Online recruitment - even more secrets to success

How do you promote vacancies effectively on your corporate website? Which information do you put in that vacancy? How can you optimise the online application process? Based on our studies Jungle Rating will provide you with answers and tips and illustrate them with best practices.

In our previous article we discussed which information is indispensable on your corporate website to recruit suitable candidates. Now we will look at composing the vacancy itself and optimising the online application process. When a job seeker has established - via your corporate website - that your company could be his new employer, he will go through the online offer of vacancies.

What to put in a vacancy?

Job seekers need input on multiple aspects, before deciding whether the vacancy meets their needs. With the use of the following tips you will be able to create a complete online vacancy.

Mention the date the vacancy was placed on the internet, the response date and the starting date.
Introduce the company and the department involved.
Give a clear description of the position.
Describe responsibilities that come along with the position.
Provide an overview of required competencies.
Clearly indicate the required levels of education and experience.
State whether it concerns a part-time or full-time job, for definite or indefinite time.
Provide information on terms of employment en fringe benefits for this specific position.
Inform the candidate on the procedure: when will he receive feedback?
When showing an overview list of vacancies, provide each vacancy with a clear title and a short summary.

How to promote the vacancies?

Job seekers appreciate easy access to a company’s vacancies. Therefore, consider the following:

In order to promote the vacancies, provide a clear overview of them on the website.
If your company has many vacancies, then consider a search functionality to enable a job seeker to search by country, field of expertise / department and key word. Philips enables job seekers to also search by experience level.
Place the most recent (or most interesting) vacancies on the landing page (introduction page) of the Careers section. Philips
Offer a job alert service. Candidates who subscribe can indicate their preferences and will receive all vacancies that match their profile by e-mail, SMS or RSS. Novozymes offers a simple e-mail service. Subscribers can tag their desired field of work and preferred location.
Large companies distribute an online newsletter to job seekers. This way they inform potential candidates on their HR news, latest vacancies and company background. Shell offers a newsletter treating its latest job trends, career news and advice.
If job seekers return to your Careers section frequently and apply for several jobs, then a personalised environment can be a nice gesture. Bayer offers job seekers their own closed web section, where they can store their letter and resume, mark interesting vacancies and check the current status of an application.

How to optimise the online application process?

It is recommended to make the online application process user-friendly ad at the same time targeted to suitable candidates. During the application the candidate can prove his expertise and suitability. Consider the following tips for an effective online application process:

Offer an online form for applications instead of an e-mail address. This way you can indicate guidelines for filling in the application. If relevant, ask the applicant for his command of languages, computer skills, and willingness to travel or relocate.
Have the applicant fill in questions regarding his resume according to your company’s format; sending along a resume should not suffice. This way, the first selection will be less time-consuming. Your computer could even filter candidates who do not meet the ‘hard’ standards. This way the company will attract suitable employees, with minimum effort and resources.
Provide extensive information on the application process. Candidates highly appreciate insight in the different recruitment steps. How much time do the different steps take? How to prepare for an interview? What to bring along? Total describes the five steps of its recruitment process in a visual way. Shell provides a recruitment process guide. Moreover, Shell offers a ‘degree matcher’. This tool helps candidates identify ‘their potential career pathways within Shell’.
Before offering an extensive application form, consider providing a test. This way, candidates can see whether they are suitable to work for your company or in a certain field of expertise. Rabobank Private banking offers a test ‘Do you understand our customers?’ Before applying a candidate can answer multiple-choice questions posed by (fake) Rabobank clients. Does he really have what it takes to become a Private Banking Account manager?