18+ Sample Recruitment Strategic Plan

What Is a Recruitment Strategic Plan?

A recruitment strategic plan is a strategic plan used by companies designed to enlist and hire talent using the most effective tactics. This type of strategic plan is typically used by Human Resources or HR professionals in their effort to encourage job applicants to join a company or organization.

According to an online article by tech website G2, around 62% of job seekers and job hunters use social media platforms to assess a potential employer’s brand and company culture. In addition, every corporate job offer attracts around 250 resumes on average.    

Sample Recruitment Strategies 

There can be many ways to recruit and hire people. Some people need to go through a long process while others can get hired on the spot. The following examples listed below are some common recruitment strategies that are universally used by companies, agencies and organizations when it comes to acquiring talent.  

Job Fairs. Joining job fairs is an ideal way to recruit potential employees. A job fair attracts thousands of job hunters and recruiters or headhunters can easily take advantage of the event to showcase their company culture and brand. A simple booth with the right promotional material and resources are all you need to set up shop. If you, as a recruiter, are looking for fresh talent and young applicants, you can even join on-campus job fairs. Many colleges and universities hold school-wide job fairs and similar events. These types of events are able to attract college students– especially graduating students- to potential jobs and careers. A job fair can be the crucial link that will enable a potential candidate to match with an employer. Online Recruitment. These days, everything can be found online and digitalization is everywhere. Recruitment is no exception. There are hundreds of reliable job sites that people can utilize to search for jobs and apply for open positions. Even companies and organizations take to social media to promote and inform the public about news and job openings. Whether it be LinkedIn, Instagram or Facebook, there are so many different channels that a recruiter or headhunter can use to advertise jobs. Social media has become more than just a way to connect with friends and family, it has become a platform for professional networking as well. It has become more convenient and easy for job seekers to browse local jobs in their vicinity because of social media. Referral Programs. Some companies put a higher premium on job referrals. Unlike social media channels, employee referrals are more narrowed down. In other words, social media recruitments cast a very wide net and anyone can easily apply. However, a direct referral from an existing employee offers a kind of vetting that online recruitment tactics rarely give. There are certain jobs, such as high-level positions or specialized work, that require a more complex application process. Referral programs, in a way, speed up the process of screening. Further, it is quite common for HR Departments to use incentives to compel employees to refer people from their network to apply for their company. These incentives could be cash bonuses, discounts, and other perks and privileges. Website Career Page. Aside from social media platforms, recruiters would do well to optimize their company or organization’s website. Having social media presence across various platforms is great, but there is something formal and more professional when a company has an updated and official website. But more important than just having an actual website, the website itself should be an effective tool that will help interested job hunters send in their applications efficiently. With this, it is important to ensure that the site is user friendly and contains engaging content. If recruiters want to attract the best talent, then a company website’s interface and navigation tools should be helpful. There are several ways to achieve this. For example, you can incorporate employee testimonies that speak positively about company culture, etc.

Tips For Building a Recruitment Strategic Plan

HR practitioners are usually given the responsibility to handle an organization’s recruitment process and talent management. A recruitment strategic plan requires careful planning and preparation. If you are tasked to come up with one, the examples provided below are some useful tips to help you craft a better recruitment strategic plan.  

