Each year, when Mother’s Day comes around, I get slightly anxious. I am the mother of two amazing kids, with a loving and supporting husband. Yet I find myself sometimes dreading the actual celebration itself. The flowers are beautiful, the gifts are lovely, and breakfast in bed is perfect.

But while Mother’s Day is a pause for recognizing the contributions, love, sacrifices, and support that mothers everywhere provide, I can’t help feeling that it seems somewhat fleeting.

I am definitely not trying to seem cynical. I truly appreciate the gratitude that is shown each May. Yet I can’t help but wonder, what if moms everywhere — working onsite, working from home, or managing the home — were recognized every day for their contributions and impact?

Data on women and mothers in the workplace

Based on a report from UN Women, women’s economic empowerment is a major contributor in boosting productivity and growing the economy. Even more, achieving economic equality for women by providing employment and leadership opportunities benefits organizations directly.

McKinsey & Company indicates that “companies with three or more women in senior management functions score higher in all dimensions of organizational performance.”

But when it comes to mothers, according to the latest BLS data released in April 2024, the labor force participation rate of all mothers with children under age 18 was 74%. This compares to the participation rate for fathers with children under age 18 at 93.4%

More telling, mothers with young kids are less likely to participate in the labor force than mothers with older children. In fact, only two out of three moms with young children are currently working.

With this data in mind, what should your organization’s response be when it comes to moms in the workforce?

How employers should respond to working moms

A recent Forbes article may have best summarized the challenges moms face when it comes to working mothers:

Companies have invested in the training and education of their female workforce only to find that when they become mothers, a leaky pipeline of talent begins. This has led to an unconscious bias against women, and specifically mothers, which has had huge economic implications.

Collectively, organizations must press to keep women working even as they become mothers, and more importantly, create policies and programs that support them.

How does this look? It means creating a culture of inclusivity, flexibility, and accommodation through flexible work hours, supportive leave policies, remote and hybrid work options, mental health services, counseling, and other employee assistance programs that directly affirm women in their roles.

It also means your leadership team and managers purposefully recognizing and supporting women in the workforce for their unique contributions and situation.

Interestingly, the same Forbes article also mentions that 47% of moms contribute more than half of their overall household income. But despite being the primary earners in their families, “mothers continue to bear both the physical and mental load of motherhood disproportionately more than their partners.”

Without addressing issues like the motherhood penalty, affordable childcare, parental leave, and creating flexible work options that enable working mothers to integrate their work and mothering responsibilities, women will continue to leave the workforce at a higher rate than men.

Second, it means developing and focusing on diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Create a welcoming environment for all people that is inclusive of all walks of life — from age, race, sex, gender identity, religious affiliation, parental status, disability status, military status, and neurodivergence.

Companies can no longer ignore mothers in the workplace. Instead, they should prioritize the clear advantage and perspective that women bring, making it a strategic imperative to empower women. Because when they do, women lift up economies and build more high performing organizations.

By creating an environment where women feel welcome, supported, and recognized for their contributions both within the organization — and outside of work — employers will see increased employee engagement, loyalty, productivity, and innovation.

How recruiters can encourage mothers to apply

As recruiters and talent acquisition professionals, it is essential to provide an optimal candidate experience to attract, nurture, and hire top talent. A positive candidate experience really comes down to the relationship or interactions candidates have with your employer brand.

Any time candidates visit your website, view content, read a job description, or apply for a job, they are interacting with your company. And your goal is to create the most optimized and engaging experience for candidates so you can build the best workforce for your brand.

How does this relate to mothers in the workforce? Well, for starters, think about the types of people your organization features on your career site today:

• Are you showing working parents and telling their stories?
• How does your culture support mothers in particular?
• What about offering personalized job recommendations and content?
• How can you prioritize working parents as a strategic audience for recruitment?
• Do you have employee resource groups internally in your organization?

Are you giving mobile-optimized sites that meet working mothers where they are? Taking it a step further, have you simplified the application process down to its easiest level and provided easy to schedule interviews for busy moms looking for new roles?

Perhaps more unconscious, are you potentially eliminating mothers who have employment gaps in their resume without digging deeper on why those gaps exist? One study suggests the chances of getting an interview fall by more than 50% after two years out of the labor force.

Are you addressing the pay disparity that exists between men and women, where according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data, women earn just 82 cents for every dollar a man earns?

Addressing this type of unconscious bias and the motherhood penalty that inherently exists in the workforce is vital if talent acquisition professionals are to pave the way forward for working moms.

Keep working mothers’ needs top of mind in your recruiting and hiring processes

The 2024 Employ Job Seeker Nation Report provides recent insights into the motivations of workers today, including working parents across the country.

Specifically, for workers with children under age 18, 48% are actively looking for a new job, with 52.5% of these working parents looking for greater flexibility and remote work capabilities. That means one out of two working parents is considering leaving your company right now.

As you connect and engage with talent, ensure working mothers are treated with the respect and dignity they deserve throughout the hiring process. And don’t forget to celebrate the mothers in your life each day.

The post Mother’s Day Perspectives from a Working Mom first appeared on Jobvite.

Many talent acquisition, human resources, and recruiting professionals turn to HR experts and influencers to get ideas and insights that can help them improve their work and grow their careers.

Today’s top human resources leaders have lots of knowledge and expertise. They know how to:

• Streamline their employee onboarding processes
• Drive and optimize workforce training initiatives
• Routinely optimize talent acquisition approaches
• Execute successful internal mobility programs
• Positively and consistently impact business growth

You might be an HR specialist solely focused on analyzing employee experience insights. Or perhaps you are a talent acquisition manager who oversees the recruiting function in your organization. Or maybe you are a sourcer who mainly handles candidate sourcing.

Whatever your human resources job title is, reading articles, listening to podcasts, watching webinars, and attending events that feature today’s top HR experts can help you grow your career.

While there are an incredible number of HR experts and talent authorities to learn from, let’s take a look at 10 well-known influencers you should consider following in the coming year.

Start learning from these 10 HR experts in 2024

Listed in no particular order, and in no way exhaustive, here are 10 human resources experts with years of experience in HR and human capital management (HCM) who can provide inspiration for your employee experience efforts and recruiting strategies.

1) Josh Bersin

• Founder and CEO, The Josh Bersin Company
• Founder and Dean, The Josh Bersin Academy

Josh started Bersin & Associates, his first HR advisory firm, back in 2001. After selling the venture to Deloitte in 2012 and leaving the firm in 2018, Josh founded a new professional development academy in 2019 and consulting business with other leading industry analysts in 2020.

In addition to providing guidance to CEOs and CHROs at companies worldwide, Josh’s new firm also regularly releases HR-centric and talent research. These reports cover the latest trends and best practices that can help organizations transform their human resources and talent functions.

2) Madeline Laurano

• Founder, Aptitude Research

Madeline runs a Boston-based human capital management research and advisory firm that specializes in technology investment recommendations for HR leaders.

Strategic guidance provided by Madeline and her team helps business leaders discover which human resources and talent acquisition solutions, including applicant tracking systems (ATS), will help them improve their talent management, employee engagement, and hiring strategies.

