Many companies follow the concept of Kaizen to look for ways to develop their processes. But Kaizen is beyond quality control or reevaluation. It also inspires an attitude of continuous improvement. It creates a mindset that things can always be much better, and our perceived status quo is only a preset to something even greater. In this light, employees and companies should look into Kaizen as a way of life.
Your usual recruitment strategy may work for you the entire time, but is it the best you can do? Is your current recruitment process the perfect, foolproof plan you deem it to be? If there is even a tiny room for improvement, dedicate some effort to reviewing your process and identifying improvements. You’ll be amazed at how else you can make your potential hires and clients happy by streamlining and ensuring effectiveness in your recruiting process.
If it isn’t broken, why fix it? So, in the spirit of Kaizen, we’ll tell you why recruiters and staffing leaders like you should adopt a point-of-view of continuously yearning for what’s better.
Improving Your Feedback System Provides a Holistic Perspective in Your Recruitment System
It’s a given that staffing agencies must have a feedback mechanism in place for candidates who have already undergone the recruitment process. However, your feedback system shouldn’t settle only with a one-sided view.
Remember that what your hiring staff observes is as important as what your candidates experience. Exposure to various personalities and juggling different candidate or client concerns give your recruitment team the authority to pinpoint weaknesses and deficiencies in the hiring process.
In a poll conducted by Gallup, only 20 percent of employees worldwide, and 34 percent in America, are engaged by their leaders.¹ A big part of this engagement is reviewing their work, but this time from the point of view of the actual people who deliver them.
Think of this additional feedback as another layer of certainty being added to your company’s success. Of course, as a leader, your point-of-view is valid, but adding the ideas and convictions of your staff adds another facet to improving processes.
Enhancing Your Processes via Automation Helps You with Efficiency and Diversity
Presently, automation tools such as applicant tracking and interview scheduling apps help your recruitment teams evaluate your talent acquisition efforts. But why stop at what you know? Why be content with automating data organization only? What if there are other aspects of recruitment automation that your agency hasn’t explored yet? Could there be more time or money to save?
The best way to think of innovative automation is to go through your entire recruitment process – from your hiring pipeline to onboarding your new employees. Identify the tools your team is already using and then research other tech tools that can help expedite specific tasks. Some examples are:
- One-sided interview apps. These apps can send instructions to applicants to record their answers to interview questions. They will automatically record and send the videos to the recruiter or hiring manager, who will review the application. These one-sided interview apps eliminate the need to create a schedule, and it even tests the applicant’s tech-savviness and ability to comprehend instructions.
- Augmented writing software. Today’s generation of job hunters is making sure they are entering a company that practices diversity, equity, and inclusivity. Using an augmented writing tool like Textio or any of its alternatives2 automates editing your job opening posts in a way that welcomes professionals from all walks of life. This kind of software can guide you in creating perfect job descriptions and also help keep an eye out for wording that is non-inclusive or promotes bias.
But as much as automation drives efficiency, it’s not a quick fix for all staffing companies. Sometimes, automation also fails. For example, Amazon stopped using an AI application screener upon finding out it penalized resumes with the word “women,” bringing down applicants from women’s colleges to a lower probability of being interviewed.³
At the end of the day, you cannot simply use all tools that seem useful. Take time to rally your team and figure out if the tools you’re using work the way you want them to. Do they cut time, effort, or expenses in any way? Or are the tools present just for show? If it’s the latter, then maybe removing them is how you can fix what isn’t broken.
Leveling Up Your Client Approach Translates to Retention and Positive Branding
Are your clients happy with the service they are receiving from your recruitment agency? They probably are, and your instinct is to keep the status quo so that they’ll remain in that sentiment for a long time.
But as Kaizen dictates: Resist the status quo. In cases like these, being competitive is a good thing. Satisfaction is not the limit. We encourage you to have more conversations with your client and truly understand what, for them, is the best service they can get from a staffing agency. List down their unique concerns, and work with your team to create a one-of-a-kind strategy to work for that one client.
Why attempt to revise strategies that are working?
- Improve client relations. If they continuously get what they want from you, they’ll definitely stay. But do you want to solidify this thought that they’ll be your agency’s clients for a longer time? Personalize your processes and talent management efforts by tailoring them to how clients want them to a tee. It eliminates any thought of looking for other or better options.Remember that other staffing companies are also working on getting better at their craft. Before your client can notice them, work on client retention by being better than you are now.
- Troubleshoot future problems. Talking to your clients about how to improve the process is a fantastic means to future-proof your efforts. There could be changes in what the client wants that they may not know yet, but your forward-thinking approach driven by continuous improvement helps forecasts difficulties and prepares you for such difficulties.
Learn to expect the unexpected. Start fixing your client’s problems even before they have them. This will let them know you have their future and best interest at heart.
- Build a positive brand. Nothing beats authentic marketing done by word of mouth. Making your clients truly happy with your services will push them to talk about you in their own circles. Your superb service will also translate to online reviews that many potential hires can come across.
Kaizen has 10 guiding principles, and the last one reads: Never stop improving.⁴ Choosing to be aware of improvements in your hiring process or marketing efforts is a valuable step in improving candidate experience or client satisfaction.
Remember, being content with what works can lead to stagnation. Be dynamic and never get tired of finding gaps in recruitment processes. Teach your staffing agency to be excited about the prospect of change, the way professionals should always be empowered to seek continuous improvement.
ELEVATE YOUR EMPLOYER BRAND WITH ALLIED INSIGHT.
Are you happy with how the entire recruitment industry views your staffing agency? Practice Kaizen by allowing a premier marketing firm focusing on staffing companies to help you build an online brand. Allied Insight’s full-stack services aim to improve your online presence through a list of services, including optimized content and SEO enablement.
Our approach has always been holistic yet personalized, as we understand the uniqueness of our clients, from their concerns to the brand they wish to be identified with. Contact Allied Insight now.
1 Royal, Ken. “Who’s Responsible for Employee Engagement?” Gallup. https://www.gallup.com/workplace/266822/engaged-employees-differently.aspx. Published last September 14, 2019. Updated last April 29, 2022. Accessed last March 3, 2023.
2 G2. “Top 10 Textio Alternatives and Competitors.” https://www.g2.com/products/textio/competitors/alternatives. No publish date. Accessed last March 3, 2023.
3 Asher-Schapiro, Avi. “ANALYSIS-AI Is Taking Over Job Hiring, But Can It Be Racist?” Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/article/global-tech-ai-hiring-idUSL5N2NF5ZC. Published June 7, 2021. Accessed last March 3, 2023.
4 Daniel, Diann. “Kaizen (continues improvement).” Tech Target. https://www.techtarget.com/searcherp/definition/kaizen-or-continuous-improvement. No publish date. Updated last May 2021. Accessed last March 3, 2023.
