It’s been 6 months… countless agencies have tried (and failed) to find the right person. It feels like you’ve sat in on over a hundred interviews. You’ve extended 3 offers and they’ve all declined.
- Candidate 1 took a counter offer from their current employer.
- Candidate 2 got offered more by a competitor.
- Candidate 3 just didn’t show up on their first day.
What gives? Why does it feel impossible? The answer may be simpler than you think.
The real problem might be your job spec.
When you’ve decided it’s time to hire someone new, someone goes off to write a job specification. They’ll speak to the hiring manager, look at people’s responsibilities, and write up what is essentially a ‘CV’ for your company.
If your job spec is poorly written or overly AI-generated, you’re not going to get a positive reaction. Remember, this document is the first piece of written content a candidate is going to read about your company, you’ll need to make a strong first impression. If you’re looking for top tech talent, make sure your job spec reads like a place top tech talent should go to. Make them feel excited about what they read.
Too many cooks (agencies) spoil the broth.
If you’re interviewing too many people, you may have instructed too many recruitment agencies (or not the right ones). Especially when it comes to tech talent, picking the right agencies is a key strategic move when hiring.
Let quality be your driver, not price. Don’t choose the lowest fee just to save money. Remember, all these agencies are ultimately fishing in the same pond. Instructing more agencies doesn’t deepen the talent pool, it pushes agencies to send candidates quickly, rather than incentivise them to send the right people, which tends to take more time.
Keep your partners small, 2 or 3 agencies at most, and be clear about what’s non-negotiable versus what’s “nice to have” when you brief them.
Sell your company, not just the role.
We previously wrote about the dos and don’ts of interviewing candidates, so it’s worth giving that a look right about now. TL;DR: sell your company to the candidate, don’t just expect them to sell themselves to you.
On a psychological level, you want them to be excited about your company. This helps protect your company against those 3 rejections I mentioned earlier. Remember, top candidates are also interviewing you.
The counteroffer insurance policy.
Offer a bit more money than they ask for. You don’t need to go overboard, but instead of the 10% increase they want, go in at 12-14% and tell them it’s because you think they’re worth more than they’re asking for.
It’s a goodwill gesture that candidates won’t forget in a hurry. Think about it like this: R3000 per month isn’t even R100 a day, that’s two big bags of chips and a 2L cool drink. Six months of non-delivery costs you far more than that.
Final thoughts.
Our role as a recruitment agency is to sell the candidate’s skills to the company, then turn around and sell your company’s prospects back to the candidate. While we’re good at what we do, we’re only human, and your process ultimately is the decider for success.
Think of this advice like insurance: it lowers your chances of candidates flaking when it’s time to put pen to paper. At the end of the day, it’s about finding the right person and getting the job done. Follow this advice, and you’ll be in good stead. Declined offers will always happen, but you want to do everything in your power to avoid them.
Are you looking to hire tech professionals, get in touch here.