3) D.K. Bartley

• Global Chief Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Officer, Hill+Knowlton Strategies

D.K. currently owns and executes DEI programs, including those centered around diversity recruiting and hiring, for Hill+Knowlton Strategies, a global public relations consulting firm.

This work follows tenures in similar roles at Moody’s, where D.K. won several awards for internal and external DEI initiatives, and Dentsu International, where he advised the diversity hiring efforts for Microsoft, Facebook, and other Fortune 500 companies.

4) Ben Eubanks

• Chief Research Officer, Lighthouse Research & Advisory
• Founder, HR Tech Awards
• Host, We’re Only Human Podcast

Ben educates HR professionals on best practices for improving the workplace experience. He also helps technology vendors learn how to provide valuable products for HR teams.

Ben’s popular podcast and speaking engagements at industry events have positioned him as a go-to HR expert. He is well-known among his peers and is sought after for workforce management advice and software insights into solutions that help HR and talent functions thrive.

5/6) Trish Steed & Steve Boese

• Co-founders, H3 HR Advisors and HR Happy Hour Media Network

Trish and Steve have built a renowned human capital management research and consulting agency that helps CHROs make savvy, data-driven decisions regarding various business needs.

The HR experts’ advisory firm offers advice on strategic working planning, talent management, compliance, and technology investment decisions. The pair also provides actionable reports and insights with human resources leaders via their consultative work and podcast.

7) Vernā Myers

• Founder & President, The Vernā Myers Company
• Former VP, Inclusion Strategy, Netflix

Vernā is a thought leader in the diversity, equity, and inclusion space, with two decades of experience. She spent five years as head of Netflix’s DEI strategy, where she created and curated culture-centric initiatives that positively impacted the company’s international operations.

Add on a TED Talk on how to overcome biases, two best-selling books on improving workplace culture and diversity, and a LinkedIn Learning course on allyship that has been viewed and syndicated widely, and it’s evident Vernā is an HR expert worth following.

8) Meghan M. Biro

• Founder and CEO, TalentCulture
• Host, #WorkTrends Podcast

Empowering recruiters at hundreds of prominent organizations, including big-name brands like Microsoft and Google, has been at the heart of Meghan’s human resources and talent acquisition services at TalentCulture since 2008.

Meghan’s work centers on establishing strong, human connections with top talent.

On her podcast, Meghan regularly shares her take on the latest news and trends in the HR space and engages with other industry experts in lively conversations. Recent topics covered include planning for business resiliency, building workplace trust, and leveraging people analytics.

9) Tim Sackett

• President, HRU Technical Resources
• Author, “The Talent Fix: A Leader’s Guide to Recruiting Great Talent“

Tim runs a successful IT and engineering contract staffing firm and has more than 20 years of experience working in various recruiting and human resources roles.

Insights from Tim’s tenure in the HR industry can be found in his best-selling book and widely read blog, where he shares what it takes for employers of all sizes — from SMBs to enterprises — to reinforce their organizations with top talent and future-proof their businesses.

10) Sarah White

• Founder and Head of Strategy & Insights, Aspect 43
• Advisory Board, Future of Talent, HR.com

As SHRM noted, Sarah is “dedicated to revolutionizing the way we work” by helping business leaders discover the technologies that can help them attract, hire, and retain top talent.

Sarah and her team at Aspect 43 polls employers to unearth their recruiting challenges and hiring needs, then plans bespoke strategies and recommends strong-fit software solutions to empower clients to transform their talent acquisition and human resources approaches.

Learn how you can improve your recruiting speed, quality, and efficiency with Jobvite. Book a demo today to take the tour of our recruitment software for enterprise organizations.

The post 10 HR Experts and Influencers to Learn from in 2024 first appeared on Jobvite.

Nearly half (46%) of human resources leaders plan to invest more in HR technology in the coming years to improve daily workflows and become higher-performing HR teams, per Gartner.

It’s encouraging to see CHROs getting budget to bolster their team’s tech stacks.

However, it’s important to remember the best tools can only help human resources departments carry out their day-to-day tasks and contribute to high-level business goals when they have a structured, well-planned HR strategy in place. Specifically, one with two key objectives in mind:

1. Centralize all workforce information to make it easy for HR team members to track insights tied to employee engagement, satisfaction, output, and retention, and use those insights to recommend data-backed actions and adjustments to leaders and managers.
2. Develop an analytics-oriented talent acquisition strategy that helps the recruitment side of human resources operations enhance every element of their hiring efforts.

It’s this second objective some CHROs neglect to factor into their annual HR strategies — but one that deserves just as much attention to ensure HR helps drive the business forward.

Essential elements of a successful HR strategy

High levels of burnout and fatigue, a candidate-centric market, and adjusting to the transition from mostly in-office work to remote and hybrid models have all made work more difficult for human resources over the past few years.

It’s understandable that HR strategy planning, execution, and optimization isn’t always top of mind with CHROs. On the talent acquisition side of HR teams, the 2023 Employ Recruiter Nation Report found there are many reasons TA leaders and recruiters are experiencing high levels of stress today: 

• Not enough qualified candidates (45%)
• Competition from other employers (35%)
• More open roles to fill (34%)
• Fewer resources to support hiring (33%)
• A lack of AI-powered recruiting technologies (30%)
• More employees leaving the organization (30%)

Despite these stressors in human resources departments — particularly those at enterprises such as yours — these teams are still tasked with developing an HR strategy for their businesses that helps them achieve important goals.

So, what do human resources teams, including CHROs and other talent leaders, need to establish a well-coordinated HR strategy that ties back to organizational objectives?

Across your enterprise, chances are human resources is one of the most malleable departments. That’s because HR team members often have multiple roles and responsibilities.

Some HR generalists may focus on workforce management activities, like payroll, but that doesn’t mean these individuals work solely on the same set of limited tasks and initiatives year-round.

Look at leading, large-scale organizations today, and you’ll typically see human resources practitioners focus on both sides of the HR strategy coin: workforce planning and talent acquisition.

“[Human resources] must partner with executive leaders to manage future talent risks,” Gartner analysts recently wrote. And the best way to do this is assign specific HR team members to both tasks: some to focus on retention and turnover, and others to focus on recruiting and hiring.

Regardless of the distinct HR processes and activities you’re tasked with, you need top-rated, easy-to-use tech that streamlines your work and enables you to find the info you need to succeed.

The two tiers of technology for your HR strategy

“[Human resources] technology has become increasingly sophisticated and intelligent,” HR tech and business expert Josh Bersin recently shared with SHRM. And, of course, he’s right.

The HR software marketplace continues to grow, with new artificial intelligence tools and human capital management systems making it easier than ever for companies of all kinds to develop, track the performance of, and improve their HR strategies.

Building a best-of-breed HR tech stack requires your business leaders to factor in the two talent management approaches mentioned above — and to distinguish HR software leaders from laggards, so they don’t regret their eventual investment.

1) Human resources management software

Within this tier, there are three subsets of tools that drive modern enterprise HR strategies.

