The recruiting analytics experts at Datapeople weigh in on the weaknesses of a post-and-pray recruiting approach and why hiring teams should always avoid it.
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Why Post-and-Pray Recruiting
Doesn't Work
First, job descriptions and job posts
aren't the same thing, so it's important
not to conflate the two. A job
description is a comprehensive,
internal document used by human
resources to lay out all the details of a
position.
Meanwhile, a job post is an external
document used by hiring teams to attract job
seekers to an open job. Hiring teams
shouldn’t just turn a job description from their
human resources department into their job
post. Or just make one up on the spot without
a lot of forethought.
Second, job titles are really important. Just
as with job descriptions and job posts,
internal job titles and external job titles are
two different things. A job title used internally
at the company isn’t always the same as a
job title used by candidates searching in the
marketplace.
Hiring teams have to use titles that
are clear and industry-standard (even
‘boring’). Because those are the titles
that job seekers are searching for and
that job boards are using as
keywords to respond to those
searches.
Third, job post content matters. Diversity
statements, for example, are something that
many potential candidates care about. Yet
sometimes hiring teams leave them out of
job posts because ‘they’re assumed.’ But
candidates don’t make assumptions about
these things.
In fact, Datapeople analysis shows that
diversity statements increase the
perception on the part of job seekers that
a company is committed to inclusive
employment practices. Even when the
diversity statement is ‘common’ or
‘legalese.’
Fourth, language can be a deal-breaker.
Unfortunate things can happen to job-post
language when hiring teams take the post-
and-pray recruiting approach. One, biases
can seep in. Two, wordiness, vague
phrasing, jargon, and even grammatical
errors can seep in as well.
If the job post doesn’t define the role clearly,
it’s hard for job seekers to determine
whether they should apply. Qualified job
seekers may get confused and not apply. At
the same time, hiring teams may see a lot of
‘one-click-apply’ applications from
unqualified applicants.
Fifth, where hiring teams publish their job
ad matters because job seekers have
multiple options when scouring the
marketplace for work. While some job
boards like Indeed aggregate ads from
other sites, not all job seekers use these
broad search engines.
And unless a company has
unusually strong brand
recognition, very few job
seekers are likely to visit the
company’s careers page.
Contact Us At:
https://datapeople.io/
Doesn't Work
First, job descriptions and job posts
aren't the same thing, so it's important
not to conflate the two. A job
description is a comprehensive,
internal document used by human
resources to lay out all the details of a
position.
Meanwhile, a job post is an external
document used by hiring teams to attract job
seekers to an open job. Hiring teams
shouldn’t just turn a job description from their
human resources department into their job
post. Or just make one up on the spot without
a lot of forethought.
Second, job titles are really important. Just
as with job descriptions and job posts,
internal job titles and external job titles are
two different things. A job title used internally
at the company isn’t always the same as a
job title used by candidates searching in the
marketplace.
Hiring teams have to use titles that
are clear and industry-standard (even
‘boring’). Because those are the titles
that job seekers are searching for and
that job boards are using as
keywords to respond to those
searches.
Third, job post content matters. Diversity
statements, for example, are something that
many potential candidates care about. Yet
sometimes hiring teams leave them out of
job posts because ‘they’re assumed.’ But
candidates don’t make assumptions about
these things.
In fact, Datapeople analysis shows that
diversity statements increase the
perception on the part of job seekers that
a company is committed to inclusive
employment practices. Even when the
diversity statement is ‘common’ or
‘legalese.’
Fourth, language can be a deal-breaker.
Unfortunate things can happen to job-post
language when hiring teams take the post-
and-pray recruiting approach. One, biases
can seep in. Two, wordiness, vague
phrasing, jargon, and even grammatical
errors can seep in as well.
If the job post doesn’t define the role clearly,
it’s hard for job seekers to determine
whether they should apply. Qualified job
seekers may get confused and not apply. At
the same time, hiring teams may see a lot of
‘one-click-apply’ applications from
unqualified applicants.
Fifth, where hiring teams publish their job
ad matters because job seekers have
multiple options when scouring the
marketplace for work. While some job
boards like Indeed aggregate ads from
other sites, not all job seekers use these
broad search engines.
And unless a company has
unusually strong brand
recognition, very few job
seekers are likely to visit the
company’s careers page.
Contact Us At:
https://datapeople.io/