With the low unemployment landscape, hiring managers can tend to settle for a “good enough” candidate that “seems like a decent match”. As recruiters and business partners, we get it. We also have decades of experience helping hiring managers understand how to better define hiring criteria based upon the organization’s current business challenges. If you are using the same criteria and job posting language repeatedly, perhaps reviewing your sourcing strategy is in order.

The Gallup organization offers several different research-based methodologies for understanding what drives the decision making on an excellent hire. Here are three strategies Gallup suggests that all HR leaders can benefit from.

Avoid approaches that just “fill a vacancy.”

When a position opens up, the tendency is to fill the vacancy the same way you have always filled it. At Arlington Resources, we help hiring managers assess what is critical to your team’s, and the company’s, success. The more we can stay connected to you and your hiring managers, the more we understand your current business challenges.

Crafting a job description with key skills and behaviors needed for shifts in your business.

Pausing for a moment to define what success looks like for new hires helps in maintaining an agile recruitment strategy for your company. Armed with this information, we can help you craft a stronger job posting and be on the lookout for great candidates who can help you achieve your business goals. Considering what a candidate contributes to the future of the company versus hiring based upon skills alone helps accurately reflect what will be expected of your new hire and if they will be successful in the role.

Be prepared to raise the bar of excellence in your employees.

Oftentimes a recruiting strategy is based upon replicating other high performers or reducing the likelihood of another failed hire. What if you recruited candidates with even higher potential than your current high performers? By raising the performance ceiling, you enable growth and future development of your stronger team members, keep them motivated to be more successful, and inspire others to succeed.

Next time you fill a vacancy, consider the business outcomes that lead to greater success for all. Let Arlington Resources collaborate with you and your hiring managers on a stronger recruiting strategy.