Human capital management (HCM) software

Your HR department needs to manage payroll, track compensation and benefits, set up and routinely update org charts, monitor employee engagement and productivity, and generally keep an eye on workforce-related trends. These workforce patterns, in particular, can help execs with SWOT analysis and inform workforce planning changes in the short and long term.

Consider the HCM software Jobvite connects with. Our customers sync their UKG, ADP, and BambooHR instances to transfer data tied to hired candidates into these systems to automatically create official employee profiles and records and, in turn, automate a once-laborious, manual task.

Culture, learning, and feedback tools

An equally critical tier of human resource planning technology is one that:

• Helps strengthen the company culture through proactive messaging and community-building
• Provides training and development to employees to aid their career advancement efforts
• Enables HR to send eNPS surveys and use results to realize both a better working environment and better business outcomes

The common thread among these kinds of HR solutions? They help human resources work with business leaders and people managers to help employees realize internal mobility goals.

“Pursuing a mobility- and retention-centered model will mean finding ways to integrate hiring and talent management databases to better match internal candidates with interdepartmental needs,” Employ SVP People & Talent Corey Berkey wrote for Forbes. “These tools can also help provide channels that support employees through the internal application process.”

Other niche workforce technologies

There are too many niche workforce tools to list here that enterprise HR professionals need to execute their human resources strategy. That said, some increasingly popular technologies focus on:

• Tracking the mental health and well-being of their workforce, particularly in times of disruption
• Analyzing the effectiveness of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives
• Executing change management plans with their C-suite during periods of structural change
• Creating a corporate “wiki” to act as a single source of truth of company info for employees

The effect of using tools like these is they help your HR team keep tabs on and improve workers’ well-being and aid the enterprise in achieving company goals tied to the overall business strategy. That includes improving workforce diversity and showing a commitment to employee wellness.

2) Enterprise applicant tracking system

“Besides streamlining your recruitment processes, technology can also improve the candidate experience while driving speed and efficiency,” Corey wrote for SpiceWorks. “However, there are too many shiny objects … that will fail on some core level to deliver what recruiting leaders actually need.”

“Take as objective a view as possible on what your team needs from your [recruiting and hiring] technology and where you can optimize current tools,” Corey recommended. “Then, search for a [talent acquisition] partner with the expertise and knowledge to work collaboratively with you.”

One of the most common partnerships CHROs and TA leaders form are those with their applicant tracking system vendors. Notably, those that not only offer a world-class ATS, but also provide ongoing, hands-on support to help HR recruiting orgs thrive with their platforms.

Once you’ve secured tools from the first tier, turn your attention to enterprise recruitment technology. For example, with Jobvite’s Evolve Talent Acquisition Suite, your HR team can:

• Realize more predictable hiring outcomes, thanks to built-in recruitment analytics
• Brand your career site with highly optimized messaging and visuals to boost applications
• Execute a high-volume hiring initiative using our advanced recruitment marketing features
• Leverage AI and automation to put a variety of formerly arduous tasks on relative autopilot
• Source, nurture, and convert candidates at scale to speed up hiring and close reqs faster
• Provide exceptional recruitment experiences for your HR staff and engaged candidates
• Make more data-driven decisions across your full-cycle recruiting strategy

Your HCM software may offer some applicant-tracking functionality. But, what your enterprise really needs to take your talent acquisition approach to new heights in the years ahead is built-for-purpose recruitment technology intended for large organizations like yours.

If your business is included in the half of large-scale companies struggling to identify and engage qualified candidates today, a holistic solution can address this part of your HR strategy.

Learn why strategic human resources teams continue to invest in Jobvite — and how our enterprise recruiting platform can accelerate and improve your hiring efforts.

The post Developing an Effective HR Strategy for Your Enterprise first appeared on Jobvite.

There are two sides of the onboarding coin, so to speak:

• There are the new hires who need to spend the first few weeks on the job getting caught up to speed on the business at large via an employee handbook and hands-on training and learn more about their role and who they’ll need to work with on and outside their team.
• And then there are the human resources and other hiring team members charged with taking the reins from talent acquisition to carry out the training and orientation periods for new staff members through a formal onboarding experience that helps them acclimate.

On the HR side of said coin, human resources specialists must abide by onboarding best practices to ensure newly hired employees have everything they need to succeed from day one and feel empowered to thrive in their new positions and the work environment at large.

At the same time, HR teams — particularly those at enterprises — must also execute a highly efficient and effective onboarding process that ensures they’re alerted the moment job offers have been accepted by candidates and, in turn, enables them to start planning their onboarding ASAP.

That’s where an applicant tracking system with bulk onboarding capabilities can help.

What the optimal onboarding experience entails for today’s HR pros and hiring managers

Before diving into the benefits of leveraging human resources technology with bulk onboarding functionality built in, it’s worth reviewing the modern onboarding “checklist,” of sorts, that leading HR teams at large-scale companies use to provide stellar employee experiences for new hires today.

Creating an onboarding kit that covers the role, team, and culture

New hires are, more often than not, rightfully stressed about their first day and weeks on the job.

That makes it worthwhile to alleviate that anxiety by giving them an onboarding kit that features a comprehensive breakdown of what the entire process will entail and pertinent info about their position, their team/colleagues, the company culture, and other business-related details of interest.

Ideally, these kits are 90% the same, but with that remaining 10% including details related to their specific role and department added in to give them a lay of the land regarding who they’ll work with, what tasks they’ll take on, and ongoing team initiatives they will get briefed on post-onboarding.

Breaking down business objectives and providing a roadmap

Employees feel much more at ease when they know exactly what onboarding entails and get insights that can help them flourish once this orientation period ends (e.g., short- and long-term goals specific to their work and department, metrics monitored for each business unit and the org at large).

Once these objectives are laid out, that’s where hiring managers can enter the onboarding process. Notably, team leads can connect their new reports with others across the org who can

Harvard Business Review contributor and business consultant Gleb Tsipursky recommends people managers who will oversee a new employee implement a training program that “progressively helps [their] new hire understand their responsibilities and achieve their goals.”

Per Gleb, this can be through “a mix of on-the-job training, workshops, and mentorship programs.”

Connecting your TA and HR tech to enable seamless data sharing

The above facets of the onboarding experience obviously apply to new hires. As it pertains to your HR team’s experience during this process, though, it’s certainly critical to have a leading HCM solution where you can store employee data and info and add notes to their profiles as needed.

But, it’s equally important to ensure your talent acquisition tech syncs directly with your HR systems of record to facilitate a seamless initiation of the onboarding process.

Specifically, you need an ATS, like Jobvite, that helps recruiters pass the baton, so to speak, to human resources professionals such as yourself so they can kickstart their new hire orientation — specifically, that for multiple employees joining their orgs at the same time — with ease.

How bulk onboarding workflows help hiring teams streamline new employee orientation and training

Given your enterprise, like countless others, hires several employees each month, it only makes sense to have HR software that enables your team to create streamlined workflows that start in your ATS and transition to your human capital management software as onboarding begins in earnest.

That’s why Jobvite developed our new Bulk Onboard functionality. Here’s how it works.

