As you search for candidates to fill new positions or vacated roles in finance and accounting, you should also orchestrate your hiring strategies. With low unemployment rates, supply is down and demand is up, along with the competition for top talent.
You aren’t the only manager impacted by this. In a new Robert Half survey, 93 percent of CFOs said it is challenging to identify skilled workers for professional-level positions. It's also taking them a month or more to fill the roles.
Hiring strategies that worked a few years ago may not work with today's unemployment rates. Job seekers have the upper hand, and you may need to retool so you can set up your organization for success without unnecessary stress and wasted time and energy for you and your team.
Here are four steps to ramp up your recruitment for more effective hiring.
1. Complete critical planning stages
To find ideal candidates, it’s important to first do some strategizing. Before you announce your opening, sit down with fellow managers and identity the must-have attributes, experience and skills the position requires. Take note of what is absolutely essential and what could be taught on the job.
You can streamline your recruitment by doing these things:
- Cultivate a talent pipeline — Odds are, you still have a list of people who applied with your department before and didn’t make the final cut but were a good fit for your company. Update the list with referrals from your employees and networks.
- Create solid accounting job descriptions — Use information and input gleaned from your meetings with fellow managers. Be as specific as possible to capture the essence of the job, including key responsibilities and skill sets you need with a goal to hire the person who is the best match for the job and your work environment
- Enlist help from your team — Your most senior staff members can save you precious time by helping process applications, screening resumes and narrowing the candidate pool.
- Intensify your recruitment — Gone are the days when you could put up a job posting without any hiring strategies and watch the applications come streaming in. You need to cast a wide net to get the word out, using job boards, social media, networking and advertising.
