101 Ideas for Getting the Employees You Want

Anticipate staffing needs.
Target messages to a specific type of candidate.
Understand the needs of targeted candidates, and appeal to their needs.
Investigate the possibility of employing older workers.
Workers with disabilities may be a target market segment that will help meet your staffing needs.
Analyze the ways that moonlighters might meet staffing needs for nights and weekends.
Look at career shifters as a group to enter your industry.
“Back-to-work-moms” are looking for employment opportunities that offer training as well as flexibility.
Target disadvantaged youth as a market segment to meet recruiting needs.
Exiting military are looking for career opportunities in the civilian world.
Prison release programs have job candidates that are looking for a second chance.
Work with government funded employment and training programs that will assist you in the recruitment process.
Look carefully at internal issues before employing non-traditional workers; see if diversity training is appropriate for supervisors and managers of these new workers.
Put yourself in the candidate’s place—where would they hear about you?
Investigate high school and post-secondary vocational education programs—DECA, VICA, FHA, FFA, etc. (and if you don’t know what these acronyms stand for—call a local high school to find out!)
Participate in Junior Achievement and other youth business education programs—it helps establish your company and the career choice in that student’s mind.
Discover if your city has a business-education partnership for youth.
Consider your image as an employer, and develop strategies to enhance that image as an Employer of ChoiceSM.
Advertise in alternate sections of the newspaper.
Use different newspapers to advertise your recruitment message—don’t overlook the local and community papers.
Place testimonial advertisements.
Investigate the use of the papers sold in convenience stores such as the Thrifty Nickel or the Bargain Mart.
Use compelling graphics and ad copy.
Stress your benefits—sell the opportunity!
Use recruiting advertising agencies for more effective advertising.
Limit the number of recruiting messages used in one medium—you don’t want to appear desperate (even though you may be!).
Use the media to promote the benefits of working at your organization.
Offer coupons in your newspaper ads for candidates to complete and mail in.
Staff your telephones on Sunday, so that candidates can call in for information.
Use an 800 number, so that out-of-town candidates can more easily contact you.
Institute a recruitment hot line, so that interested individuals can call to get information on the kinds of positions that are open.
Use the Internet to publicize your organization and specific job vacancies.
Try a product advertising agency for a fresh approach.
Tap into your company’s resources and work with your marketing/advertising departments for recruitment ideas.
Investigate the use of cable television.
Use radio with print advertising for best results.
Look into prime time television to deliver your messages.
Hold an open house to attract career shifters or to fill multiple positions.
Try a call-in open house by asking candidates to call a number for more information.
Join with other employers and participate in career fairs and job fairs.
Set up your own career fair with your local mall.
Buy a recruiting booth when participating in career fairs.
Develop recruitment videos to play at career fairs and open houses.
Create recruitment literature for use in all recruiting activities.
Plan give-aways for candidates who identify your organization (include contact information).
Offer free career planning workshops to the public—and at the end, sell them on careers with your organization.
Use posters and signs with tear-off application forms in grocery stores, banks, community centers, laundromats, and churches.
Try telemarketing—reaching your prospective candidate by phone.
Use traditional employment agencies to find candidates.
Investigate the use of agencies that conduct research for you.
Work with agencies to conduct telemarketing campaigns.
Use vendors to establish a computerized database resume retrieval system.
Investigate the use of temp workers with temporary placement agencies.
Use leased employees.
Try part-time employees and job sharing as flexible means to attract a wider range of candidates.
Investigate the use of telecommuting to attract more job candidates.
Offer flextime as a staffing alternative.
Don’t give up—persistence pays!
Direct mail can be an excellent way to target the candidates you need.
Mail audio tapes or CD’s instead of letters to targeted candidates.
Door hangers are another method to use when you want to attract candidates from a specific geographic area.
Use point of sale recruiting messages.
Enhance your employee referral program by reminding employees of bonuses and benefits through payroll stuffers, posters, and announcements at staff meetings.
Revamp your employee referral program, and use it only during peak need periods.
Recruit in locations where you have a competitive advantage.
Use a mobile recruiting van.
Advertise on mass transit.
Lease a van to transport employees.
Work with realtors on career assistance for relocating spouses.
Connect with Welcome Wagon in your community to provide career assistance for relocating spouses.
Offer employee housing when you are in a remote location, or when housing costs are not affordable by job candidates.
Develop methods to effectively handle “walk-in” candidates.
Create a data bank for unsolicited resumes.
Advertise in trade journals and professional publications.
Work with professional organizations and their placement services.
Network with other professionals to find top applicants.
Check on business closings for laid-off employees and team up with outplacement firms.
Use airplane banners to send messages at the beach or at sports events.
Use highway billboards to display recruitment messages.
Highlight your message on electronic billboards at sporting events.
Display your message on kiosks located in malls and airports.
Try cinema billboards to send your message.
Use magazine advertising to build image.
Recruit your customers by placing recruitment messages into customer billings.
Involve your customers in recruitment by implementing a customer referral program.
Get your recruiting messages to the churches in your area.
Collaborate with other businesses in your area for locating potential employees.
Contact other divisions of your organization for locating potential job candidates.
Send recruiting messages on videotape or DVD to prospective candidates.
Look at recruitment as an on-going effort not just a response to a job vacancy.
Build college recruiting by concentrating efforts on a fewer number of schools.
Build relationships with colleges through internship programs, scholarships, and donations.
Get involved with local high schools to build your image.
Use an outside management consultant to assist you in developing creative, non-traditional strategies.
Push top management for recruiting dollars.
Don’t rely on any one method for recruiting.
Be creative—take risks!
Dare to be different from your competitors.
Attend seminars and conferences on recruitment.
Involve the entire management team in the recruitment process.
Look to employee retention as the long term recruitment solution.

Catherine D. Fyock, CSP, SPHR, is president of Innovative Management Concepts and a fellow of The Institute. She is also the author of Get the Best and Unretirement. For more information about Fyock or her services, call The Institute at (336) 282-1480.

Marcianne Kuethen

Marci loves writing and editing Amtec's blog posts. She also likes walking her dogs, gardening in her backyard, and painting ninja warriors on large canvases in her spare time.