• Once candidates who officially accept a job offer are labeled as new hires in our applicant tracking system, those individuals can be automatically grouped together and assigned to the same workflow in Bulk Onboard simply by checking their profile box.
• After a group of new hires has been assigned to the appropriate workflow (i.e., one tied to a given role, team, and/or location), a chain of activities for specific onboarding stakeholders is initiated. Each of these individuals is then notified of their upcoming task(s).
• Given your enterprise likely employs new team members for several teams each month, different “pathways” can be created for different business units. This ensures their onboarding experience is highly relevant to the roles they take on and departments they join.

All in all, Bulk Onboard simplifies the end-to-end new hire training and orientation process.

Specifically, the features ensures onboarding administrators and orchestrators (a.k.a., the people ops personnel who set up all the workflows in Jobvite and trainings for new employees) can complete onboarding quickly and efficiently — while providing a stellar experience for new staff members.

“If you can use automation to take care of much of the administrative work [tied to onboarding], it frees you to focus on creating people connections and relationships that strengthen the bonds for new hires and improves retention,” employee experience expert Jen Stroud shared with SHRM.

There are certainly of tools that offer such onboarding automation that are available to HR teams.

“Large-scale employers with high-volume hiring strategies need their onboarding efforts to be as precise and systematic as possible,” said Employ Product Marketing Manager Ieshia Hill.

“With Bulk Onboard, human resources hiring teams can make sure newly signed employees can be added to onboarding workflows en masse, as needed, and — in turn — save substantial amounts of time with what is historically a heavily time-intensive task.”

Learn how Jobvite’s Bulk Onboard can help your team execute more effective employee onboarding programs. Schedule a demo of our best-in-class enterprise ATS software today.

The post Enhancing the Onboarding Experience with the Right Tech first appeared on Jobvite.

There are certainly many “evergreen” HR trends (an oxymoron, but bear with us) your human resources team and C-suite are already well aware of and have taken action on. These likely include:

• Implementing a more human-centric approach to building a strong company culture
• Prioritizing employees’ mental health and their work-life balance in a disruptive period
• Boosting employee retention by training and promoting top performers company-wide
• Offering flexible working hours, particularly for those working remotely/in hybrid roles
• Ensuring the employee experience is a positive one by improving the work environment

And these 2023 HR trends will certainly remain a top focal point for HR leaders in 2024.

That said, there are certainly a growing number of other, more recent (and urgent) workforce-related events, patterns, and shifts that will impact your human resources function’s efforts to empower your workforce to thrive in the workplace (virtual and/or in-person) in the year ahead.

7 HR trends to know about in 2024

Here are some of the top HR trends today — more specifically, ones from the latest edition of Employ’s Recruiter Nation Report, which features in-depth recruiting and hiring data as well as expert “people” insights for CHROs and their teams — you should know heading into 2024.

1) Talent acquisition will continue to adapt to ongoing uncertainty

What better way to kick off our HR trends list than to share one from a fellow Employster?

Employ SVP People & Talent Corey Berkey detailed how all companies — from SMBs to enterprises — will continue to evolve their talent acquisition processes and priorities in 2024.

That’s mainly due to lingering concerns about a recession and further tightening budgets.

Two specific ways in which Corey envision’s TA teams altering their approaches in the year ahead?

“As businesses have adjusted hiring plans in reaction to economic conditions, talent acquisition teams have felt the impact,” said Corey. “Navigating a full requisition load with less tools or … resources forces teams to change their approach.” (Translation: Find ways to work smarter.)

Corey added how employers of all sizes and across industries are now “seeking ways to flex their recruiting practices and zero-in on high quality candidates, working to drive higher initial candidate quality.” These are efforts that “will shape talent acquisition … into 2024.”

2) The “do-more-with-less” hiring approach will (mostly) stick

No business division — whether it’s human resources, marketing, sales, or support — wants to have to do their jobs with limited budget and resources. And yet, in today’s business climate, that’s what ongoing economic uncertainty requires most (if not all) teams to do.

“Whether companies are growing or slowing, talent acquisition teams are being asked to do more with less based on the current economic uncertainty” WorkTech Founder and Principal Analyst George LaRocque shared for our 2023 Employ Recruiter Nation Report.

“Yet, while the economy may have been cooling … the available talent and required skills remain more complicated to find than ever,” George added. “Today’s recruiting challenges are the same as those previously associated with competition during times of strong economic growth.”

3) Orgs of all sizes will renew their focus on diversity recruiting

H3 HR Advisors Cofounder Steve Boese and CEO and Principal Analyst Trish Steed insisted employers will spend their time, resources, and energy on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in 2024 and the years ahead. Specifically, with a concerted focus on diversity hiring.

“Making increased commitments to diversity hiring is an important first step,” the duo noted.

Updating impact descriptions and career sites with messaging that relays your efforts around DEI certainly go a long way in proving your dedicated to making progress, Steve and Trish added.

However, proactive efforts to make ongoing strides with DEI — including with diversity hiring (e.g., implementing a skills-based TA approach to hire a broader array of underrepresented talent) is what will show your company truly cares about creating a more diverse, fair, and welcoming workplace.

4) Differentiation from other employers becomes a focal point

The Great Resignation led to a scarcity of talent actively looking for new work during the global pandemic. But, the market has since shifted. (And drastically, to say the least.)

Now, there’s a surplus of professionals aiming to join new companies. And yet, many job seekers remain selective regarding which employers they consider speaking with and joining.

Guidewire Software VP and Global Head of Talent Attraction Ian Creamer noted how, despite a sizable number of active candidates exploring new career opportunities, HR/TA teams must still ensure their open roles (and employer brand at large) stand out from other orgs looking to hire.

“The expectation of hiring managers and leaders is that the tide of layoffs should equal much easier access to talent, and that’s not always the case,” Ian added. “We hire in the technology space, and truly top talent remains as hard to hire as ever.”

Ian added that “candidates are still showing up with multiple offers already in hand,” making it difficult to convince top-tier talent his company engages for open roles to accept their offers.

5) The use of artificial intelligence in TA continues to grow

Notice that the “AI-is-a-trend-crowd” has grown increasingly silent since early 2023? That’s because artificial intelligence is, in fact, here to stay. And it’s an “HR trend” all talent teams should investigate further, as there are undoubtedly several AI use cases for leveraging the advanced tech.

Restaurant Clicks CEO Brian Nagele remarked how arguably the top initial use case for TA teams is to leverage AI’s bias-reduction capabilities. (Ideally, by onboarding a leading recruitment platform that already has AI recruiting functionality baked in to help make bias-free hiring decisions.)

“Many human resource departments are becoming aware of the (sometimes) unintentional biases which occur during the hiring process,” said Brian.

Brian added how leading AI tech used by HR professionals today “focuses on recognizing candidate qualifications to filter through top talent.” This, in turn, can help reduce potential hiring biases and ensure HR functions solely consider talent based on their skills, expertise, and other qualifications.

6) Companies will prioritize candidate experience improvements

Despite not having as many recruiting resources as they’d like for 2024, NXTThing RPO Founder Terry Terhark said CHROs will ensure their teams will stay focused on the work at hand.

