The War for Talent is Over. They Won.

Part Two of a series examining the changing environment of high-value recruiting.

In the last post, we looked at how technology is threatening the talent pipelines assiduously put together by recruiters. Here’s the flip side: if the value of advance preparation is diminishing, the need to respond and engage faster must be increasing.

The candidate has control. In a 2014 study for Deloitte, analyst Josh Bersin predicted a power shift with high-performing employees taking control

“The war for talent is over,” he wrote, “and the talent won.”

The shift starts with how to find and engage the candidate. Considering that the average American consumer has four digital devices, it suggests he or she has got used to accessing information when he or she wants it.

That includes when looking for a job. A survey commissioned by the global job site “Indeed” suggests that 78% of people in the US would apply for jobs on their mobile devices if it were made a simpler process.   However, only 10% of Fortune 500 companies are considered to have a mobile-friendly application process.

More than Mobility

This process is more than being mobile. There’s your web site, the first stop for anyone seeking information about a company. It will have to adapt automatically to different screen sizes and resolutions with no loss of transfer. [Cornerstone’s websites, both private and public, are of this “responsive design” architecture.]

Then there is instant access to the information being sought by the candidate, since the main driver is convenience (55%). But you are not home yet.

You not only have to find the right person, but get his or her attention. That’s not new. But the distractions are many times greater and the cycle is getting shorter. Over 60% of eligible candidates acknowledge that an interesting job description would make them want to know more, with the possibility of moving from their current jobs.

You are now a Marketer. So you craft a compelling message and now you have to get it out there fast, within search parameters that will help it to be found and read. Remember, your mobile user expects to know of a qualifying opportunity right away – a core reason for their use of mobile communications.

In other words, being “mobile-fluent” is just the start of creating a friendly, efficient, effective and ubiquitous application experience for candidates. That includes accurate and informative job descriptions, an efficient interview structure, a quick response process.

Before you go, you might want to go take a look at this article in ERE Media.   It’s called “7 Reasons Your Hiring Process Repels Candidates.”

Next: Think of Recruiting as Marketing