While some employees have been working from home full time for years, a good majority of people are now adjusting to this new working style. Working from home has its challenges with trying to balance both home life and work life and also the lack of outside human interaction. To help you navigate virtual work, we’ve put together some quick tips for recruiting effectively while working from home.
Keep Communication Lines Open
Working at home is an adjustment for those who are accustomed to working in an office setting. Some recruiters may have children who are home from school or family members they need to take care of, so they’re having to juggle home life and work life. Let team members know if you need to adjust your schedule to accommodate this new lifestyle, and ask for coverage if you need it.
On the other hand, keeping the communication lines open with candidates is also critical. Be proactive with candidate communication, even if it’s just checking in on how the candidate is doing or providing a status update that the team is still making a decision. These little acts can go a long way in building trust and helping ease a candidate’s anxiety during a stressful climate.
Try Video Screens
As much as recruiters are adjusting to video meetings, there’s a good chance that candidates are also navigating those same waters. Instead of the traditional phone screen, consider doing them over video. This could help bring a more personal experience to the virtual candidate experience while also getting your feet wet with video calls.
Not everyone has the luxury of a home office, so wherever you’re taking the call from, try to find a room with the least amount of distractions to ensure you’re giving candidates your full attention.
Practice Active Listening
When you’re talking to someone face to face, you give them eye contact to signal that you’re listening. This holds true for video screens and interviews as well. Make sure you’re looking at the screen to replicate eye contact. When candidates are speaking, make the occasional nod to show that you’re not only listening but that you’re also engaged with them.
Automate Sourcing and Pre-Screens
There are certain industries that are experiencing a surge in job openings and job applications This surge can be overwhelming for one person to tackle, especially if you’re already trying to multitask other personal at-home commitments. A recruiting software can help streamline both sourcing and pre-qualifying candidates so that recruiters can spend more face time with candidates rather than weeding through mountains of resumes and applications.
Adjusting to this new normal can take a while as you learn what works for you and what doesn’t. As we have moved to a world where face-to-face interaction is limited, we need to take extra consideration for how to add a human touch to the virtual world through consistent communication and putting a face to a name through video calls. In these teams, leaning on technology such as recruitment automation can help recruiters streamline their process and close the loop on job listings.
