BUILDING YOUR BUSINESS
How to Avoid Blocks in the Recruitment Funnel
By Cindy Whitt
NOTHING IS MORE FRUSTRATING THAN HAVING A POTENTIAL employee disappear before recruitment begins. If interest drops between the application submission and the in-person interview, you should fine-tune your recruitment funnel. Uncovering why your potential hires “ghost” you before they even meet your hiring manager can save you time and help you hire the right people for the job.
Hosting an open house is one way to connect with those in your community and give them a better idea of your company’s
culture. Photo: Ruppert Landscape
USE CULTURE TO RECRUIT Company culture is key, and while most landscaping companies are getting it right, they may need to share it with the rest of the world to spark interest and help potential hires follow through with their applications. Social media is an easy way to give applicants a peek behind the scenes to see how your company treats its em- ployees and give them extra incentive to apply. Holly Bruffy, HR director of Southern Landscape Group, Inc., based in Evington, Virginia, uses social media to show what kind of company culture a potential hire can expect if they join the team.
“One of the things that we focus on
more than anything is building our cul- ture,” she says. “We celebrate our cul- ture quite a bit on our social media with birthdays, anniversaries, team events and showcasing our team at work. That in and of itself brings in applicants. In between our phone and in-person in- terviews, I’ll encourage them, especially if we’re talking on the phone and they don’t know a lot about us, to check out our social media.” The company’s social media feeds are filled with photos of employee events and achievements. They use Instagram to target younger genera- tions in the workforce and LinkedIn for managerial positions. When potential workers see how the employees inter-
act with each other and the perks of working for the company, they may be inspired to apply — and follow through — with the hiring process. Community outreach also helps share company culture and reach potential applicants, according to Courtney Pohlit, director of people and recruiting at Ruppert Landscape, based in Laytonsville, Maryland. They have 31 branches that each manage their own recruitment with the help of her department. Branch managers attend career fairs, work with area colleges with landscaping programs and hold open houses. “Sometimes our branches will hold an open house and invite the commu- nity to check out the branch, meet our team and learn a little bit about not only the company but this particular location and the folks that work here,” she says. “We also get involved with local community fairs. We put up a lot of flyers in community centers. Our folks go out and post fliers in their local markets. We rely on our employees to get the message out (that) this is a great place to work.”
MAKE IT EASY TO APPLY With applicant tracking software and recruiting platforms available, the application process does not have to be difficult for potential hires. Pohlit recently launched a new system that makes it easy to apply for a position and includes an option for Spanish- speaking applicants. “We started using it in late July, and it’s been very successful for us,” she says. “It’s allowed us to really showcase more online. We have our careers page in both English and Spanish now, which is huge because we do hire a lot of Spanish-speaking employees. So, it’s really helpful for them to be able to go through the workflow completely in Spanish when they’re submitting an application online.” The tracking system is quick and user-friendly. An applicant can provide basic information for a field position or upload a resume for a managerial job. Pohlit says they plan to add a
12 The Edge //January/February 2023
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40
