Wondering what candidates are looking for in 2021? A few specific things stand out:

1. Competitive salary

2. Job security

3. Work/life balance

In other words — the same things they’ve always wanted.

You hear so much noise in the business world about offering customers an elevated experience. But don’t forget, your employees are a kind of customers too. Recruiters act as an arm of your sales team, vetting potential hires and giving them star customer treatment along the way.

Many companies start out with a somewhat haphazard hiring process. They need to fill a role, STAT, so they bring in a few candidates, ask ad hoc questions and attempt to go through the paces of hiring in the best way they know how.

As you grow and mature as a company, however, your hiring process has to grow and mature, too. This post includes a few simple ideas on where to start.

Are you looking to hire a purple squirrel or purple unicorn? These are terms recruiters use to identify the mythical perfect hire who checks every single box. Do they exist? Maaayyyybe. Regardless, working with a sourcing specialist at the Source and Recruit Company will get you as close as possible.

Layoffs don’t necessarily scream “good news” to the market or those personally affected. But for hiring managers, they can be excellent news indeed. Suddenly, the job market is flooded with talented folks eager to find their next great job.

When you think of the value a recruiter brings, what comes to mind?

Connections? Intuition? A knack for finding talent?

These are all true, with the right recruiter. But recruiters like myself and the others here at The Source and Recruit Company hold another essential skill you may not realize: process management.

Companies are tightening their belts and unemployment figures are increasing (rapidly). With this market shift, recruiter on-demand is more relevant than ever. Pay for recruitment services as you need them, and stay away from unnecessary 20-30% placement fees.

Love him or hate him, Elon Musk is an attention-getter.

Recently, the innovative made waves with a series of tweets calling for AI help at Tesla. “A PhD is definitely not required,” tweeted Musk.

Tesla is well known for being anti-establishment even in the progressive vanguard of tech. While other companies are desperate to find expert data scientists with advanced degrees, Musk just wants smart, intelligent people with vision, passion and a great work ethic. He doesn’t care so much about their credentials.

What’s the most important metric you turn to when comparing job candidates? Is it experience?

If so, you’re not alone. But you might be surprised to hear that in a recent Harvard Business Review study, experience did not rank very highly as a successful predictor of success. In fact, it came in at #14.