Speed is key factor in getting the best candidates

Thu 31 May 2007

Companies that take more than a month over the recruitment and selection process lose out on the best candidates, suffer more delays in their business, incur more administration cost and ultimately are less satisfied with the overall recruitment process.

In contrast, companies that move swiftly get the pick of the best candidates, demonstrate decisiveness and organisation skills, and are ultimately more satisfied with the recruitment process.

So says science recruitment specialist SRG, who have analysed the success of over 1000 recruitment campaigns over the last 12 months.

Where companies wait 4 weeks to progress the initial applications, only a third of candidates originally submitted are still available. These remaining candidates tend to be the ones that are towards the bottom of the clients preferred list – the candidates that were at the top have already found positions and are no longer available. Where companies take less than a week to progress their recruitment, the best candidates are much more likely to still be available. An organisation that’s decisive and responsive has a much higher success rates at recruiting highly talented and skilled individuals ahead of competitive organisations.

This correlation between speed and candidate availability is no surprise given the competitive market for science skills. Research published by SRG in November 2006 showed that four times as many companies are looking to increase scientific staff compared to those looking to decrease numbers. At the same time, numbers of traditional science graduates are not increasing and many of these graduates are being attracted into other higher paid professions such as Accountancy. As a result, the companies in the research reported that SEVEN times as many companies are finding it more difficult to recruit scientists compared to those that find it easier. Click here to view November 2006 research.

To help companies look at the speed of their recruitment processes, SRG has developed a Seven Easy Tips document to speed up your recruitment process. E-mail info@srg.co.uk for your copy.