But, that doesn’t solely mean refining and streamlining TA processes. It also entails making sure each job seeker their recruiters engage for openings have a strong candidate experience.

“Companies still need to pay attention to the candidate experience, their employment brand, and the speed of their recruitment process” to outcompete other orgs for top talent, per Terry.

Of all the latest HR trends featured here, improving the CX is really a perpetual task for TA teams. However, as Terry can attest, job seekers are becoming increasingly “picky” with employers.

Provide a consistently enjoyable hiring experience, and you’ll “win” more top talent.

7) Analytics will continue to play a pivotal role for hiring teams

Given data is now an indispensable asset for all HR/TA teams, HRU Technical Resources Talent Acquisition & HR Analyst Tim Sackett said it shouldn’t be a shock that using analytics to drive recruiting and hiring decision-making will remain a strategic imperative for employers.

“Organizations with world-class recruiting functions are measuring the funnel,” per Tim.

Lighthouse Research & Advisory Chief Research Officer Ben Eubanks also believes actionable talent analytics is something employers of all types and across sectors must utilize daily.

“Recruiting has seen some massive swings in recent years,” Ben declared.

“The one thing that we consistently see … is that employers prefer hiring practices that deliver predictability. Anything we can do to streamline talent acquisition activities, take a more proactive approach, and make data-informed decisions is going to deliver a higher degree of predictability.”

Download the new Employ Recruiter Nation Report today to discover more data and insights that can help you plan, execute, and optimize your talent acquisition strategy in 2024.

The post 2024 HR Trends: Expert Insights for All Employers first appeared on Jobvite.

Part 3 of the Employment Law Thought Leadership Series by Employ

By Jason A. Geller, Regional Managing Partner, Nathan K. Low, J.D., Partner, and Kevin L. Quan, Associate, Fisher & Phillips LLP

The information provided here does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice. All information, content, and materials provided here are for general informational purposes only.

Overtime calculation and pay can create significant wage and hour issues for every employer. Classifying eligible employees as exempt from overtime requirements is one of the most effective ways to avoid this wage and hour headache.

The “salary basis” test is just one of the important requirements that employers must satisfy in order for an employee to be properly classified as an exempt employee. Failure to comply with the “salary basis” test will leave employers vulnerable to potential lawsuits, including, but not limited to, claims for misclassification and failure to pay overtime.

Background

Under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), employers are required to pay their employees a minimum wage and overtime pay for hours worked in excess of 40 hours per week, unless the employee is exempt from these requirements. 

One exemption under the FLSA is for employees who meet the salary basis test, which means they are paid a predetermined and fixed salary that is not subject to reduction based on variations in the quality or quantity of work performed.

The salary threshold for the exemption is currently $684 per week, or $35,568 per year. See 29 CFR §§ 541.100, 541.601(b)(1). Keep in mind, the salary threshold may vary depending on more onerous state and local laws.

The FLSA regulations also exempt workers known as highly compensated employees (HCEs). To qualify as a HCE, an employee must earn at least $107,432 annually and meet a relaxed version of the duties test (i.e., “[T]he employee customarily and regularly performs any one or more of the exempt duties or responsibilities of an executive, administrative[,] or professional employee”).  See 29 CFR § 541.601(a)(1).

On February 22, 2023, the United States Supreme Court decided Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc. v. Hewitt, a case that clarifies the definition of the “salary basis” test under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”), particularly for highly compensated employees paid on a daily basis. 

The Court held that a “daily rate worker” was not exempt from the FLSA’s overtime guarantees notwithstanding his purported status as a “highly compensated employee,” because the employee’s compensation did not satisfy the “salary basis test,” which required compensation at a predetermined amount per week (or less frequently) regardless of the number of hours the employee actually worked during the pay period. 

History of Helix

The plaintiff in Helix worked as a tool-pusher on an offshore oil rig from 2014 to 2017. He was paid between $936 and $1,341 per day, no matter how many hours he worked in a given day. He received this day rate for every day he worked, which amounted to an annual salary in excess of $200,000. 

The plaintiff filed a lawsuit in federal district court in Texas, alleging he was misclassified as exempt and was therefore entitled to overtime. The district court disagreed with the plaintiff, holding that because he received at least $936 in any week that he performed work for his employer — i.e., more than the $684 per week required to meet the minimum requirement for the salary basis test — he was properly classified as exempt.

The plaintiff appealed this ruling to the Fifth Circuit. The Fifth Circuit agreed with the plaintiff, reasoning that the salary basis test requires an employee to be paid the same amount of salary on a weekly basis or less frequently, irrespective of the days worked in the particular workweek. 

Because the plaintiff’s pay varied by the number of days he worked in a workweek, the Fifth Circuit concluded it did not meet the regulatory definition of a “salary” for purposes of the white-collar exemptions under the FLSA. The employer appealed the Fifth Circuit’s ruling to the United States Supreme Court.

The United States Supreme Court’s Decision

The issue before the Supreme Court was whether the HCE exemption applied to employees who were paid on a daily basis.

The Court held that a worker who is not compensated on a salary basis cannot qualify for the FLSA’s white-collar exemptions, when the employee’s paycheck is based solely on a daily rate, meaning the employee receives a certain amount if the employee works one day in a week, twice as much for two days, three times as much for three, and so on.  

In reaching its conclusion, the Supreme Court pointed to the text and structure of the FLSA’s regulations, and observed that nothing in the regulatory description of a salary applies to a daily rate worker, who by definition is paid for each day they work and no others.  In short, according to the Court, a day rate is not the same as a salary for purposes of the FLSA.

The Court further advised that an employer could come into compliance with the salary basis requirement in two ways.

• First, it could add to the plaintiff’s per-day rate a weekly guarantee that satisfies certain regulatory conditions, which include that the guaranteed amount meets at least the minimum weekly required amount paid on a salary basis, regardless of the number of hours, days, or shifts worked and that a reasonable relationship exist between the guaranteed amount and the amount actually earned. 

• Alternatively, the employer could convert the plaintiff’s compensation to a straight weekly salary for the time he spent on the rig.

What this means for employers

Although Hewitt was compensated well over $200,000 annually (thus meeting the minimum weekly requirement for the highly compensated employee exemption), he was not paid on a salary basis because a “true salary — a steady stream of pay” cannot vary much and is an amount that the employee may rely on “week after week.”  Specifically, the fluctuation in Hewitt’s pay indicated that he was not truly compensated on a salary basis.

Going forward, employers should be careful paying on a day-rate basis those employees they claim to be exempt, and, if they do, work to ensure that the overall compensation arrangement is in compliance with the salary basis requirement as articulated by the Supreme Court in Helix.

Considerations and steps moving forward

The decision highlights the importance for employers to comply with the strict requirements under the FLSA to ensure employees are properly classified as exempt employees. There are four important steps for employers to consider:

The information provided here does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice. All information, content, and materials provided here are for general informational purposes only.

About the Authors

Jason A. Geller

Jason A. Geller is the managing partner in the Fisher & Phillips LLP San Francisco office. Jason represents employers in all facets of employment law matters.

