CATS Applicant Tracking System

When it comes to having success in a company, you need the candidates who have the talent to perform and even out-perform their role. Whether the company is non-profit or for-profit, this is a big factor that plays into how successful you can be. In certain fields, there is often a lot of turnover, such as hospitality jobs and non-profit work.

Working to attract and retain those valuable employees is something that should be of utmost importance to you and your company. Hiring a bad employee can be a huge waste of a company’s time and money in the long run.

But how can you know what to do? Hiring can be such a long and tough process for both the employer and the candidate. With interviews, negotiations, onboarding once you find a candidate - you’ll want to make sure that this candidate is a perfect fit.

What makes your organization attractive to the best candidates?

This is a situation where you should really think about your strengths and the opportunities that really shine. These are the things that are often going to be desirable to candidates coming to join a team.

Something that also helps is being really transparent. A large number of candidates will want to know what your goals and ambitions are as an organization - so having this on the forefront of a hiring process will keep them in the loop and put them at ease.

Is the role realistic with expectations and salary?

The best and brightest candidates will not be satisfied with just working a job because they are qualified. In many ways, most candidates will want to gain experience and a set of skills that they previously did not have before. For someone with this mindset, you have to first notice their expertise level coming in and inquire about what they might look to grow in terms of skills.

With the potential for underperforming employees in a company already, you want to make sure that a hard-working individual is compensated properly - both with opportunity and salary.

How will you get to know your applicants?

In order to know if your potential employee is going to be a good fit for your company, you have to get to know them a little bit better. Much like a cover letter to a resume, you’re not going to know a person from a list of experiences or skills. Taking out some time to spend with a candidate in the beginning can help you understand who the person is - both on a personal level and professional level.

With organized interviews and situational strategies implemented, you can figure out what the candidate is made of. You’ll need to be able to distinguish whether or not this worker is worth a chance at a job to help make your company better. If it doesn’t quite seem like a fit, then maybe the search continues.

Ideal candidates bring a full set of skills, attitude of getting things done, experience and other soft skills. One of those soft skills is a thing called ‘grit’. This is the ability to get things done, whether they want to or not. Often shown as a person who is a hard worker, this is important because your “ideal” candidate might not have all the experience they need right now or the desired skill set. But, if they work hard and keep working hard, that is going to pay off and be something that helps them to attain their goal skillset with your company.

So at the end of the day, make sure you prioritize your goals and values when you’re looking into candidates and it will help you make the most of your interview process. This can really help you to connect to your candidates and pick the right one for a role.

What will drive your decision making?

When you’re in the midst of a hiring process, it can be long and draining. However, you should always keep your focus on the candidate and not just the hiring of another employee. Let the candidates that come through the channel dictate how your decisions are made moving forward.

It is also important to notice who you have in front of you at the time. Yes, there could always be someone better around the corner that is a better-fit candidate. The grass will always be greener on the other side, but it is also more green where you water it. After narrowing down your values and considering what sort of a situation you’re in to hire, you’ll be in much better shape than just rushing through the process.

In conclusion

These tips might not be the end-all be-all, however, they will help guide you through your hiring process. Without guidance, you might be more prone to getting it done quicker, overlooking potential in candidates and also missing out on important details. Overall, these should help avoid troublesome hiring decisions and gain better retention for your company.

Additional Resources

For the latest news and announcements from CATS, follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter, and read our blogs.