Focus on talent. When it comes to recruitment, it can be easy to get lost in the numbers, statistics or mere requirements. As a recruiter, you are on the frontline of the company that you represent. That is, anyone who wants to work in the company usually has to go through you and is subject to your scrutiny. Even if you may have key performance indicators or KPIs that require you to meet a certain number of hires, the last thing you want is to end up recruiting the wrong person for the job. You want to focus on the quality of recruits, not on the sheer quantity. It is crucial to focus on the long-term effects of the hiring decision rather than the short-term reward of hiring an individual purely for the sake of filling up an available slot. After all, the growth of the potential employee as well as the company’s growth are at stake. Refine your recruitment process. There can be no successful recruitment if there is no reliable and dependable recruitment process in place. It is absolutely vital to streamline a recruitment process to promote greater efficiency and reliability. Of course, it is important to note that there will always be exceptions to the rule. Not all applicants will be subjected to the same application process; others are taken on a case-to-case basis. Still, for the vast majority of job applicants, a systematic recruitment process still applies. From the job posting to the initial interview and down to the formal job offer, you must be able to refine the entire cycle of the recruitment process. Doing this not only makes the transactions and transitions smoother, it also provides a sense of structure and predictability for both candidate and headhunter. Make sure to have a follow through plan. One of the best things you can do as a recruiter is to never neglect to follow through. There are too many instances wherein interview schedules, callbacks and job offers are needlessly put off, further delaying the recruitment process. And it is quite common for job applicants to be left hanging, never hearing again from employers. As a recruiter or headhunter, you can take it upon yourself to ensure the follow through process is done. Whether it is replying or reaching out to an applicant within a reasonable time period or informing job candidates days prior to prepare for an interview, you can easily establish a clear follow through process as part of your recruitment strategic plan.Highlight the benefits and perks. Part of any strategic plan is knowing the strengths of the company. People are generally attracted to companies that seem impressive and authoritative, so it is only reasonable to play up a company’s strengths and emphasize its positive aspects. Even for recruitment plans, it is important to know what your company can offer a potential employee. Highlight the perks of a particular job or the benefits that come with being part of your organization or company. It can be a very effective strategy to entice potential candidates with incentives and offers such as paid vacation leaves, healthcare coverage, car plans or even free-flowing coffee at the office. Whatever perks you offer job applicants, you can easily capitalize on these and play it up to encourage more job seekers to apply. Create a recruitment video. With the ease and convenience of technology these days, it is almost expected of every company to keep up with the times. Many organizations and corporations now invest the time and resources in producing a recruitment video for all kinds of purposes, especially for public consumption. These videos are especially helpful in job fairs or campus career fairs. Not only are they useful visual aids, they provide potential applicants with vital information that may aid their decision-making process. Engaging visual aids make an otherwise ordinary booth seem more interesting, thus attracting people to it.

How to Create a Recruitment Strategic Plan

Creating a comprehensive recruitment strategic plan can be quite time-consuming. The content will generally depend on the needs of the company and their chosen approach. There are existing templates that you can readily use to save time and energy. Simply choose a sample template above that suits your needs and keep in mind the following steps:   

Step 1: Establish the Goals

To start any strategic plan, you need to first lay out your goals and objectives. This is a key step in order to properly set the tone of your succeeding plans. In this case, what are the outcomes you want to achieve with your recruitment and talent acquisition plans? Maybe you want to hit a specific target of applicants or process a minimum number of job interviews within a given time period? Whatever your goals are, make sure they are measurable and realistic. You can make use of figures and statistics and incorporate them into your recruitment goals.

Step 2: Assess the Company’s Needs

Another important section for a recruitment strategic plan is the right assessment or evaluation of the company’s talent needs and resources. How will you be able to reach your established goals if there is no data and information to base your objectives on? In the case of recruitment, you need to properly assess the key details such as company size, organizational structure and even operational budget to determine if your company can afford additional employees. Your strategic plan should have an accurate assessment of the needs and descriptions for each department and each position. Only then will it be clear enough to proceed with brainstorming recruitment strategies and tactics.  

Step 3: Plot a Recruitment Calendar

Your recruitment strategic plan should also contain a time element. In other words, you need to prepare a timeframe or deadlines for your objectives to be met. Doing this will promote efficiency in the recruitment process. The turnaround time for job applicants may also improve if there is a reliable recruitment calendar to follow. From contacting prospective employees for initial interviews to following up on HR requirements and documentation, time is of the essence. Thus, a solid strategic plan should always contain a timeline with details plotting the accomplishment of these activities.    

Step 4: Include a Tracking Tool  

Another key element of a recruitment strategic plan is an effective monitoring tool. As a recruiter, you need to understand that the follow through is just as important as the initial contact. Thus, you need to formulate a method or tool of tracking progress of each of your potential candidates. Incorporating a monitoring tool is not only for the recruiter’s own use, having the recruitment process properly documented and monitored allows other members to learn from it as well. As a result, there will be a dependable reference for future talent acquisition professionals.  

FAQs

What is a strategic recruiting plan?

A strategic recruiting plan is a comprehensive action plan that outlines the ways and tactics of hiring and retaining talent in an organization. The plan mostly falls on Human Resources as they are tasked to scout and recruit the best talent that will contribute to the organization’s growth and success.

What are the strategic recruiting stages?

The stages of recruitment are strategic planning, strategic development, scouting, screening and lastly, overall assessment and evaluation.

What is the most effective recruitment strategy?

One of the most effective recruitment strategies are employee referrals. This essentially means that an existing employee vouches for another person and recommends him or her for the vacant job.

Having a sound recruitment strategic plan can save you from years of needless spending and wasted investment on the wrong hires. Talent acquisition and recruitment take time, money and energy. So it is for the good of the company that recruitment efforts are taken seriously and prudently. Browse the sample templates above to get started on your own strategic plan today!