Employers need to sell themselves

Just as you are assessing candidates, they are sussing out whether you are the type of person they want to work for.EMPLOYERS often see recruitment as a one-way process - they think about what they want and expect applicants to prove themselves, without considering that they too are under scrutiny.
Just as you are assessing candidates to see whether they meet your criteria and will fit into your business and team, they are sussing out whether you are the type of person they want to work for and whether the company provides an environment they want to work in and the opportunities they see in their future careers.
Applicants have several pages of CV and covering letter to convince you they are worth employing but, as recruiters, you have limited space in an advertisement to make the same initial first impression. As a result, every word, image and detail counts.
If you use all that space talking about the business and why it is a good employer, you are left with little room to explain what you expect from your new employee. Conversely, if you use the whole advertisement specifying what skills and qualities the role demands, you miss the opportunity to sell your company as a desirable employer.
This is where your website can be helpful. If your site has a careers page, you can refer applicants to this for more details about a specific job and spend your advertising dollars getting them enthusiastic about being part of your team.
For smaller businesses, less likely to have a jobs page online, you can point potential staff to the website for more details about your company and work environment, focusing the advertisement on the available position.
However you do it, both aspects need to be addressed if you are going to attract the best candidates and minimise the time wasted wading through generic CVs from people who are totally unsuitable for the job.
Increasing application numbers, highlighted in our story on page 9, suggest the power has not yet shifted to candidates. But, as businesses begin taking on new staff post-recession, things will eventually head in that direction.
When it does, convincing prime contenders to choose your firm will become as important as deciding which candidate you will choose to employ.
- Julie Taylor is the business editor at The Daily Post