Many businesses now realise that traditional recruitment models aren’t the most reliable ways to attract and retain the best talent. Advertising a role online, screening candidates over the phone and making a knee-jerk hiring decision based on a single interview might deliver good results in the short term. However, this approach often reveals that a person you once thought was a good fit is far from an ideal candidate for the job. Thankfully, the 360 recruitment model is on hand to circumnavigate the shortcomings of the traditional approach to recruitment.
What is 360 recruitment? Often referred to as life cycle recruitment, this model involves a more involved approach to talent acquisition. The 360 recruitment process begins the moment the need for a new opportunity arises, continuing well into the onboarding stage.
What steps are involved with the 360 recruitment process?
The 360 recruitment process is fairly extensive, with this full cycle recruitment model typically involving six steps to find the best fit for an advertised role.
1. Preparation
Full cycle recruitment begins with the preparation stage. In the case of 360-recruitment, this involves creating a persona for an ideal candidate. This persona should outline the key skills that potential candidates need to possess, along with personality traits and other characteristics important for the role. Once this snapshot of the perfect candidate has been defined, a job description can be created and distributed on job boards and elsewhere.
A great job description needs to provide sufficient information regarding the role itself, outlining what hard and soft skills a company is looking for. Along with information about salary and benefits, it’s a good idea to include details about the employer brand, their vision and values.
2. Sourcing a suitable candidate
The next step in the 360 recruitment life cycle is actually sourcing a candidate. Today, job boards aren’t the only avenue worth exploring. If your brand has benefited from employee advocacy on social media, you can consider using these channels to source potential candidates.
Struggling to find the right fit for your organisation through traditional means? There’s always the internal recruitment model. By assessing your existing talent pool, you might realise that the best person fit for the job is right under your nose. Internal recruiting is generally cheaper and involves less onboarding, while retention rates tend to be higher. You can even encourage employee referrals.
3. Screening candidates
Once you’ve decided on your recruitment channels, you’re ready to start receiving and reviewing job applications. Although it can be time-consuming, it’s important not to rush this pivotal step in the recruitment process. CVs need to be carefully studied to determine candidate experience and qualifications. At the same time, cover letters provide you with a good idea of whether an applicant has bothered to read the job description in detail.
Ideally, certain applicants will stand out. Telephone interviews serve as a precursor to the screening process, with those who make a good impression over the phone invited to attend a more formal interview. Using asynchronous video interviews is an effective way for screening for certain positions – you get more information than you would on a single piece of paper or with a regular phone call, and you get to interview more candidates than you would with a regular interviewing process.
4. The selection process
Candidate selection is the most important aspect of 360 recruitment. It’s far more involved than the standard selection process but tends to result in a more suitable candidate being chosen. Assessments are commonly used during the selection stage. These can be used to gather insights into a candidate’s personality, along with their knowledge of the industry and your company. What’s more, assessments capture whether or not candidates possess the hard and soft skills required to excel in an advertised role.
The selection process varies from company to company. In certain sectors like retail, trial periods may be used to assess suitability. In other industries, conventional interviews may suffice. At this stage of recruitment, referees should also be contacted, and essential background checks should be carried out.
5. The hiring stage
If you wish to make a job offer, the best approach is to contact your chosen candidate via phone. Next, a hiring manager should formalise the offer by sending out a follow-up email. This formal job offer should outline the specifics of the role, including key information such as salary, contract duration and working hours. What’s more, you’ll want to include the start date.
It’s not uncommon for some candidates to avoid agreeing to a job offer immediately. Alternatively, they may wish to discuss salary and benefits. If there’s scope for negotiation, be careful when managing these discussions, noting anything agreed upon.
6. Onboarding new employees
Just because you’ve found the ideal candidate and they’ve accepted a job offer doesn’t mean the process is over. In fact, the onboarding stage is one of the most vital aspects of 360 recruitment. Successful candidates need to transition smoothly into their roles. Introducing new hires to their colleagues will break the ice and encourage more open communication. New employees should feel comfortable in their new surroundings before role-specific training is brought into play.
Ideally, your onboarding process should be standardised. Make sure new employees have all the documents and resources they need to perform the responsibilities they’ve been contracted for. To avoid any teething issues, make sure you’re checking in with new hires regularly.
What is a 360 recruitment consultant?
Many companies without in-house recruitment teams may choose to bring in the services of a 360 recruitment consultant. These recruitment specialists perform many of the same duties as an in-house recruiter but additionally pursue leads to find new clients. Once they’ve secured a client, a 360 recruitment consultant will liaise with them to understand their needs in more detail and get a handle on job requirements. Next, they take charge of the recruitment process.
360 recruiters will already have a large network of suitable candidates to draw upon. However, they may also wish to pursue various channels to find someone with the right expertise. Once they’ve generated enough candidates, they’ll take charge of shortlisting and interviewing, ultimately deciding on the best fit for an advertised role.
Should I use a 360 recruitment consultant or recruit in-house?
While 360 recruiters tend to come with extensive expertise and are fairly reliable, finding a good one can prove challenging. Even if you secure the services of a 360 recruiter with sufficient experience with your industry sector, there’s no guarantee they’ll be available when you need them most. What’s more, most 360 recruiters work on multiple assignments simultaneously. When you combine this with the extensive processes involved in 360 recruitment, filling an essential role quickly can prove all but impossible.
In almost every case, in-house recruitment is the way to go. Whether you’re new to the 360 recruitment model or have been using it successfully for years, you can streamline the process by using recruitment software like Teamdash.
With Teamdash, you have a customisable recruitment solution that can be tailored to meet the needs of your business and hiring goals. With recruitment automation, you can free up time to focus on more important recruitment tasks.
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Ready to see Teamdash in action? Book a demo today.
