When you are recruiting prospective candidates for a job, it can be difficult to know how to narrow down all the applicants to create a shortlist, and then how to further whittle down that shortlist to choose the right person for the role
Given that, according to Standout CV, the average entry-level job in the UK received 506 applications as of 2021, there are likely to be several qualified and promising applicants for your open position. So how can you choose? That’s where strength-based recruitment comes in.
What is strength-based recruitment?
Strength-based recruitment is a system that helps recruiters and hiring managers understand and leverage the natural talents of job candidates.
When we talk about “strengths”, this means the things that people are both good at and enjoy doing. When someone is skilled in a specific area and also enjoys it, they are likely to be the most engaged, motivated, and driven to succeed. In other words, strength-based recruitment hones in on a candidate’s passions and strives to understand those passions and how they help them to succeed at work.
What are the benefits of strength-based recruitment?
The benefits of strength-based recruitment are clear and well-documented. It can shorten the time it takes a new employee to become productive in their role, increase overall productivity, enhance employee engagement and motivation at work, and improve retention levels, allowing you to hold on to your best people for longer.
Strength-based recruitment can even offer benefits for diversity and inclusion by reducing the potential for unconscious bias to creep into the recruiting process. This can lead to more inclusive, diverse, and dynamic teams and workplaces.
Strength-based recruitment can be particularly beneficial in recruiting young people or hiring for entry-level jobs. This is because it takes the focus away from qualifications and experience (which young and entry-level employees may not have) and instead examines their core skills, interests, and motivations.
Strength-based recruitment: how to do it
Now that you understand the benefits of strength-based recruitment, you might be wondering how to do it. In this section, we will share 6 useful strength-based recruitment tips to help you hire the best people for the job.
Understand the strengths you’re seeking
Before you hire based on strengths, you will need to understand the required and desired strengths for any given role. Therefore, before you advertise a job, take the time to understand the strengths a person would need to excel in that role.
Don’t forget to consider your organisation’s overall mission, values, and culture, too. Strengths also play a key role in determining how aligned candidates are with your bigger-picture goals and vision.
Explore existing employee strengths
The benefits of strength-based recruitment do not need to be limited to hiring for new roles. You can also use it to gain insight into your existing employees and how their strengths and motivations inform their performance.
Look closely at your top performers in particular. What strengths do they exhibit? What motivates them? What are their passions? Use this information to guide you in future recruitment drives.
Create strength-based job advertisements
Strength-based recruitment begins long before the interview process, or even shortlisting, it starts with your job advertisements. Aim to create strength-based job ads that highlight the particular strengths, attributes, and interests you seek in the ideal candidate for your roles.
Try to be as specific as possible in listing the strengths required for the job. The idea is that if an applicant relates strongly to most or all of the strengths you have identified, they are likely to be an ideal candidate.
Shortlist based on strengths
If you have created an effective strength-based job ad, you should have plenty of qualified candidates to choose from. Once you have narrowed down your pool of applicants to those who have all the essential attributes, you can use your strength-based criteria to further shortlist candidates for interview.
Design strength-based interviews
Strength-based interviews focus on gaining a deeper understanding of each candidate, their innate talents, and what motivates them.
For each role, refer back to the necessary strengths you identified and set out in your job ad, then create strength-based interview questions to get to know your candidates. The questions will be different for each role because the desired strengths will be different for each role.
Here are just a few examples of strength-based interview questions you might consider:
- What do you like to do in your free time?
- Are you a big-picture person or a small-detailed person?
- What tasks on your to-do list do you always put off or procrastinate?
- Tell me about an achievement you are really proud of.
- How do you motivate yourself at work?
- What subjects do you enjoy learning about?
- How do you think this role aligns with your strengths and interests?
Provide strength-based career development opportunities
The strength-based approach does not stop once a candidate has been offered and accepted the job. You can continue to use the strength-based approach in supporting your employees’ development, conducting performance management and reviews, and offering opportunities for growth.
This is a great way to support and celebrate employees’ individual strengths and passions at every stage of their career journey and to ensure that your best performers will want to stay with you for the long haul.
