Recruiting Talent into a Small Business

Recruiting talent can be a challenge for small businesses, competing with larger corporate organisations, offering significant reward and benefits packages. However, if you get the message and process right, you will quickly see the benefit!

If you are a small business facing these sorts of challenges, get in touch! We can help with a whole range of HR issues, including creating a robust succession plan so you are not left exposed when a key individual resigns, creating a people plan which fits your budget and growth targets, designing and delivering bespoke recruitment processes and much more. Our fully CIPD qualified HR & Recruitment Managers are on hand to ensure you are on the right path. 

Recruiting talent can be a challenge for small businesses, competing with larger corporate organisations, offering significant reward and benefits packages. However, if you get the message and process right, you will quickly see the benefit!

Employer brand

Understanding what differentiates you as an employer is essential.  What is your unique selling point? What is it about your business which
attracts and retains good people? Small businesses tend to be more dynamic places to work, offering more flexibility and job diversity, often tailoring
job roles to better suit individual needs.

Once you understand this USP, you can begin to create the message around it and get recruiting managers on board. It is important that the message
is relayed consistently internally and externally. Remember, creating your employer brand is just as important as any other branding. Be honest, don’t try to sell something that doesn’t exist. If you do promote an unrealistic picture it is likely that you end up with unhappy people and increased staff turnover.

Consider specific concerns candidates are likely to have about working for a small business. i.e. how secure is the business? What development opportunities can you offer? Capitalise on the things you offer which are not as readily available in larger organisations i.e. roles with broader responsibility, direct contact with business leaders for employees at all levels.

Understanding the role

It is important to have a clearly defined role profile or job description. Think about the key activities and responsibilities, but also what type of behaviours would be well suited to the role and your business. It is no good hiring someone with the perfect match of skills and experience if they are a poor cultural fit with the team.  Consider utilising Psychometric Personality profiling for important or critical roles.

Maximise your recruitment process

The internet is rife with examples of competency based questions and advice for candidates on how to answer them. This means that employers need to get smarter if they want to find people who are a great match for the business and the role.

A tailored recruitment process should be created for every role, to include measures of skill level, experience and behaviours. Be creative! There are lots of ways to assess whether someone can genuinely do what you need them to do every day at work.

Plan ahead

Typically, recruitment processes take months rather than days or weeks. Once you have found the perfect candidate, it is likely that you will have to wait a further month or so for them to work out their notice period with their current employer so planning ahead is essential. For key roles, you might consider increasing notice periods so that you are not left exposed in the event that someone resigns.

If your business is growing, resource planning can help you to identify gaps before they appear so you are on the front foot, starting the recruitment process before the need arises.

How DS Recruitment & HR Services can help

If you are a small business facing these sorts of challenges, get in touch! We can help with a whole range of HR issues, including creating a robust succession plan so you are not left exposed when a key individual resigns, creating a people plan which fits your budget and growth targets, designing and delivering bespoke recruitment processes and much more. Our fully CIPD qualified HR & Recruitment Managers are on hand to ensure you are on the right path. Want
to find out more about how DS Recruitment & HR Services can help Contact us today