It’s Time to Wrap Up 2021 and Set Your New Year Recruiting Goals

That’s a wrap! With 2021 coming to a close, you’re ready to hang your sales recruitment cap by the fire and enjoy the holidays. But something is nagging at you. There are probably a few loose ends you could tie up to make the new year just as successful as the last.

You’re right! There are a few steps you can take to set your 2022 goals in line and rest at ease over the holiday season.

Here’s how you can put the finishing touches on your year-end recruitment goals:

Review Recruitment Metrics

It’s been a long year, coming off a longer year. The global pandemic really threw a wrench in your five-year recruiting goals. But you’ve likely learned and gained a lot through some of the transitions made last year as well. The best way to get a clear picture of where you’re going is to understand where you’ve been.

This is an ideal time to dig into your sales recruitment metrics. Based on changes you made to your recruiting process, what does the data say? Did your switch to full virtual recruiting save you time and money? Great! Did you lose out on some of the personal connections with candidates? It’s time to focus on fixing the candidate experience.

Pause and reflect on where you were last year at this time. If you are looking to improve in the same areas, it’s time to evaluate how far you’ve come. Some improvements are slow and steady. A slight shift in your recruiting tools could do the trick. But if you’re seeing a backslide in placement numbers, it’s time to pin down the culprit before you budget for the new year. 

It could be as simple as updating your job descriptions and dialing in on how candidates’ expectations have changed in recent months. For example, are your job posts and email campaigns mobile-friendly? Or maybe you need to update your recruiter brand or talent sources. Whatever improvements you can make, rest assured you can find where you need to direct your attention in your data.

If you find there is a gap in this valuable resource, planning for ways to track the return on investment (ROI) as you transition to new tools ensures when you reach this looking-back point a year from now, you will be better equipped to set and reach new goals.

Reconnect With Talent

Don’t just bury yourself in your data until the new year! Find time to reconnect with the talent you’ve added to your talent pool over the past year. You undoubtedly had plenty of all-star candidates pass through your screening process who either didn’t get the job offer or didn’t accept it. Find out where they are now!

A great way to make a lasting impression on top candidates and keep them in your sales recruitment talent pool for the next year is to nurture a meaningful relationship. Check-in and offer well wishes. Leave candidates with valuable tips to keep their job leads warm over the holidays and remind them of your willingness to land them in their dream job.

And don’t forget about those passive candidates in your network. Year-end goals likely have them frazzled in the same way you’ve experienced Q4 pressure, and the holiday season creates its sense of urgency. A sincere check-up to see how they’re doing and offering season’s greetings can keep you in front of mind the next time they’re open to opportunities.

When sending positive energy and value messaging out to your network, don’t forget your professional connections. Your professional peers are just as crucial to your success in the recruiting industry as the talent you source. Be sure they know you appreciate their contributions to your growth. Let them know what valuable post they shared that changed your perspective or a tool they recommended that helped you reach your goals.

Clean Up to Prepare for 2022

Once you’ve reviewed your recruiting data and wrapped up your holiday outreach, you shouldn’t have much left to do but a bit of cleanup to prepare for your 2022 goals. This is an excellent time to turn back to your data. A few areas you may want to consider a closer look at include:

• What video content is getting the most clicks on your branding page?
• On what social platforms do you earn the most user engagement?
• What talent sources are the highest number of applications coming in through?
• What is your response rate on candidate surveys?
• What are your open and click-through rates for your job post emails?
• How many subscribers did you gain/lose this year?

If you’re missing metrics in any of these sales recruitment areas, you have some work to do! But you have a whole year ahead of you to set and exceed your recruiting goals. Start by setting SMART goals and get more thoughtful about how you track your success.

Greg Clouse is the recruiting manager at BioSpace.

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