How do candidates want to be recruited these days? They want to learn as much as they can about you, their potential employer, through a variety of channels and credible voices. Almost everyone is open to hearing about new job opportunities. LinkedIn surveyed more than 1,500 working professionals in the United States and Canada throughout 2016 to learn about their job seeking processes, and some of what they found may surprise you.

89 percent of professionals are interested in hearing about new jobs.

“Whether someone is an active or passive candidate, they want to know about your open jobs,” according to the study. This is no surprise to Imprimis Group’s recruiters, as we have been matching employers with the best qualified passive and active candidates in the DFW Metroplex for years.

The key to successful hiring of passive candidates is building relationships, either directly, or working with a staffing agency that has developed these relationships over time. The key to hiring the right active job seekers is a comprehensive screening process targeting candidates who have demonstrated success in the required skills and responsibilities.

Being kept in the dark is a major source of candidate frustration!

The vagaries of the job changing process are a struggle for most candidates. Candidates said three things in particular leave them feeling uncomfortably unaware of things they need to know. Here are some of the best ways to turn the lights on for each:

1. Not knowing what it’s really like to work at the company
   1. Ask your employees to actively recruit people they know directly (through an employee referral program) and through social media.
   2. The most credible voices on the subject of your company culture are your employees’. Ask them to talk about your company culture and what it’s like to work for your organization. LinkedIn advises that what you share includes your company vision and strategy, what makes you different, and a real picture of the working environment. We provide guidance on this subject in a recent blog post.

2. Not hearing back after applying to a company
   1. It is becoming the norm to send emails and/or postcards thanking everyone who applied for a position with your company.
   2. We suggest thanking interviewed candidates with a personalized letter or email. This gesture preserves the positive impression your company makes for a possible future employment connection.

3. Not understanding what’s really expected of the role.
   1. A well-composed job description can go a long way toward clarifying the nature of a position. Learn how to write one in this post from our sister agency for creative talent, Freeman Leonard.
   2. Imprimis Group advises spending a significant chunk of time during the interviews focusing on this topic and intertwining with questions designed to reveal whether a candidate is the right fit.
   3. LinkedIn also says that candidates want to know about workload expectations, a day in the life, and possible career trajectories with your company.

One of the top three ways that people land a new job is through a third party, according to LinkedIn. Having well-connected recruiters working on your behalf to inform your best employee prospects about your opportunity and company is a proven way to land top talent, especially in the employee market that is DFW. Let us work for you.

For more data on how candidates want to be recruited, download the full LinkedIn 2016 US & Canada Talent Trends Report.