How Employers Hire

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How Employers Hire
• The Hiring Process

Understanding how employers hire will help in planning a successful job search. Many job seekers express frustration with the hiring process. Unfortunately when the job market is tight and the economy is not the greatest, the competition gets tough. These are the steps that employers often take to hire their new employees.

Employers have different Hiring Processes. However, there are a few common strategies and tools used in hiring.

Recruitment, Screening, and Selection are three basic components of a hiring process.

Recruitment

Recruitment is the process of getting applicants to fill a possible job opening for employers. Employers need an applicant pool from which they fill job openings.

Employers who do extensive hiring may be continuously recruiting applicants, even when there is not an immediate need. They simply want to maintain a pool of qualified applicants. Some employers may be planning a future expansion and want to know if they could fill their labor needs. Therefore, when employers are actively recruiting, they may not have an actual job opening.

There are many ways employers recruit applicants. Here are the most common:

Advertisements: Job advertisements can be found in newspapers, trade publications, on telephone job hotlines, or on the internet. Learn useful Tips for Using Ads to make the best out of your time. For current job openings in Minnesota, go to MinnesotaWorks. Across the country, go to Job Websites.

Internal Postings: Some employers will post their jobs internally before advertising or seeking employees from outside the company. You can find out about these jobs by conducting Informational Interviews and Forming a Network.

Referrals: Referral from a trusted employee, colleague, or peer is the source preferred by most employers. Many employers actively solicit these referrals as part of their recruitment efforts. Forming a Network and conducting Informational Interviews can increase your opportunities for being referred for a job.

Temp Agencies: Many employers are hiring on a temporary basis to test out whether the individual is a good employee and fits into the company. If they like the employee, they will hire her directly. Employers may use private and public placement agencies to recruit candidates for permanent, temporary or contract employment. To learn about finding jobs through agencies go to Employment and Temporary Agencies.

Job Fairs: Job fairs are one source for entry-level employees. Employers who recruit at job fairs are usually building a pool of candidates and may not have an immediate opening. Locate job fairs announcements in newspapers, on the radio and on ISEEK's News and Events.

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Screening

Once employers have an applicant pool, they narrow it down to the best qualified. This is no simple task. For any one job, employers may have hundreds of applicants. The goal of screening is to narrow the pool of qualified applicants to those to be interviewed.

The employer's first task is to eliminate as many candidates as possible, as fast as possible. During the initial screening, employers generally spend no more than a few seconds on each resume. After an initial screening employers will spend more time reviewing the small number of candidates left, looking more closely at qualifications and occasionally contacting references and/or past employers.

Some may call the applicant to conduct a telephone screening interview, or they may schedule an in-person screening interview.

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Selection

While every step in the process plays a part in the hiring decision, employers most often make the final selection based on the interview. At the interview, the employer is seeking to verify qualifications and to evaluate how the person will "fit" into the organization.

When someone is called for an interview, they can be reasonably confident employers believe they are qualified for the job. Employers are interested in the person or they would not be investing their time in an interview. The question is, "Are you the best qualified person for the job?"

"Best qualified" does not just mean skills, experience, and education. Employers are also looking for motivation, a passion for excellence, and a dedication to continuous learning and quality.

They are also looking at how much a new employee will cost them. Hiring is a major "purchase" that costs thousands of dollars per year. Employers want to make sure that they get the best value for their money. After all, most job seekers don’t come with a money-back guarantee.

No longer do employers hire with the intent of lifetime employment. The assurance of retirement with a single employer is quickly becoming outdated. The average person will change careers several times during her/his lifetime. Job search has become an ongoing career process.

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Understanding the hiring process will help you direct your efforts and will eliminate some frustration. The more you learn about how employers hire, the more successful you can be with Interviews and Negotiations.

Source: Creative Job Search, Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development
Page last updated in August 2008.