How can you build a sense of community in virtual recruiting?

It is important that the company's goals and strategy are understandable to employees, because employees, especially in HR and Recruitment departments, are a very important communication channel. The company's goals and values should be an important part of the employer branding strategy so as to attract candidates whose values are consistent with the values and goals of our organization. Communicating values should be an important element of the recruitment process, both in terms of communicating the values of our organization and its organizational culture, as well as checking whether the candidate fits into this - it is worth including questions about it in the recruitment interview.

Building a community is a very organic and intricate task. When the purpose of coming together is mutual, The intent and goals- well communicated, When there is a sincere and conscious connect & engagement that is when a community is truly born!

Communities function on trust, familiarity and a mutually felt understanding. All of which is possible when it's participants get to have meaningful conversations and interactions and find common ground. The best place to start is to organize digital activities and conferences while integrating personalized feedback to grow together!

Recruiting is about engagement and connection no matter if it is person or virtually. When completing recruiting virtually, our information must be correct and our presence online must also make sense and be inviting. Websites and apps will be used by applicants before we ever talk to the person. When we do connect with the person, we must make sure we remain engaged and find those opportunities to bring value to them. Lastly, be flexible as younger generations entering into the workforce value that flexibility!

From my perspective, it is important to use multiple communication channels at the same time - and our image in each channel should be consistent. A professional and informative company website and visibility in social media, especially on Linkedin, are the basis. It is worth to plan communication on social media to maintain your visibility and reach a larger number of recipients. Tracking and automating the entire recruitment process to maintain efficient communication with candidates and make the process as smooth as possible is always a good idea- an ATS system can be helpful.

It is worth remembering that we show candidates our organizational culture already during the recruitment process - communicating from the very beginning our approach to basic topics such as remote work, work-life balance, overtime, working hours, benefits, well-being, etc. is important and you need to check at the very beginning what the candidate's expectations are to avoid misunderstandings at later stages. And it's good to collect feedback from both sides - from candidates to have a broader view of market expectations and internally from employees to be sure that the company's offer is still attractive to them.

Follow up and stay in touch with your candidates throughout the hiring process, and provide them with timely and consistent updates, feedback, and support. This can help you build trust and rapport with your candidates and show your interest and appreciation for them. It can also help you keep your candidates informed and engaged and reduce the risk of losing them to other offers or competitors.

Never shy away from being authentic and transparent. You cannot fake these and people will see right through you! Always follow-up with candidates and continue to stay in touch. Even if a candidate is not chosen, follow up with them. You never know if they may be the right candidate in the future or who they are friends with! Word of mouth is the best recruiting tool for a company so make sure to leave individuals with a good impression of your organization!