HRs are trusted with the task of finding qualified candidates and placing them in vacant positions in the company or clients’ companies. Their work involves working with people, which means that they should be good with people and outgoing. It is also pretty clear that they need to have good communication skills, patience, detail-oriented, multitasking, great decision-making skills, ability to read body language, and more. However, spotting, attracting, and hiring the best talents requires more than the obvious and basic skills. I have seen many HRs make grave mistakes that end up costing them badly. Just looking at them, I wish that every HR person knew about these 5 hiring skills:
Proactivity
Recruitment is evolving at a rather rapid rate. The only way that HRs can make sure that they are doing their best work at all times is by being current on what is happening around them. And, not just in HR, but also in the work culture and technology. Moreover, being proactive helps ensure that they spot any little change in hiring trends so they can adjust accordingly and position themselves to find the best people. In addition, being proactive helps them stay aware and take advantage of opportunities that can help them hire quickly and efficiently such as hiring through a PEO. Companies benefit from partnering with a PEO in many ways including helping with international payroll processing, ensuring compliance with relevant bodies, and enhancing employee experience among others.
Culture awareness
Technology has opened up a global talent pool for companies to source candidates from. This gives organizations an opportunity to build creative and innovative teams through diversity and inclusion. However, this can prove difficult if HRs lack the skill of cultural awareness. They need to have the knowledge of how different cultures perceive different things about life and work. This can be instrumental in enhancing communication and determining the right questions, as well as how to ask them during the hiring process. In addition, cultural awareness can come in handy during the onboarding process by ensuring candidates fit in well with the company culture. This way they can ensure that they are hiring culturally fit individuals regardless of where they come from.
Ability to see the bigger picture
It is important to focus on each individual hire or vacancy that HRs are recruiting for. However, there is a better chance to bag the best talents if human resource experts remember to focus on the organization’s bigger picture. This means looking at the position as an important part of the larger machine in realizing the company goals and objectives. This can help HRs to create hiring strategies that focus on the long-term. This can mean thinking of talent management processes that will help the candidate develop into what the position demands at any given time to ensure continued business growth. Different companies are now focusing on hiring freelancers to have a hybrid working staff and get greater results.
Sales and marketing skills
In order to bag the right candidates out there, HRs need to have impeccable sales and marketing skills. On one hand, they have the task of selling their organizations to potential candidates. This includes showcasing the company culture and highlighting the benefits of giving these organizations a chance. On the other hand, they require marketing skills to help them place their job postings in front of potential candidates. These skills can help them write compelling job posts, identify the best channels, and leverage technology to ensure that the job posts reach as many people as possible.
Empathy
Things are tough out there, and most candidates are likely anxious and stressed on top of dealing with life challenges. This can even worsen when they are desperate for a job and want it urgently. It is only right that recruiters treat each candidate with empathy. Moreover, being empathetic can go a long way in enhancing brand reputation. In addition, understanding that a candidate might be going through a rough time and sending polite reminders rather than dropping a candidate ensures that HRs don’t miss out on great talents.
Conclusion
There is a long list of skills that every HR is required to have. However, times are changing and HR is taking new shapes every now and then. It is about time that HR professionals get beyond the basics and acquire more skills that can help them navigate the ever-changing field. Keeping tabs with the world of HR can give invaluable insights on the skills that fellow HRs are finding valuable at any given time.
