler | 0:09:09:05 - 00:09:19:13

Absolutely. And I can definitely attest to that too, that it’s nice not having like a permanent, set-in-stone schedule. It’s nice to have employers be flexible with that.

Sophie Boler | 00:09:20:00 - 00:09:20:11

Yeah.

Sophie Boler | 00:09:21:08 - 00:09:26:09

But what’s the fifth point that you would emphasize that people should take away from today’s episode?

Kathy Seidel | 00:09:26:13 - 00:09:47:15

Yeah. So, I want to kind of go back to what I talked about earlier with that. You have to be active in recruiting now and that can be, like I said, kind of a struggle point for some people. So, it’s switching from kind of the task-oriented mindset that recruiting can be of get this person screened, get this person in with the manager to a,

Kathy Seidel | 00:09:47:15 - 00:10:09:17

we call it a hunter’s mentality. So you want to go out and find, you know, it’s terrible to say the prey, but the person and you know, some people on our team call themselves professional matchmakers, that they’re finding that organization that’s looking for this person and they’re finding the person that fits and they’re marrying the two together all the time.

Kathy Seidel | 00:10:09:17 - 00:10:32:16

We have the organization that’s looking for the person, the perfect person, but those two don’t connect. So, you have to be the one to bridge that gap and to really make them, make the candidate see why this is the perfect role for them. And maybe sometimes make the hiring manager see why this is the perfect candidate for them, even if it’s not necessarily checking all 10 of the boxes if they’re eight out of 10.

Kathy Seidel | 00:10:32:23 - 00:10:58:04

But look, here’s how they can grow into those last two. So, it’s really kind of shifting your mentality, not just expecting the flow to come in because we’re seeing flow be really, really down. Part of that is having the tools to do that. So, LinkedIn Recruiter and Indeed Resume database are great tools to get some candidate data and to be able to reach out to candidates, but they come with a cost.

Kathy Seidel | 00:10:58:13 - 00:11:20:18

So, you have to be prepared for that and have to know what’s going to work best for your roles. Indeed is kind of a catchall, but does really well for manufacturing roles, entry-level roles. LinkedIn is more of a professional landscape. So, you know, as you’re comparing those things, figure out what works best for you, for your roles, and then also for how you reach out too.

Sophie Boler | 00:11:21:04 - 00:11:36:03

I like how you put that: the analogy of being a hunter or switching to a hunter’s mentality because that’s honestly what recruiting is really. But you have knowing when to laugh as another key point on your list. What do you really mean by this?

Kathy Seidel | 00:11:36:12 - 00:12:01:23

Yeah, so as I’ve mentioned a couple of times, recruiting is hard and when you switch to that hunting, it can be exhausting. I mean, you can spend 2 hours digging through profiles to maybe get 10 that fit what you’re looking for. An average response rate means if you hear from two of those, you did a good job. And so, you know, it’s a lot of work put in and it can be really demoralizing.

Kathy Seidel | 00:12:02:08 - 00:12:28:02

So, you know, have that smile file ready to go. Maybe it’s candidates who you placed and they’re so happy in their role and they sent you an email right as they started or a few months after, that you want to look back on when you have something difficult happen. Our team also has a little kind of shared folder where we save funny resumes or funny names or pictures of funny email addresses.

Kathy Seidel | 00:12:28:02 - 00:12:48:17

You know, as people kind of went through the email setup earlier in the 2000s, there’s some really funny emails out there. I will say my middle school email address is not appropriate at all, but that is why I do not use it. There are some people who are still using their middle school email addresses, and so having a folder of those to look back at,

Kathy Seidel | 00:12:49:00 - 00:13:03:15

when you have a candidate back out the Friday before they’re supposed to start, or when you have an especially difficult hiring manager, you’ve got to know when to like, kind of take that relaxed point and laugh because it can get really, really difficult.

Sophie Boler | 00:13:03:20 - 00:13:20:14

Yeah. And I think in recruiting more than ever, just like celebrating the milestones is super important. But we’ve reached to our last point now and that is increasing creative mindset. So, what do you really think about this phrase?