He has extensive experience defending employers in litigation involving claims under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the California Family Rights Act (CFRA), the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) and California wage and hour laws.

Jason has defended employers against class and individual wage and hour claims, including claims for alleged misclassification of exempt and independent contractor status, and failure to pay overtime and provide meal periods and rest breaks. He also frequently defends employers in whistleblowing and retaliation claims, including claims under the California Whistleblower Act, the False Claims Act and various provisions of the California Labor Code.

His clients are involved in a variety of industries, including insurance, assisted living, independent living facilities, construction, manufacturing, engineering, architecture, education, hospitality, professional services, agriculture, technology, retail and restaurant industries. Between 2015 and 2018, Jason was included in Northern California Super Lawyers.

Nathan K. Low, J.D.

Nathan K. Low, J.D., is a partner in the Fisher & Phillips LLP San Francisco office. He represents employers in all areas of labor and employment law. His practice focuses on defending employers in wage and hour class and collective actions, PAGA claims, single-plaintiff claims, and retaliation and wrongful termination claims.

Nathan has been recognized in The Best Lawyers in America, Ones to Watch (2021 – 2023) and Super Lawyers Rising Starts (2020 – 2022). He is a Member of the Orange County Asian American Bar Association (OCAABA).

While in law school, Nathan was a judicial extern for the Honorable David O. Carter of the United States District Court, Central District of California and the Honorable Gregory Keosian of the California Superior Court. Nathan was an officer and member of UCLA’s Moot Court Honors Program and competed throughout the country.

He was also an editor for the Los Angeles Public Interest Law Journal. He received his J.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts, cum laude, from the University of California, Berkeley.

Kevin L. Quan

Kevin L. Quan is an associate in the Fisher & Phillips LLP San Francisco office, where he represents employers in all areas of employment litigation.

His practice focuses on defending employers in a wide range of issues including claims for discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wrongful termination, failure to provide reasonable accommodation, leave law violations, wage and hour class and collective actions, unfair competition, and tort and contract-based disputes.

In addition to his litigation practice, Kevin also counsels employers on a variety of workplace matters including risk assessment and litigation avoidance, policy development and compliance, employee handbooks, training and employment contracts.

During law school, Kevin served as a judicial extern for the Honorable Edward M. Chen of the United States District Court, Northern District of California and for the Honorable A. James Robertson II of the California Superior Court. He served as the Executive Managing Editor of the UC Hastings Constitutional Law Quarterly.

The post Overtime Pay Compliance with the Fair Labor Standards Act first appeared on Jobvite.

In fact, many candidates are now willing to pass on roles within companies that do not demonstrate commitment to equity and inclusion, make employees feel welcome and heard, and provide a safe and equitable work environment — regardless of pay or career opportunities offered.

Meanwhile, 38% of candidates would turn down a job offer if the company lacked diversity in its workforce or had no clear goals for improving DEI and adding more diverse employees.

Simply put, if you’re looking to help your business transform into a more inclusive workplace where there is diverse talent company-wide and leadership encourages employees to voice their opinions on day-to-day work and the long term vision of the company, you’ve come to the right place.

Why your C-suite must prioritize the creation of a more inclusive workplace today

Companies that focus on DEI in the workplace increase employee engagement and commitment and drive greater levels of performance — productivity that boosts the bottom line.

Put plainly, those orgs with a diversity of representation in employee ability, sexual orientation, gender identity, ethnicity, neurodiversity, familial status, personal beliefs and other areas are more likely to succeed in their industries compared to others that lack this crucial component.

This wider diversity of representation across the company increases innovation, a sense of belonging, employee happiness, and even the bottom line. It’s even become a key metric for success that it’s now an evaluation category for the Fortune 500 list.

Need proof? We’ve got the data. Workers today also want their employer to have an active voice in moral and social justice conversations. And they do their homework. Employ research reals:

• 81% of candidates check a company’s website for their stance on DEI before applying
• 71% of candidates review job postings to ensure inclusive language is used
• 65% of candidates research a company’s stance on social issues in the recent past
• 64% of candidates check the company’s website for diversity and inclusion stats
• 57% of candidates ask the employer about the culture of DEI at the company

In such a competitive hiring market that favors candidates, your company must clearly communicate your commitment to DEI and demonstrate program effectiveness to attract top talent.

That begs the question: What can your business do to bolster its DEI programs and enhance and build an premier workplace that leads to a stellar employee experience due to a highly inclusive environment?

How to achieve a more inclusive workplace

Committing time, resources, and a budget to prioritize DEI-centric initiatives can seem challenging at first. But, any talent team can improve their organization with the right resources.

Here are five key strategies your company can use to increase the diversity of candidate slates and create an inclusive work environment this year — one that can help you attract and retain top talent

1) Prioritize DEI at every level

To create a supportive and inclusive workplace environment, company leaders must come together with recruiting teams to prioritize DEI at every level across the org.

Recruiting strategies should reflect this priority for the business and include a wide variety of employee and community voices. The good news is this year, 51% of HR decision makers plan to increase their technology investments in DEI.

2) Measure and improve DEI effectiveness

Before you commit to trying an entirely new DEI investment, gather data and analyze DEI efforts at your business. Learn where your hiring practices are successful in recruiting diverse candidates, and where they are not.

Measure key recruiting metrics like source of candidate, conversion rates, and candidate engagement to get to know your talent pool. Metrics help to easily pinpoint areas of improvement as well as create tangible goals for DEI in the org.

3) Use inclusive job descriptions

Employers and recruiting teams can miss the mark when it comes to posting inclusive job descriptions. Sometimes, job postings feature language that may be offensive or exclusive to diverse candidates.

Make sure to prioritize creating more inclusive job descriptions that reduce biased language. Tap into job description grading tools that analyze your job posting and help you overcome recruitment obstacles to attract the best applicants.

4) Focus on sourcing efforts with a DEI lens

Prioritize finding candidates who are from diverse backgrounds. Look for intelligent sourcing tools that eliminate bias and identify qualified candidates from a variety of sources. Focus on finding diverse candidates from specific groups like veterans, recent college graduates and interns, or active military. Broadcasting your requisition to a variety of job boards and channels will also help ensure a wide range of applicants.

5) Prioritize and showcase inclusive content

With candidates focusing on the recruitment content presented by employers, make sure all your recruitment marketing messages on career sites, social media, and other forms of outreach demonstrate inclusivity.

Prioritize telling employee stories of diverse workers, share community stories, and tap into a variety of viewpoints and lived experiences to showcase your company’s DEI commitment.

If you have a number of employee resource groups at your org, ask team members if they’d be willing to get in front of the camera to provide a testimonial of sorts for your business that details their experience with their ERG. Or, see if they’d like to write a guest post for your blog on DEI.

Staying focused on creating an inclusive workplace a must for your enterprise org

Whether your team is looking to expand an already robust DEI program or is learning how to make it a priority as part of your recruiting efforts, remember, DEI is a journey, not a destination.

