The number of jobs being advertised offering a signing bonus has more than doubled since the start of last year.
The increased use of bonuses, either one-off or performance-related, has grown to 16 percent of jobs advertised as employers become desperate to recruit.
The percentage of recruitment advertisements offering bonuses rose from 13.6 percent, or 90,345, at the beginning of 2021 to 16 percent, or 190,333, this month, according to figures from Adzuna.
The rise in bonuses was widespread across sectors, according to Paul Lewis, chief customer officer at the job search engine. Retail, IT, and customer service roles had all seen “notable” proportional increases in jobs advertising a bonus since January 2021, directly responding to talent shortages worsened by the pandemic.
Lewis said: “More employers are offering a bonus on top of base salary as they search for ways to attract and retain talent against the backdrop of the Great Resignation.
“While sectors like Sales have consistently offered commission structures, the trend has caught alight and bonuses are spreading into industries struggling to find enough staff.
“For employers, the bonus structure is appealing because it offers more flexibility to respond to future economic conditions, as well as incentivizing workers.”
Four other ways to help your hiring process
While it’s a competitive jobs market, landing your next great talent is not just down to offering a tempting bonus – and the first place to start is by sharpening your hiring process, explains business coach Simac Konkader
One of the major issues for SMEs is how to stand out in a sea of individuals who have likely used the previous two years to reevaluate their jobs and what they want from a job and are now more demanding than ever.
Candidates’ expectations for flexible working, perks, career routes, and purpose have increased as the number of job openings in the UK hit 1.3 million in the three months leading up to June 2022, up over 432,000 from the same time in 2021.
But it doesn’t mean you won’t find your next game-changing employee; you’ll need to up your game in terms of luring them in. Here is what I recommend.
#1 – Treat the hiring process as when hiring new clients or consumers.
Unsuccessful applicants would have a favorable impression of you based on their experience with you throughout the hiring process, which says a lot about the working environment in your company.
But why don’t so many businesses spend as much time, energy, and goodwill on how they handle applicants as they would on attracting and enrolling new clients?
I was worried that, of the 1,500 respondents to a study conducted in June by the employment software startup Greenhouse, 70% had experienced ghosting after interviews, yet 60% said they would reapply to a business if they had previously gotten positive feedback.
More alarmingly, 61% believe that hiring practices generally need to be improved; 65% say they won’t submit a job application if it takes more than 15 minutes to complete, and 53% believe they will hear back from employers on their first application within a week or less. 73% of respondents desire comments. What KPIs do you have about these figures?
Would you anticipate a potential consumer demonstrating an interest in your product or service for more than 15 minutes? Before responding to them, would you put them on hold for more than a week? Or would you completely ignore them? I didn’t believe that.
Having your hiring process mirror the phases of your customer marketing and onboarding experience may seem like a large commitment. Still, it will set you up to get your next employee from the 65% of talent in the UK that Greenhouse’s research indicates looking for a job.
#2 – Review your employee benefits – and shout about them
According to 33% of the 1,000 SME workers and employers polled in England in December by employee benefits platform Sodexo Engage, the biggest engagement motivator is better employee benefits. Naturally, higher income was at the top of the list for 45% of respondents, while 36% ranked a better work-life balance as their main concern.
It is necessary to assess your employee perks and how they are explained throughout the hiring process, starting with the initial job advertisement.
Provide some examples of how hybrid working and flexible hours already benefit some of your team members if you provide them. As a result, prospects feel more relatable and can see themselves working with you.
Likewise, if you offer unlimited holidays, swappable bank holidays, birthdays off, increased holidays each year or something even more special like sabbaticals. You might not have the deep pockets of your corporate counterparts to develop the most luxurious benefits but look at what you can offer which will make a big difference to people.
And if you can, be transparent. Sharing a salary range, for example, demonstrates part of how you’re creating a more equitable and inclusive workplace, as open negotiations often favor men and can perpetuate pay gaps.
Similarly, if you offer enhanced parental leave, shout it from the rooftops, rather than putting the onus on candidates to ask what might for them be an awkward question.
These are small steps that go a long way towards demonstrating the kind of culture you’re creating – and that someone would want to work in.
Additionally, if you provide limitless vacation days, swappable bank holidays, birthday off days, extra annual vacation days, or something more unique like sabbaticals. Even though you might not have the deep pockets of your corporate competitors to create the most opulent benefits, consider what you can provide that will significantly benefit people.
And try to be as open as you can. Given that open negotiations sometimes favor males and may maintain wage discrepancies, sharing a salary range, for instance, indicates one aspect of how you’re fostering a more fair and inclusive workplace.
Similarly, if you offer enhanced parental leave, shout it from the rooftops rather than putting the onus on candidates to ask what might be an awkward question for them.
These little actions show the sort of culture you’re fostering and that others would like to work in.
#3 – But resist becoming frantic…
Even in a competitive hiring environment, you shouldn’t immediately latch onto the first individual who expresses even the slightest interest in your company out of concern that you’ll lose them to the next attractive offer. It’s important to make sure your applicant’s priorities, values, and expectations align with yours. I’m not advocating taking too much time; you will need to act quickly to avoid losing your prospect to another suitor.
A strong showing in a series of interviews with your toughest panel and the skills shown on a CV may have you writing a contract before you can say, “You’re hired,” but they never tell the whole picture and may still cause disappointment months later.
This is why I recommend SMEs use assessments like DISC or HireSense for the final round of recruitment. A candidate who takes the DISC behavioral exam will get a score based on traits including dominance, influence, stability, and conscientiousness. Meanwhile, HireSense aids in understanding a candidate’s motivational, cognitive, and behavioral tendencies.
However, I would advise against utilizing these to hire a carbon clone of what you currently have since you may not be creating the optimal atmosphere. The easiest way to use evaluations like these is to start by identifying the gaps in your company’s operations and how a fresh perspective may be beneficial.
#4: Systematize your company
How can you keep your recruiting efforts from being inconsistent, which wastes time and energy? Typically, 80% of what happens in your organization can be organized into a framework, leaving 20% of it that needs your control.
Even though your recruiting process sometimes appears to be “gut instinct,” it still involves a procedure. One exists, whether it exists in your brain and is scattered everywhere, is partially recorded and followed to some extent, or both.
Streamlining your recruiting procedures provides two key advantages as part of a larger company endeavor.
One benefit is that it takes less of your active management, giving you more time for the significant exceptions that require you to intervene.
And two, it enables consistency, allowing you to enhance your efforts via efficient recruiting process monitoring, assessment, and benchmarking. Similar to the adoption of practically any successful business system, this may provide enormous rewards and significantly increase your chances of hiring.
