7 Best Strategies and Tools to Master High-Volume Recruiting

On average, a job opening usually attracts 250 resumes. And if you are hiring for multiple positions, the number of resumes you have to go through can easily become overwhelming.

As a human resources manager, it can be a tough job to find the right people for your organization's critical roles.

With so much on your plate, it's normal to feel stressed and overwhelmed when faced with high-volume recruiting, but there are ways to make the process easier and more effective.

In this article, we'll explore the top seven strategies and tools to help you streamline your recruiting process and find the best candidates for your organization.

Strategies for Mastering High-Volume Recruiting

Here are the seven most effective strategies that will help you master high-volume recruiting:

1. Build a Strong Employer Brand

A strong employer brand is essential in today's competitive job market, especially when it comes to high-volume recruiting.

In order to attract and retain top talent, companies need to prioritize creating a positive candidate experience. This means maintaining clear communication throughout the hiring process, being responsive to candidate inquiries, and treating all candidates with respect and professionalism.

Building a strong employer brand also requires showcasing your company culture. Candidates want to work for companies that share their values and provide a supportive work environment.

This can be achieved by highlighting employee success stories, promoting work-life balance initiatives, and demonstrating a commitment to diversity and inclusion.

2. Use an Applicant Tracking System (ATS)

Applicant Tracking Systems are designed to help companies streamline their recruiting process by automating various tasks involved in the process.

An ATS can help manage the entire hiring process, right from posting job listings to finding and screening candidates, scheduling interviews, and even onboarding new employees.

One of the key benefits of using an ATS is that it can automate the process of resume screening. This can save recruiters a lot of time and effort by allowing them to focus on candidates who are the best fit for the job.

Additionally, an ATS can also help to improve the accuracy and consistency of the screening process, which can lead to better hiring decisions.

3. Leverage Social Media

According to a survey by Harris poll, 67% of employers use social media sites to find potential candidates for their organization.

Social media platforms have become an increasingly popular means of sourcing and recruiting job candidates.

Platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook can reach a large pool of candidates quickly and cost-effectively.

By sharing job postings, engaging with potential candidates, and showcasing your company culture and values, you can attract the right talent to your organization.

4. Implement an Employee Referral Program

A recent research by Zippia found that more than 20% of new hires at companies come from employee referrals, regardless of the size of the company.

Employee referrals are a great way to attract top-quality candidates to your organization. When employees refer a candidate, they are likely to recommend someone who would fit well with the company culture and values.

Moreover, employee referrals can also help reduce the cost and time associated with traditional recruiting methods.

It is important to encourage employees by incentivizing them to refer successful hires. This can be done by offering rewards such as bonuses, paid time off, or even cash incentives.

However, the reward should be meaningful enough to motivate employees to participate actively in the referral process.

5. Conduct Virtual Interviews

Virtual interviews can be a great way to streamline your recruitment process. They save time and resources, particularly when you have a lot of candidates to interview.

By using video conferencing tools like Zoom or Skype, you can easily conduct interviews remotely with candidates from all over the world. It's convenient and avoids travel expenses or scheduling conflicts.

6. Use Pre-Employment Assessments

Pre-employment assessments evaluate large candidate pools and identify individuals who are the best fit for the role.

These assessments can help organizations save time and resources by screening out candidates who may not be a good fit for the position before investing in a lengthy interview process. 

It is important to choose validated assessments known for their effectiveness in predicting job performance. These assessments can include cognitive ability tests, personality assessments, and skills assessments.

The results of these assessments can provide valuable insights into a candidate's abilities, work style, and potential job performance.

7. Work with a Recruiting Partner

Recruiting for a large number of positions can be pretty time-consuming, especially if you don't have the necessary expertise or resources to handle it effectively.

That's why it's a good idea to consider partnering with a recruiting expert who can help you manage the process more efficiently.

A recruiting partner with experience in high-volume recruiting can offer tailored solutions to meet your specific needs.

For example, they can help you streamline your recruitment process, create a more effective job ad, source candidates from a wider pool, and assist in the screening and selection process. 

Tools for High-Volume Recruiting

Here are the four most effective tools you can use to streamline your recruiting process:

1. Applicant Tracking System (ATS)

According to 78% of recruiters, using an ATS has improved the quality of candidates they hire.

An applicant tracking system is a software application used by companies to manage their recruitment process.

It automates various tasks involved in the hiring process, such as screening resumes, scheduling interviews, and sending out offer letters. 

By streamlining these processes, an ATS can help recruiters and hiring managers save time and resources that would have been spent on manual tasks.

Benefits

• Provides insights and analytics on the recruitment process, helping organizations make data-driven decisions to improve hiring strategies.
• Centralized repository for candidate information, making it easy to search, track, and manage applicants.
• Helps ensure compliance with hiring regulations and standards, reducing the risk of legal issues.

2. Candidate Relationship Management (CRM)

Candidate relationship management tools are commonly used in recruiting and HR departments to help build and foster relationships with potential candidates.

These tools allow recruiters to collect and store information about potential candidates, such as their contact information, work history, and skills. By doing so, recruiters can create a talent pool of qualified candidates who may be a good fit for future job openings. 

In addition to organizing candidate data, CRM tools also enable recruiters to send personalized messages and emails to candidates, helping to establish a connection and build trust.

This can be particularly helpful in building relationships with passive candidates who may not be actively looking for a job but could be interested in a future opportunity.

Benefits

• Enhances communication with candidates through automated emails, updates, and reminders, ensuring a positive candidate experience.
• Reduces manual tasks, automates repetitive processes, and decreases the time and cost associated with recruitment efforts.
• Builds and maintains a talent pool for future hiring needs, ensuring a readily available source of qualified candidates.

3. Skills Assessment Software

Skills assessment tools will help you to evaluate candidates' competencies and abilities, ensuring that they are aligned with the job requirements.

The assessment tools can take various forms, ranging from online tests, simulations, interviews, and even work samples, depending on the organization's needs.

By using these tools, recruiters can assess the candidates' skills and knowledge more objectively, reducing the risk of biased hiring decisions.

Skills assessment tools also provide a standardized way of evaluating candidates, making it easier to compare different candidates' abilities.

Benefits

• Provide an objective and standardized method to evaluate candidates, reducing subjective biases in the recruitment process.
• Speeds up the screening process by identifying top candidates based on skills, saving time and resources for both recruiters and applicants.
• Helps organizations select candidates with the right skills, ultimately contributing to higher job performance and satisfaction.

4. Video Interviewing Tools

74% of the recruiters say that video interviews have made it easier for them to interview and shortlist candidates.

With the rise of remote work and distributed teams, video interviewing tools have become increasingly popular in the hiring process.

These tools allow recruiters and hiring managers to conduct interviews with candidates who are not physically present, making it easier to assess talent across geographies and time zones.

Video interviewing tools are especially useful in high-volume scenarios, where recruiters need to review a large number of candidates in a short amount of time.

Benefits

• Candidates can participate in interviews from the comfort of their own locations.
• Enable companies to connect with candidates from around the world, expanding the talent pool and promoting diversity in hiring.
• Video interviews can be recorded for later review, allowing hiring managers to revisit candidate responses and ensuring fair and consistent evaluations.

Conclusion

High-volume recruiting requires a strategic combination of effective practices and tools.

If you want to recruit a large number of candidates, it is crucial to establish a strong employer brand, utilize an Applicant Tracking System (ATS), leverage social media, implement employee referral programs, conduct virtual interviews, use pre-employment assessments, and collaborate with recruiting partners.

Additionally, integrating specialized tools specifically designed for high-volume recruitment can significantly enhance your efficiency and success.