Ensure you are investing in the people, processes, and tech to move the needle on your DEI programs and showcase to candidates — and current employees — that you take building a more inclusive, equitable workplace seriously and want to build a culture in which everyone is welcomed and thrives.

For more insights on bolstering DEI in your company, download the in-depth eBook: Why Your Company Should Double Down on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Initiatives This Year.

The post How to Realize a More Diverse and Inclusive Workplace first appeared on Jobvite.

To get more agile, enterprise organizations are shifting their focus to building their internal hiring teams and recruiting programs. Strategic companies see that happy, equipped talent acquisition professionals are the key to finding and hiring qualified candidates today.

Quality Talent Is Hard to Find

It’s not news that there’s a shortage of qualified talent in the job market, and candidate expectations for employers continue to grow as they remain in the driver’s seat. Companies of all sizes, especially large enterprises, have seen high levels of turnover, especially within their talent teams. Almost one third of recruiters are currently looking for a new employer — and many of these individuals mention the top reason for looking is access to better technology.

This environment has made it even more stressful for recruiters to do their jobs, especially if they don’t have the right tools. Quality recruiters are crucial to building a strong company culture of engaged employees who stay in their roles longer and are dedicated to driving company performance. That’s why talent teams need the best recruiting technology to manage the complexities of hiring in today’s market.

“81% of talent acquisition professionals indicate that attracting top talent has become more challenging over the past year.” -Jobvite”

Top Companies Have World-Class Hiring Teams

Hiring teams need the best technology and resources to help save time and effort in today’s competitive market. Recruiters are more stressed than ever and it’s up to companies to give them what they need to source, screen, interview, hire, and onboard top talent as quickly as possible. Today’s top companies have invested in their recruiting programs from top to bottom, and are seeing improved hiring outcomes as a result.

Why It Pays to Invest in Recruiting

Companies are investing in their hiring teams to build a better foundation of company culture and expand teams with quality employees. Below are five benefits that enterprise organizations have seen after prioritizing their recruiting programs and giving hiring teams the tools that they need.

#1: Reduced stress for recruiting teams.

81% of talent acquisition professionals indicated that attracting top talent has become more challenging over the past year. Companies are increasing their focus on recruiting programs, and it’s helping their recruiters hire better with less stress. Talent teams can have better interactions with candidates while finding qualified talent to fill open positions.

#2: Automation and AI tools save time, energy, and money.

According to Aptitude Research, 42% of recruiters reported that they don’t have the right resources that they need to be successful. Investing in technology like automation and AI software buys back invaluable time and effort for your talent team. Empower recruiters to adopt smart tools that save time and effort, giving them the chance to focus on the human aspects of recruiting.

#3: Shorten the feedback loop to stay competitive.

Strategic recruiting teams are moving from frustrating point-based solutions to a centralized talent acquisition platform that can handle the complexities of hiring in today’s market. Consolidating talent acquisition technology helps to shorten the feedback loop between candidates, recruiters, and hiring managers. With qualified candidates in short supply, talent teams must communicate quickly and effectively to stay competitive in the labor market.

#4: Solidify your recruiting trifecta.

The recruiting trifecta is the combined experience of recruiters, hiring managers, and candidates in your recruiting program. Winning talent teams have prioritized improving the interactions and experiences at every level of hiring — and it’s getting them the best hires. Companies are helping them achieve this through new technology, increased hiring budgets, and prioritizing transparency.

#5: Increased transparency with company executives.

Employers are improving company culture and hiring outcomes by analyzing their recruiting programs from start to finish. Centralized talent technology allows recruiters to get real-time data on key recruiting metrics and send reports to company leaders. This increased transparency between talent acquisition teams and company executives helps improve communication and hiring outcomes.

Invest in Your Talent Teams to Drive Business Outcomes

Looking to invest in your talent acquisition team to move your business forward? See where you can assess, prioritize, and take action to optimize your talent acquisition efforts by taking Jobvite’s free 10-minute online assessment with the EVOLVE Talent Acquisition Framework. Learn how you measure up and find out where strategic companies are driving world-class results through talent acquisition.

The post Want Quality Employees? Invest in Your Hiring Team first appeared on Jobvite.

Customize candidate experience survey template. Add questions tailored to your talent acquisition approach and interview process. Share results with recruiters and hiring managers.

That’s the simplified, three-step process to securing valuable insights into the candidate journey and making data-driven changes to your recruitment model, employer brand, and interview style.

It’s this kind of high response rates in terms of candidate feedback that can really help your TA team make intelligent alterations that lead to a a stronger recruitment experience for job seekers.

9 tips for sending candidate experience surveys

While your counterparts in HR send quarterly eNPS surveys to gradually enhance the employee experience, your talent team must send candidate experience surveys to each prospect you engage — passed-on prospects and those hired fill open positions — to improve your hiring efforts.

Here are some expert insights that can help you send well-crafted CX surveys and properly leverage the feedback from them to make data-backed modifications to your recruitment strategy.

1) Get feedback on your org’s hiring process

This candidate experience survey question provides insight into the prospects’ expectations throughout the process. Moreover, it can also help you understand their overall experience.

Learn how your org can continue to enhance the candidate experience and implement these changes accordingly. Listening to leads’ feedback will encourage them to potentially apply again soon.

Benjamin Farber, Bristol Associates, Inc.

2) See if your job descriptions match reality

Some orgs are too eager to attract candidates. This leads to misleading job descriptions. The result of this is unsuitable candidates applying for roles that don’t match their experience or qualifications.

A job description should read as close as possible to the role you’re looking to fill. A misleading description wastes time for both the employer and candidate and comes with a financial cost. If your candidate experience survey implies a mismatch, action should be taken to correct the issue.

Morgan Taylor, Sourcery

3) Get insights into recruiter responsiveness

“How responsive were our team members when you reached out to them?” One study showed that 50% of candidates said they turned down a job because of a poor recruitment experience. 

Evaluating communication between candidates and TA specialists is essential to improvement. The great thing about this Q is it’s likely to provide a concrete answer with plenty of context.

Soumya Mohan, Poised

4) Check the potential for repeat application

It matters who the candidate partners with in the recruiting process. So, we don’t take that decision lightly. We work with candidates to put our best foot forward — especially since their success is our success.

The entire hiring process can be daunting — especially for someone who is new to it or has been in the process for some time without any luck. For them, the recruitment cycle can make the world of a difference. So, see if candidates had a good enough experience to come back and apply again.

Ryan Nouis, TruPath

5) Allow all candidates to leave comments

Give candidates space to voice their concerns, observations, and complaints. Only then will you be able to adapt your methodology and attract more candidates.

By including a simple text box at the end of the survey, you’ll ensure that no stone is left unturned in giving the candidate a platform with which to speak.

That way, you can make full use of their feedback and discover exactly what your candidates want to see. It’s as easy as asking, “Do you have any other comments?”.

Max Wesman, GoodHire

6) Gauge candidates’ willingness to refer

One of the most important items to include in a candidate experience survey is to ask the candidate how likely they are to recommend your company to other candidates or to other people in general.

