Are you a recruiter wanting to approach 2020 with fresh ideas? Or, are you starting out in your recruitment career and need a few useful resources to help you along? Perhaps you’re an old hand and one of your resolutions is to try new recruitment methods? Either way, there’s plenty of inspiration and information out there, and most of it is available online and for free!
It’s a fact. Recruiters who are well-informed and well-resourced not only attract the best candidates but also go a long way towards keeping on top of their own career goals.
But, you’ll be pleased to hear, finding high-quality resources doesn’t necessarily have to take a big chunk out of your day. You just need to know where to look. Today, there’s software and the online world, which, if used wisely, can be a recruiter’s best friend.
However, for most recruiters, knowing where to start is the problem. So, if you’re keen to begin the new year with the best tools the online community has to offer, then continue reading this handy guide. Let’s dive in!
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Blogs
It doesn’t matter whether you’re interested in specific areas of recruitment or want a more ‘all-encompassing’ resource, there’s bound to be a blog to suit your needs.
Subscribing to reliable recruitment blogs is a simple way of keeping up to speed with all the latest industry trends and ideas.
Our favorites include:
Undercover Recruiter: Here, you’ll find a wide range of topics on attracting talent, with titles like: “2020 Trends That Will Shake Up Workplaces” and “Properly Spotting Talent During The Hiring Process.” These articles offer succinct and insightful tips for ambitious recruiters.
Recruitment Juice: This blog is written by recruiters, for recruiters. You’ll find up to date industry news and recruitment resources covering topics like “Why Dull Training Never Works.”
G2 Crowd’s ‘learn’ blog: This business-oriented blog covers topics ranging from marketing to productivity, sales, tech, and more – all subjects that recruiters have a lot to learn from. It provides search options and subjects categorized by interest area, so it’s easy to find what you’re looking for. Their latest recruitment blog on hiring tips is one such example.
Last but not least, of course, it’d be rude not to mention our very own blog. We may be a teeny bit biased, but you’ll see it’s brimming with useful recruitment tools. We regularly delve into big topics, some recent examples include:
- 11 Top Recruiting Trends To Watch Out For 2020
- 17 Best Recruiting Conferences To Go To in 2020
- Blind Hiring: Everything You Need To Know
Don’t forget to check out and bookmark your favorite recruitment blogs!
It is easy to get lost in the sheer amount of content that is published every day. That’s why it helps to have your favorite go-to blogs. However, you can always to keep an eye out for more useful, informative content.
Books
Even in this ever-digitalized world, well-written and well-researched books still have their place in the recruitment industry.
The right book can:
- Be a source of inspiration
- Help you finetune your recruitment process
- Deepen your recruitment-themed knowledge base
So, with that in mind, here are our top two book recommendations (and all are available both in print and online):
The Robot-Proof Recruiter: A Survival Guide for Recruitment and Sourcing Professionals by Katrina Collier
This book offers expert guidance on what works, what doesn’t, and how recruiters can stand out in a world overloaded with technological “recruitment solutions.” It explains (in simple terms) how recruiters can use technology to support their candidate’s journey throughout the entire process.
The Science of Talent: How to Find, Grow and Keep the Right People in your Organization by Kate O’Loughlin
If you already work in recruitment, you’ll want to be the best there is (obviously). This means keeping your finger on the pulse on how best to attract top-quality talent. We talk about “talent” all the time, and Kate O’Loughlin’s book helpfully tackles questions like what’s talent? Should recruiters treat millennials differently? Should you tell some people, they have ‘what it takes’ and others that they don’t?
If you’re interested in building your library of work-related books, you can find a longer list of titles worth reading here and here.
Templates
Most recruiters are time short, but help is out there in the form of templates. These help you speed up any time-consuming tasks in search for talent. You can use ready-made templates and amend them to reflect your organization’s brand and needs.
There are tons of websites out there offering free templates. It doesn’t matter whether you need to write:
- SEO-optimized job descriptions
- Interview questions and kits
- Email campaigns to attract candidates
Or, whatever other recruiting needs you have… there’s bound to be a template out there to suit you.
The resource-rich site, Workable, never disappoints when it comes to providing templates that take you through the whole recruitment process from start to finish.
The TalentLyft site also offers recruiters free-to-use templates. Here you can access email templates, recruitment letters, job description templates, and job interview questions categorized by topic. Their interview kits (usually) work wonders for assessing the emotional intelligence, communication skills, cultural fit, etc., of potential candidates.
If you’ve been tasked with launching your company’s recruitment process from scratch, you’re going to need the right recruiting software and you’re possibly considering sending out an RFP. If that’s where you’re at, read our blog on How To Write An RFP For Recruiting Software and download a recruiting RFP template!
Talentlyft provides a comprehensive list of questions for diverse skills, including communication, problem-solving, technical and leadership skills that you can further tailor to your specific interview goals.
Newsletters
Easy-to-read content delivered directly to your inbox is a lifesaver when it comes to keeping up to date with recruitment trends from reliable thought leaders and industry authorities. But, it can be challenging to plow through the millions of websites offering recruitment-related items to find something that’s not only relevant but also high-quality.
To help you out, we’ve listed some of our favorite newsletters below:
Recruiting Brief: They allow subscribers to curate content according to their interests and needs. You can opt to receive either daily, weekly, monthly, or annual updates about the latest recruitment trends and thought leadership.
