6 Effective Strategies to Reduce Recruitment Costs and Hire the Right People

Whether you are a cash-strapped business or a multinational corporation, the cost of taking on a new employee is as high as $4,129 per hire. On top of that, the unavailability of innovative skill sets in the market poses a massive threat to organizations.

Technology is continually evolving and helps professionals from various sectors do their jobs faster and better. These technological changes also affect the way hiring is done.

Human talent is the biggest enabler of business growth. However, no recruitment team has a bottomless budget or the time for hiring non-stop. To meet your recruiting needs, it is necessary to stay up to date with cost-effective techniques.

Technology alone cannot solve the challenges your HR team hopes to resolve. Suppose you have previously dealt with issues such as broken hiring processes or a shortage of required skill sets. In that case, you must identify where you need to change with the availability of new technology. That is where change management enters the picture.

Embracing changes in hiring

The expertise, skill sets, and positions you need to be filled today may not be what you need seven years down the line. Besides, the professional development of critical employees can affect your hiring activities — from long-term recruiting needs to succession planning.

Therefore, take the time to understand future projects and develop a recruiting plan that adapts to market/industry trends and your organizational needs. For instance, if you can identify the job positions you expect to turn over regularly, build a talent pipeline accordingly.

Change management gives you more control over your hiring process. Here are six ways you can reduce your recruitment costs online without compromising the quality of hire:

1. Tap into employee advocacy

Think about the last time you chose a restaurant or vacation spot. You probably looked up reviews online or asked your closest friend for advice. Job seekers take the same approach and ask colleagues and friends to impress the potential employer.

If you are confident you are doing all the right things to make your employers feel happy, engaged, and supported at work, please nudge them to share their experiences on various platforms such as LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Glassdoor, and so on.

Employee advocacy is an incredible tool that can help you attract those professionals who are genuinely interested in working for you.

2. Automate your resume screening process

A recruiter is responsible for many tasks, including uploading job descriptions across multiple job boards and social media accounts, following up with those who applied, arranging for pre-employment assessments or interviews, and so on.

However, an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) allows you to automate tedious tasks, such as screening hundreds of resumes.

Tools like SmartRecruiters, LinkedIn Recruiting, and Greenhouse enable you to assign a handful of keywords—such as qualifications, location, and years of experience for every job vacancy. This enables the system to automatically sort through every application to see if it includes those keywords.

Streamline your hiring process, minimize duplication of data entry, and safeguard candidate data with a robust ATS. If you do not have the right tools at your disposal, you will waste a lot of time doing tasks manually, thereby increasing your recruitment spending.

3. Introduce an employee referral scheme

Although having a referral program means you will have to set aside a budget to give to those staff members who successfully refer an employee to you, it is a cost-effective option.

That is because you are likely to recommend professionals who fit the job requirements and are in tune with your organization’s working culture.

Such employees are likelier to stay with you for the long run. Plus, you do not have to invest much time and resources in recruiting people actively. According to Jobvite, it only takes 29 days to hire a referred candidate compared to 55 days for other candidates on average.

A referral program eliminates the many steps typically taken during recruitment, such as screening resumes, posting ads on job boards, and cold calling. That ultimately brings down your recruitment costs.

4. Take advantage of social media

The willingness and ability to communicate on social media allows organizations to offer a sneak peek into their daily operations, mission, vision, and the type of people who work there.

This level of authenticity and transparency helps increase the volumes of applications you receive from potential employees who are eager to join you and work for your company.

More importantly, social media is entirely free. All you need to do is invest a little time in putting together the right messages and campaigns. Companies like G2, Salesforce, and HubSpot post photos and videos of their employees, highlighting the company culture.

If you are starting out, focus on a few social media channels only, rather than every possible platform. LinkedIn is the most relevant platform for your hiring requirements, so build a robust strategy for it to make your recruitment more efficient.

5. Create talent pipelines and alumni networks

Sometimes, you can have an enormous volume of excellent candidates for a single vacancy. While you may only choose one, you can always build a talent pipeline of people you can approach when a similar position opens in the future.

Pre-qualifying applicants shorten the recruitment process and make it more cost-efficient. The further an applicant has progressed in the hiring funnel, the more you know about them. 

Similarly, keep in touch with employees who leave your organization as they can be a great source of future candidates. Please encourage them to re-apply (unless they have been fired) or recommend a friend or family member instead.

6. Shorten your recruitment funnel

Make use of video interviews to get an impression of candidates quickly. This approach standardizes the interview process. It allows candidates and recruiters to speak to each other from the comfort of their homes.

DaySchedule, Willo, and HireFlix are some of the tools used for this task. Record the video interviews and watch them in peace at a convenient time. Filter suitable applicants easily and reduce the amount spent on each candidate.

Similarly, telephonic interviews can tell you a lot about a person and can be as quick as five minutes. Shorter interviews mean reduced recruitment costs.

Over to you

Besides following the aforementioned techniques, consider hiring candidates internally who may be eligible and can benefit from a potential employee development opportunity. Keep track of employees interested in making vertical or horizontal moves in the company by having managers schedule regular reviews and one-to-ones.

That will also help create a culture where your workforce feels heard and respected — a key component for reducing employee attrition. In addition, define benefits and perks keeping your employees in mind.

For instance, higher-coverage insurance may seem pricey at first. However, it may save money in the long run by retaining your employees. Other cost-free options, such as Flexi working hours and hybrid working models, can positively influence keeping your hiring costs low.

It is possible not all techniques will work for you. So be sure to try out a mixture of these methods and tools that help you recruit efficiently, without burning a hole in your pocket. Figuring out an ideal strategy takes time. Good luck!