Kathy Seidel | 00:13:20:16 - 00:13:55:23

Yeah, yeah. So, with recruiting, and I kind of alluded to the there’s a lot of times you have managers who want 10 things in a candidate. You’ve got to be creative and help them see there’s not going to be the candidate with all 10 things, but how can we find the eight things that you absolutely need and the two things that we can train on to, you know, when you’re making job postings or when you’re going out searching, finding those different keywords, finding different areas to search, you know, getting creative to expand your candidate pool, especially for a diversity inclusion.

Kathy Seidel | 00:13:55:23 - 00:14:20:08

You can’t just search by the people who are currently in your organization because that’s just going to lead to the same as who’s currently in your organization. So, you’ve got to really be creative and think outside the box on things to find those top candidates and to find people who really expand your pool. Again, it can be exhausting, but that’s where I think having a good network is really helpful.

Kathy Seidel | 00:14:20:18 – 00:14:47:17

Both people who are in your industry and people who are doing recruiting. Roundtables and networking groups are my favorite thing because, one, you kind of feel seen sometimes when you sit down with them because you’re like, okay, it is not normal for a candidate to reschedule five times. Thank you. It’s not just me! But two, like you start to talk about the things that you’ve done, and they have ideas that you’ve done before, but you just haven’t thought of for this search.

Kathy Seidel | 00:14:48:02 - 00:15:12:11

So I always, always encourage, talk to other people when you’re having a tough search, not just people within your organization, but have those connections outside that they can say, Well, wait, have you tried this posting location or have you tried searching here or have you tried just searching “greater Milwaukee area” with a few keywords and leaving the title out and see if there’s titles that other organizations are using?

Kathy Seidel | 00:15:12:22 - 00:15:27:13

Those kinds of things are difficult sometimes when you’re very like process oriented and then you’re like, Nope, I have to completely change my process today to find something new. But that’s how you’re going to be successful. So, it’s important to kind of push for those things.

Sophie Boler | 00:15:28:02 - 00:15:40:14

That’s some great advice that you gave us but thank you for those seven things to remember. I think all of those are very important. But before we end the episode today, do you have any last thoughts that you share with our listeners?

Kathy Seidel | 00:15:41:16 - 00:16:04:02

Yeah, definitely. So, you know, as I’ve discussed, recruiting is hard right now. And, you know, there’s a lot going on in the news of, it might get easier, it might get more difficult, and so you’ve really got to decide how you want to kind of address the current talent landscape, know where you can be flexible for if things change, but really create your plan and move forward with it.

Kathy Seidel |00:16:04:12 - 00:16:25:22

Sometimes that might require something like A/B testing. So, as you’re reaching out to candidates, use one message for one group and one message for another to see what lands better for your candidates. It might require some changes to your job postings and things, but you’ve got to really figure out where do you want to go in this current landscape as it is, you know, today,

Kathy Seidel | 00:16:26:18 - 00:16:47:04

At, say, 8 a.m. that morning, know where you can be flexible as things change throughout and know where you can tap others for help, too. It’s hard, and especially when you’re in like a small to medium-sized organization and recruiting is not your only thing. Some of these things take time, and if you don’t have time, where can you tap for help?

Kathy Seidel | 00:16:47:10 - 00:16:58:07

So, know that you can’t tackle everything at once. That it might be small changes, but you know, you’re doing the best you can. I totally believe that no matter what you’re doing, you’re doing the best you can.

Sophie Boler | 00:16:58:07 - 00:17:31:12

Always. Keep positive. Well, thank you for sharing your expertise with us today. And I think we all can walk away with seven or more than seven really mean important modern-day tidbits. So, thank you again, Kathy. But we have her LinkedIn profile in the show notes along with some resources. So, if you have any questions or need any clarifications on her seven tips or want to just get any other tidbits from her, I think she’d be happy to connect.

Sophie Boler | 00:17:31:12 - 00:17:43:17

Otherwise, we will see you next week when we dive into the generational difference’s conversation. But thank you again, Kathy. This was fun, I had a good time, and we will see you all next week.

Kathy Seidel | 00:17:44:02 - 00:17:44:16

Thank you.

OUTRO | 00:17:45:13 - 00:18:07:19

And that wraps up our content for this episode. Be sure to reference the show notes, where you can sign up to connect for more podcast updates. Check out other MRA episodes on your favorite podcast platform. And as always, make sure to follow MRA’s 30 minute THRIVE so you don’t miss out. Thanks for tuning in and we’ll see you next Wednesday to carry on the HR conversation.