Internal Recruiting: 2 Overlooked Tools
Many times, when we’re thinking about recruiting, the first thing that comes to mind is hiring someone from the outside. And that’s okay, but we need to make sure that we’re not overlooking the fantastic talent that’s already working in the company.
Job posting and job bidding are two common recruitment programs that organizations need to fully utilize. If you haven’t done a recent assessment of these programs, maybe now is the time.
Job posting is when the organization tells employees about a job opening. Employees then have a chance to apply. Some organizations will post the position internally and externally at the same time. However, in some companies, employees are given a chance to apply prior to advertising the position externally. This can be viewed as a plus to employees because they don’t compete with recruiting external talent for positions (think: employee engagement).
Job bidding is when employees express an interest in an opening before the opening happens. Some companies might have a formal process for this. I’ve often seen it happen on an informal basis. For example, a sales coordinator says that they would like to be considered for a sales manager position. Or a payroll clerk says they would like to apply for the next HR coordinator opening.
In both of these programs – job bidding and job posting – employees have the ability to express their interest in positions early in the recruiting process. If HR isn’t promoting these programs to employees, they should be. On some level, it could be easier to backfill the old job than the new opening. Not to mention that employees seeing coworkers take on new roles could mean a boost for employee engagement and morale.
In reviewing your organization’s current job posting and job bidding programs, here are two things to consider:
Get hiring managers involved in the review. Buy-in is so important. This is a perfect opportunity to talk with hiring managers about considering internal candidates. It’s also a good time to talk with managers about being open and honest regarding employee performance. Managers should let employees know when their performance is not at a level that would allow them to be considered for other opportunities. And managers should not pass along their poorly performing employees to another department.
Think about eligibility. Many of these types of programs say that the employee needs to have worked for the company for a certain amount of time. I’m not sure if that’s necessary. You know your business, ask the question, “Does tenure really make a difference?” Is it possible that the organization is losing great talent just because they have to complete an eligibility requirement? This could be something to discuss . . . because, if employees can’t get that promotion or transfer, does the company run the risk of the employee leaving all together?
I don’t know that programs like job bidding and job posting need radical overhauls, but they do need to work well. Employees want to know that they have a future with the company and programs like these send that message.
P.S. I’m delighted to be partnering with HackerEarth on an upcoming webinar about 5 Recruiting Strategies for Hiring the Best Tech Talent. It’s on Thursday, August 22, 2019 at 10a Pacific / 1p Eastern. And if you can’t make it, sign up anyway and listen to the recording. Hope to see you there!
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