In the past we’ve posted about the shortage of talent within certain sectors of the UK’s economy and the battle that companies have to face in order to find the best candidate for the job. We would suggest that if a company does not have a strategic mobile recruitment strategy it will continue to fight in vain to attract the best talent. All other efforts in sourcing and selecting candidates will be diluted if an organisation’s website is not built for mobile optimisation and multiple social channels are not used to recruit.
To support this hypothesis you just have to look at the facts; there are seven billion mobile phones currently in use, with 2014 predicted as the year that will see mobile phones as the most-used tool to engage with the world wide web, currently 86% of job seekers use their smartphone to search for jobs, but critically, only 13% of employers are adequately investing in mobile recruiting.
Reports last year indicated that only 26 of the Fortune 500 companies offer a mobile-optimised job application process. So essentially, when all those potential job hunters find a job they want to apply for online, they can’t. So it stands to reason that organisations need to use mobile to make it easier for candidates to instantly apply to close the talent gap faster.
Enabling vacancy applications via mobile is challenging. Keeping the process short and simple is the key, in fact making is easier to apply by mobile is requisite to combat the difficulties of having to manage the barriers presented by such small screens. But there are some basics around mobile recruiting that if implemented, can put you ahead of the curve.
As a minimum standard, every company should ensure its careers website is mobile optimised so that candidates can easily view vacancies on any device, and respond. By optimised, we mean that it goes beyond looking pretty and readable on a small screen, it has to have key functions that are easy to see and use. Providing a one-click option for candidates to express an interest in a position, or simply the option to email themselves a link with a reminder to apply later, should help minimise candidate wastage.
Companies have to identify and use job board and professional networks such as LinkedIn that have already made it easier for job seekers to apply on the go; LinkedIn has launched an app to let candidates apply via mobile. Users can apply within 60 seconds using their pre-prepared CV. Monster’s apps can be used to search for jobs, save searches, get email alerts when new jobs are posted as well as apply for jobs.
Sharing jobs on social networks with links to apply on the company website is also a starting point, but when they job seeker gets to the career website, it needs to have the same one-click engagement, even if this is just to provide the option to sign up for job vacancy text-alerts.
There cannot be any doubt that smart recruitment will have to incorporate a mobile strategy if organisations don’t want to miss out on great talent. As more and more talent goes down the mobile road, companies will have to ensure that they have signposted their career opportunities.