Or, if you’re after a lighter touch without compromising on content and quality, then go for Recruitment Red Meat. Written by recruiter and author Mitch Sullivan, this irregular newsletter breaks the mold by giving you links to LinkedIn posts, recruitment blogs, and job listings. He describes his newsletter as “An occasional newsletter with links to recent events on LinkedIn in particular and the Internet in general that have either made me laugh, swear or think.”.
Let’s not forget about useful and interesting information-packed Recruiting Brainfood curated by Hung Lee. You can expect it in your inbox every Sunday.
If you’re thinking of subscribing to a few recruitment email blasts, you can find a more in-depth list of reputable newsletters here.
Conferences, networking events and meetups
Yes, we mean real-life, talk-to-people in-person events. Networking functions can be a fantastic source of recruitment inspiration.
To find events nearby, you can either scour LinkedIn, Twitter or, Google or find them listed on some of the newsletters you’ve already subscribed to.
Being seen at such events shows you have your finger on the pulse. It’s also a way of enhancing your own brand or that of the company you’re representing. It may be hard to turn up alone and start talking to people you’ve never met, but sometimes learning is best done when you’re out of your comfort zone. So, our advice? Go ahead and dive straight right in.
Well-known networking events in 2020 include:
…and other recruiting conferences.
Top Tip: Networking ‘meetups’ are usually more affordable and accessible than fancy conferences. Typically, they’re hosted after working hours, and finding one in your area is a breeze. Just sign up with the MeetUp site or Eventbrite and look for recruitment-related groups.
If you live and/or work in a less populated area and can’t find a MeetUp, set one up. You can always contact the originators of other groups to ask them for tips.
Networking with peers allows you to share knowledge, discover best recruitment practices of other companies, and get fresh inspiration for your work.
Webinars
The advantages of watching online webinars are many. Typically, you can go view these in your own time or during a quieter moment at your desk, and you’ll get creative and valuable information from industry experts. Of course, if the webinars are live, then you’ll have to tune in at the designated time. But on the whole, these resources tend to be recorded.
We especially liked this webinar: From Interview to Offer: Creating an Exceptional Candidate Experience. This takes a look at how to use technology to increase efficiency and attract more talent in 2020. There are other webinars on the same site, too, which cover a wide range of topics, including how to use metrics to measure your hiring strategies.
Alternatively, if you’re a YouTube fan, you’ll be happy to hear, there are recruitment resources a-plenty. Given that more than 1 billion hours are watched daily on this platform, with 62% of businesses using YouTube to post videos, unsurprisingly, YouTube is an excellent source of valuable content.
However, like the rest of the online world, it can be easy to disappear down a rabbit hole when finding relevant and instructive material (who doesn’t love a funny cat video?!)
A quick search found us here, where you’ll find webinars on recruiting tools and webinars. Some of the content can be quite old and amateurish, so choose wisely.
If you prefer slicker sites, try the Greenhouse webinars. You can subscribe to their newsletter to stay informed of all of their newest content.
Some of the previous topics they’ve topics covered include:
- How Hiring Impacts Culture
- The Do’s and Don’ts: Delivering Feedback to Employees
- Why You Need an Employee Experience Strategy
Just to name a few!
Podcasts
Podcasts are an excellent example of a free recruitment tool you can access on the go. Whether you’re looking for practical tips to use in your day job or want help on industry-specific topics, you’re sure to find something on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or SoundCloud.
There are more than 29 million podcast episodes out there, of course, not all of them are about the recruitment industry, but still, it’s a lot to wade through.
We’ve already written about some of our favorite recruitment podcasts here and here, but if you want more to dive into on your daily commute, here’s a few below:
Recruitment On The Go: Our very own podcast has daily episodes that are anywhere between 10 and 15 minutes long. It’s suitable for recruiters, talent acquisition managers, and/or HR specialists.
But, if you prefer an interview-style of podcast, then Matt Alder’s Recruiting Future podcast provides the inside scoop from industry experts on a wide range of subjects. They cover everything from the recruiting technology market to workplace culture and beyond.
Online communities
Stay connected with colleagues, future teammates, employees, and candidates via online communities on Facebook, Slack, and LinkedIn. They’re an invaluable source of information and excellent places to make and enhance your relationships with useful connections.
Some of the best Facebook groups include Recruitment Evolution. This is especially true if you’re interested in talent acquisition.
Or, there’s The Employment Agency Movement, which is a small private group focussing on knowledge sharing.
Alternatively, there’s the Recruiters Online, a large community that concentrates on recruitment-related anecdotes, ideas, and debates. But a word to wise, there’s seriously no marketing or promotion of your own business; otherwise, you’ll be chucked out of the group quicker than you can say ‘hired.’
Other groups to look out for include: The Secret HR Society, HR Stories, and DBR, which they say is apparently “the only safe place for in-house recruiters.” Who knew recruitment was such a dangerous industry?!
Ready to dive into recruitment resources?
If you want to be the best recruiter in the business and find the most qualified candidates, it’s clear you need a lot more than to scan a CV quickly. Staying on top of the news agenda as well as existing and emerging recruitment trends is crucial.
We encourage you to utilize the above resources to help you ensure that 2020 is the year you make a mark.
