Central MN Employers Speeding Up Hiring Processes

Hiring processes can seem lengthy and because of this local employers are adjusting this to speed the process of hiring new employees.  Gail Cruikshank is the Talent Director from the Greater St. Cloud Development Corporation.  She says we are still living in a job seekers market so employers need to move quickly to get the preferred candidate they want before another employer snatches them up.

Cruikshank indicates the St. Cloud Area currently has between 6,000 to 7,000 job openings which is down from the peak from a couple years ago when 9,000 jobs were available.  She says the amount of qualified applications are up for most openings.  The one area that continues to see the least amount of applicants would be entry level lower paying full time or part time positions.

Get our free mobile app

Hiring Processes – Key to Success for Employers and Job Seekers Simple will ensure Success! Through experience, research and the ever- increasing availability of data – along with the ability to process it – hiring has become a bit of a science. With the right platform and a properly trained recruitment team, your likelihood of successful hires becomes infinitely greater. While your hiring process should always be well designed, the most effective results invariably come from those that are also simple and straightforward. Unnecessary and outdated functionality may make for an impressive feature list, but will disrupt the flow of the recruitment process, making it both longer and less effective. With the vast number of jobs available today, job seekers will go elsewhere.

EMPLOYERS: Here are the key characteristics of a highly effective yet simple hiring process.
1) Screen every applicant – you never know where they may fit perfectly within your organization.
2) Don’t rely on systems to “screen applicants” – You are missing key talent
3) Allow opportunities for candidates to informally reach out with inquire about company before applying to job.
4) Application should be concise, easy and as short as possible. Only ask what information you truly need and will use in selection.
5) Review job requirements for ALL positions. What criteria is essential and what is “nice” to have.
6) Efficient Interview process with timely updates to ALL candidates – even the candidates you don’t extend employment – applicants talk and share their interview experiences publicly.
7) Speed up your hiring decisions/extension of job offers – candidates have options and won’t wait around.
8) And what if your dream hire is weighing his options? Such a situation highlights the need for communication with applicants or ‘candidate engagement.
9) Random calls and emails are not only ineffective. They give a poor perception of your company and its standing. More advanced and structured candidate engagement techniques keep in-demand applicants engaged, interested, and in the end, coming to you as their final employer of choice

JOBSEEKERS:
Application and Interview Tips
1) Be open to new opportunities a. Both in job search as well as alternative opportunities an employer may pose
2) Ensure your application and resume align with the job you applying to each time. Don’t send generic resume.
3) Do your homework on the company. Does it align with your culture/passions. What is social media or contacts you know saying about company?
4) Network with contacts that can speak on your behalf
5) Don’t ghost an interview or first day of work – employers share with others
6) Professionally persistent in follow up
7) Be open go “grow” into a position within the organization
8) Share your passions/goals once hired so employers understand your future plans/desired roles/community engagement.

Looking for more recruitment and retention tips visit https://www.greaterstcloud.com/recruitment-and-retention/ For job preparation tips or listing of all 6000 - 7000 jobs available within a 30- mile radius in and around St. Cloud, visit www.greaterstcloudjobspot.com

If you'd like to listen to my conversation with Gail Cruikshank it is available below.