Leads who have had a negative experience with your recruiting process are unlikely to recommend your brand. Of course, deeper insight into why or at what point the candidate developed a negative opinion of the org but asking if they would recommend your brand gives you a general overview.

Sharon Terera, Afrolovely

7) Learn how prospects heard about roles

Simply ask from which channel candidates heard about a position. This question will give you insight into how your brand is perceived and whether or not that perception is positive or negative. If a candidate mentions multiple channels, then you’re hearing a variety of opinions about your company. 

To explore more, ask “What made you most interested in applying for this position?” This can help you determine how you position your brand in the candidate’s mind and better communicate it to them.

Adina David, Paperjobz

8) Include the option for a recruiter rating

One item you can include on a candidate survey is a “Rockstar Rating”. This question measures how well your recruiters are providing great candidate experiences. 

Here’s an example of this in action: “On a scale of one to five, with five being the most satisfied, which of the following would best describe your recruiter and/or experience overall?”

On top of evaluating candidate experience, this question can also boost morale. Recruiters who often achieve high ratings will take pride in being “the best recruiter their candidates have worked with.”

Preston Sharpston, Parallel

9) Find out if candidates felt comfortable

One item to include in your candidate experience survey is a question on whether the candidate felt like they were able to ask questions during the process. It’s important for candidates to feel like they can ask questions about your company, its culture, and the role you’re hiring for.

This can help them decide if it’s a good fit for them, which is vital for both their happiness and yours.

Anup Kayastha, HeightComparison

Improving the candidate experience requires the right recruiting technology. Take the tour of our Evolve Talent Acquisition Suite today to learn how it can amplify your TA efforts.

The post Making the Most of Your Candidate Experience Survey first appeared on Jobvite.

There is nothing a recruiter dislikes more than spending the time and effort to attract, interview, and help hire a new employee only to have that individual leave the organization within their first 90 days on the job due to a poor new employee onboarding process and experience.

Recent Paychex research found roughly a third of business professionals think the onboarding experience was fairly confusing at their current employer and/or previous organizations — leading many of these workers to almost quit before they began or early on in their tenure.

“Onboarding is a new hire’s introduction to their new workplace and position,” Paychex noted regarding its report. “A positive experience can affirm a new employee’s excitement and motivation, but a negative one can send them running for the exit.”

Talent acquisition specialists spend a great deal of time crafting impact job descriptions, promoting job ads on online career communities, fine-tuning their careers page, proactively sourcing passive candidates, and nurturing prospects throughout their respective recruitment funnel.

The fact is, while finding quality workers can be challenging, having advanced talent acquisition software with a fully integrated onboarding platform that syncs with human resources’ systems of record — like Jobvite — helps employers set new employees up for success by nailing onboarding.

3 new employee onboarding process tips

You and your counterparts in HR obviously know the drill when it comes to your onboarding program:

• The moment a final-choice candidate accepts a job offer letter, the transition officially begins.
• The recruiter assigned to the role in question sends all info and data associated with new hires — ideally, in automated fashion, by syncing their ATS and HCM systems — to human resources.
• Your HR team sends the onboarding checklist and employee handbook to newly employed workers, shares the exact start date for the employee’s first day, and helps the new hires in question understand the company’s work environment so they’re full prepared for day one.

As Employ SVP Talent & People Corey Berkey shared during a recent webinar with HR tech company GoCo, HR specialists have a good idea as to how to make new hires feel welcome from the get-go.

“You’ll need to complete practical tasks before the first day, such as setting up the new employee’s physical space,” per Corey. “You can use this opportunity to personalize their onboarding experience.”

That said, the modern new employee onboarding process is now much more nuanced. Paying close attention to how past onboarding efforts went can inform how to enhance the process moving forward — and, in turn, better retain new workers and provide a stellar employee experience.

In short, a good onboarding process gives both the new hire and company the right tools to build relationships. Here are three tips to help you create a seamless new employee onboarding process.

1) Introduce new employees to the company culture to make them feel as welcome as possible

Back in the old days, companies weren’t as concerned with making new workers feel welcome. Back then, you got a paycheck and a few grunts from tenured employees. But, today, people know what it’s like to be “the new guy,” and want you to feel like you are welcome and part of a team.

Businesses have been making more of an effort to make new employees feel welcome.

You don’t have to buy them a fruit basket. But, some recruiters find assigning mentors or peers to new hires is a great way to ensure someone is there to answer any questions and help make intros.

This means that making new members of your workforce feel welcome is a vital part of onboarding that TA, human resources, and hiring managers must collectively “own” together.

Aside from making new additions to your org feel welcome from day one, the key to ensuring a seamless onboarding process is to introduce them to the company culture. The way that a new employee interacts with company culture is a major determining factor in their potential for success.

In other words, pay attention to how new employees react to the company culture as they are being introduced to it. Culture shock can become commonplace when new hires are “thrown into the fire” without any real introduction to how things are done and who’s who within the business.

Most companies have a certain way of doing things, and they expect their team members to do things the same way. Ensuring that new workers catch on to how things are done and assimilates with your company culture is paramount to their success in your organization.

2) Provide new employees with training resources and support along with an onboarding buddy

Just because an employee has become familiar with the company culture and made new connections with those on and outside their business unit doesn’t mean that they know how to do anything.

It’s perfectly natural for workers to have some confusion after the first couple of weeks or so.

With that in mind, each new employee should be provided with training resources and support — including and especially an onboarding buddy who can answer all their pressing questions.

“Without it, a new hire will likely struggle to fully understand … how to contribute to their team’s success. Onboarding buddies can give the type of context you won’t find in the employee handbook.”

While these buddies are intended to make the candidate-to-employee transition as smooth as possible, it’s also on them to ensure all materials and dos shared with new hires is consumed. Only then can they ensure the new workers are ready to hit the ground running and exit onboarding.

The business relayed how more than half of new hires made shortly after putting its buddy system in place who had met with their onboarding buddy at least once during the first three months on the job indicated they were able to realize a quick “time to productivity” with their teams.

That should be more than enough to convince your C-suite to implement such a program at your org.

3) Make new hires feel like they are part of something important amid the onboarding process

If at this point the people you have hired are embracing the company culture or at least outperforming their peers in the service of your brand, you need to make them feel important.

More specifically, you need to make them feel like they are part of something important.

The key to turning new employees into assets starts with a seamless onboarding process. The smoother it is, the sooner they can acclimate to the culture and start becoming more productive.

Whether you’re a biofuel company determined to change the world or a small insurance firm, it’s essential to make employees feel like they are part of something important from the moment they sign an offer letter. You need to make them feel like the work they do makes a difference.

That difference could be something as simple as a smile on a customer’s face or something as noble as the satisfaction of knowing that their work helps preserve the planet.

For instance, dressing up an otherwise ordinary job and making it seem extraordinary is easier than you might think. People are easily motivated by all kinds of things.

Learn all about Jobvite’s applicant tracking system with onboarding capabilities. Schedule a one-on-one demo with our team to discover the power of our Talent Acquisition Suite.

The post Ensuring a Seamless New Employee Onboarding Process first appeared on Jobvite.