Currently, in companies from all over the world, the HR department deals mainly with staff recruitment and selection, internal communication, retention, employee performance evaluation, as well as benefit programs, integration of new employees, training, and lastly, administration of personnel files and salary. But, let’s see how exactly they perform all these advanced recruitment tasks!
Much like a session on the popular Book of Ra, HR professionals have to deal with unpredictable factors, and here, the human coordinate comes first. In order to deliver the best possible results and outcomes on all plans, HR manager follows a series of well-documented and highly efficient metrics, which over the course of the years have evolved and grown in accordance to the recruitment and employment market necessities. So, let’s take a closer look at the top 10 HR metrics that are a must-have in 2021!
1. Retention of Successful Employees and Internal Recruitment
One of the largest issues with which HR professionals have been confronted within the last couple of years was the low level of retaining successful employees. The two main factors leading to the departure of well-established employees are the impossibility to advance internally after reaching a certain level within the company, and the far better offers received from competitors. Thus, HR teams have worked extensively in order to create better retention programs and ensure continuity through internal recruitment. By prioritizing these two essential metrics, an HR department will also significantly reduce the costs related to time and money used in the case of standard recruitment, and will increase the degree of commitment and motivation of employees who end up being promoted.
2. Headhunting Former Employees
This is one of the newer HR practices that have returned impressive results, also referred to in the industry as the ‘boomerang effect’. On average, an employee spends around two years in the same company, or, better said, this is the current standard lifespan per employee within an organization. Now, according to specialists, if a former employee ends up returning after a while to his old company, where he is already familiar with all the programs and procedures, this would automatically cut down the time invested otherwise in training, and thus, the productivity target will be reached much earlier than opposed to a completely new employee.
3. Using Simulations
One of the latest key HR metrics in terms of recruitment is the use of simulated workplace environments in order to introduce and familiarize new employees with the authentic atmosphere from their future jobs. Thus, HR professionals will extend the simple classic interviews to longer periods of simulation, so that candidates take part in the company’s activities for a couple of days. This is a win-win situation because on one hand, the freshmen get to be tested more widely, all while experiencing the actual feel of the job they applied to first hand. At the same time, HR and people in management positions get to see if the candidates will actually integrate with ease in the new working environment.
4. Job Announcements in Video Format
Let’s face it, the dull era of print is almost gone. Don’t get us wrong, the classic adds are still one of the main channels of recruitment, but with the rise of social media and 4K, video is slowly taking over. Applicants are no longer attracted by reading countless job descriptions written in a dull, sophisticated manner. They are far more drawn to original and ingenious content, and video is one of the most powerful tools at this chapter. HR data suggests that video job ads are among the top trends this year, and for a good reason. There are a lot of cool examples to support this, from short job ads comparing the workplace with a celebrity’s lifestyle to extended video promos that offer a much more complete view of the future workplace.
5. Social Media HR Practices
Since the beginning of 2016, social media began its rapid ascension, gradually taking over the entire world. Nowadays, no respectable HR department doesn’t use all the appropriate channels when it comes to recruiting. All successful platforms should be used in full, as they have a much higher popularity rate, especially among young people. We’re talking Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and – more recently – TikTok. Also with Facebook, another huge advantage lies in the possibility to create dedicated groups of people working in HR in order to exchange useful information, promote
open positions, or find potential candidates.
6. Flexible Hours
At the same time, there are also old-fashioned HR metrics that are slowly becoming obsolete. Probably the most recognizable one is the rigorous ‘nine to five’ model, which has been the standard working schedule in the last decades. Nowadays, more and more companies are willing to fit in the benefits package of a flexible work schedule for employees, or even give them the opportunity to work from home. The impact of HR companies that include such offers in the job advertisement is huge, and the result in 80% of the cases is an extremely fast recruitment process, with a very high level of success.
7. Modern Workplaces
They say that home is not where you live but where they understand you, and more and more HR professionals are starting to realize the true meaning of this saying and shape the workspace accordingly. At the same time, the creation of modern and comfortable workspaces is a tremendous asset for companies, facilitating and speeding up the recruitment process. If the candidates are pleasantly impressed by the design of the office and its facilities, the chances of a quick hire grow exponentially. With a simple tour of the future workplace, HR’s performance can reach the highest peaks. At the same time, a modern and cozy workplace can also help HR teams trim out based on their reactions to the tour. If a person has abnormally high expectations and will have an indifferent or negative reaction towards the work surroundings, HR professionals will be able to read this quickly and react.
8. Casual Interviews
What was once considered mandatory interview is slowly becoming one of the HR mistakes to avoid in 2021. The rigid stance, the formal questionnaires, and the neutral tone of voice are no longer the preferred method of conducting interviews with candidates, to the contrary. Nowadays, interviews tend to become far more informal, starting from the premise that a friendly and comfortable atmosphere will help candidates relax and show their best side. After all, HR functions on satisfied employers and employees, and what is a better way to start a work relationship than in a casual, friendly manner?
9. Job Fairs
A growing phenomenon, and one of the most popular HR practices as of late, are job fairs. The attendance to such events is constantly increasing, as they present a great number of opportunities for employers to hold pre-interviews, out of the desire to save time and to subsequently invite candidates who fit the job description directly in the next stage of recruitment.
10. Digital Interviews
It’s true that first impressions matter, and the most adequate context for an accurate read is face-to-face. But we also live in a time when almost everything around us is digital, and we are still struggling with the effects of a global pandemic. Under these circumstances, phone and Skype interviews are slowly taking the place of face-to-face ones with the recruiter. This is probably one of the most important HR metrics in 2021, as it optimizes the employer’s time, as well as the candidate’s. If selected, the latter can then be scheduled for a first and/or final interview with the manager.
If the HR department is aware of all the recruitment methods and trends present on the market, it will have all the key elements needed to decide what is the best approach for the company they represent, and will select the best possible candidates. We’re also curious to hear about your experience with HR professionals up to this point, and if you feel that there are more key HR metrics trending this year, do feel free to share them in the comments’ section below.
