Keep filling the same roles? Here’s how to make repeat-hiring more efficient and effective.

As soon as one role is filled, your team seems to be immediately hiring for that same role, but now from a more limited talent pool. 

It’s a common enterprise hurdle: many enterprises find themselves repeatedly hiring for the same roles — e.g., retail sales assistants, food service employees, social media managers etc. Thanks to an ongoing need to fill the same roles (albeit, often in different departments or business units) job posts may remain online for weeks or even months.

The challenge? While these added roles should mean more opportunities for job seekers, often new posts are overlooked — after candidates apply, they may not recognise a ‘new’ job post, particularly if the headline and job description are similar to those of a job for which they’ve already applied. As time goes on, posts can start to seem stale, garnering slower candidate engagement than earlier posts, despite being new opportunities for the same functional roles. 

If you’re consistently hiring the same functional roles or similar roles, it’s essential to differentiate posts — and to identify and activate a targeted audience of potential candidates, versus waiting for talent to come to you. Here’s how to get started and create a dynamic funnel of qualified candidates.

1. Be proactive

One solution is for recruiting teams to be more proactive. Retain qualified candidates’ applications, and when the same/similar roles become available, immediately activate those candidates. Reach out, one-on-one, to discuss recently-opened roles, and bring in interested candidates as soon as possible.

This tactic will ensure a qualified pool of potential applicants whenever a new position opens up. To keep the pool fresh, encourage your team to check in with these candidates throughout the year for updates so you can continually align talent with the right opportunities.

2. Create an internal talent funnel

Creating an always-evolving talent funnel is another internal best practice. Although many enterprises leaned on external recruitment during the pandemic, now is an optimal time to revisit or launch development opportunities within your organisation.

A strong learning and development (L&D) model is a major draw for potential hires, and also helps to retain existing talent. A survey of Australian CFOs by Deloitte for DeakinCo found that 93% felt a key business risk in 2022 was difficulty in securing and retaining key talent, and 74% felt that L&D had become more of an organisational priority due to COVID-19. A 2019 article from McKinsey & Company noted that, ‘Workers are now in charge of their personal and professional growth and development—one reason that people list ‘opportunities for learning and development’ among the top criteria for joining an organization. Conversely, a lack of L&D is one of the key reasons people cite for leaving a company’.

In addition, L&D can boost your bottom line. The DeakinCo report found that every dollar invested in L&D returned an additional $4.70 per employee. This productivity benefit is also accompanied by employee engagement and better staff retention – organisations with strong L&D strategies reported an attrition rate of 14%, compared to 25% for those that did not invest as much in L&D.   

Although your company undoubtedly has an L&D program, how well is it performing in terms of boosting retention and EBITDA? What are competitors doing to improve these metrics via L&D? What about leading firms in other industries? Have you surveyed your employees to learn what’s currently working, what’s not, and what’s missing from the L&D program?

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Learning-and-development (L&D) programs can boost your bottom line

Companies investing in leadership training are 2.4 times more likely to hit performance targets.

Source: McKinsey & Company, The essential components of a successful L&D strategy, February 2019

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If you’re not doing so already, direct your recruiting teams to identify and cultivate internal talent early on – from entry-level to the leadership level. Building and maintaining a funnel of high-performing, highly-engaged marketing coordinators, for example, gives your team a candidate pool to explore whenever a marketing manager role opens. Better still, if these coordinators are part of an internal L&D program that teaches new functional competencies, they’ll be well-equipped to move into these types of roles quickly, without the same potential friction as an external candidate.

Likewise, if senior-level marketers have already received leadership training, they may be ideal candidates for managerial or executive roles. And, thanks to their first-hand knowledge of past performance and potential, the internal hires may be more aligned with the needs and expectations of their new position.

3. Make sure new posts pop 

Lastly, ensure job seekers can spot new roles – even if they look the same as a job for which they previously applied. Whether it’s a Sponsored Job or a clear indication the latest post is new, make sure candidates can quickly spot what they’ve applied for and what they should apply for. This will not only help you spot very engaged candidates but also streamline interviews and review processes — a single applicant may be a good fit for multiple roles.  

To that end, don’t be afraid to go back to talent pools for other active or recently-active posts. Just because a candidate didn’t move ahead for a specific role doesn’t mean they aren’t a good fit for your organisation. It’s possible their resume came in later in the hiring process, fell into an HR ‘black hole’, or they simply weren’t the top contender for the role — but could be great for a recently-opened headcount. 

By being proactive and building out a robust talent funnel, your teams will be able to fill roles efficiently and effectively — even for frequently-needed positions. Tap into prior applicants, engage internal talent, and don’t be afraid to reach out to your competitors’ teams. With the right opportunities and perks, you can likely secure qualified candidates ready to slide into your open headcounts.