就业市场正在发生变化，候选人招聘也随之发生变化。失业率低，这导致了求职者的市场。零工经济为专业人士提供了更多选择，让他们可以利用自己的才能和谋生。数字平台正在改变人们处理从工作申请到工资单和税务事务等各种事务的方式。除其他外，这些因素给雇主留下了最后通牒：发展和改善候选人体验或风险落后。

现代雇主是激烈的人才竞争者。十年前，情况有所不同。经济一团糟，有好工作的雇主选择了聪明、熟练、经验丰富且有干劲的员工。如今，对顶尖人才的竞争正在促使雇主提高工资，利用福利发挥创造力，并更加关注保留策略。他们中的许多人在构建直观且对候选人友好的申请和筛选过程方面犹豫不决。

对于雇主而言，就业前筛选过程是了解候选人、评估他们的技能、权衡他们的资格与手头工作职责、确定他们的文化契合度以及寻找可能妨碍就业的潜在危险信号的重要机会。这个过程包括详细的工作申请、多次面试、参考调查、技能测试和彻底的背景调查并不少见。

从求职者的角度来看，就业前筛选过程看起来有点不同。申请工作和通过面试挑战需要候选人投入大量时间，通常没有投资回报。虽然您无法保证每个申请人都在寻求（工作机会）的投资回报率，但您的企业可以采取措施改善招聘体验。

减少时间投入：如果您的工作申请很冗长，请将其缩减为基本要素。如果您计划进行多次面试，请将其中一些进行电话或视频筛选，这样候选人就不必多次进入办公室。最后，对您希望在多长时间内填补该职位保持透明和坦率。通过最大限度地减少您要求候选人投资申请和竞争职位的时间，您可以最大限度地扩大申请人库的规模、范围和质量。

使用技术简化一切：每个行业的雇主都受益于求职者跟踪系统，使他们能够以数字方式管理招聘流程的每一步。这种对技术的依赖不仅会让您的招聘经理更轻松，而且还可以简化您的候选人的流程。确保您的数字申请可以在移动设备上填写和提交。建立一个系统，候选人可以通过该系统检查申请状态。自动化视频筛选过程，以便候选人可以在自己的时间记录他们对面试问题的回答。您的申请流程越简单、越数字化越好。

强调透明度并打开沟通渠道：没有求职者希望被蒙在鼓里。如果您让候选人连续几天或几周等待您的消息，您将失去他们给其他雇主。快速做出招聘决定是你应该努力的事情，但这并不总是可能的——所以在沟通和透明度上加倍努力。为您的候选人提供一个单一的联系点，他们可以在有问题时联系他们。提供有关候选人是否仍在考虑工作的定期更新。让您的员工轻松检查背景调查等步骤的状态。即使候选人最终没有得到这份工作，他们也会欣赏你的坦诚。

在从招聘到入职的过程中保持步伐。许多申请人跟踪系统将入职步骤集成到一个平台中，包括收集工资和税收的财务信息。简化收集新员工信息的流程——并明确入职、培训和其他事项的后续步骤——将帮助您成功完成招聘流程。

Modern employers are ferocious competitors for talent. A decade ago, things were different. The economy was in shambles and employers with good jobs to offer had their pick of bright, skilled, experienced, and driven hires. Today, the competition for top talent is driving employers to increase their salaries, get creative with benefits, and focus more heavily on retention strategies. Where many of them falter is in structuring an intuitive and candidate-friendly application and screening process.

For employers, the pre-employment screening process is a vital opportunity to learn about candidates, assess their skills, weigh their qualifications against the responsibilities of the job at hand, determine their cultural fit, and look for potential red flags that may preclude employment. It’s not uncommon for this process to include detailed job applications, multiple interviews, reference checks, skills tests, and thorough background checks.

From a job seeker’s perspective, the pre-employment screening process looks a bit different. Applying for a job and going through the interview gauntlet requires a substantial time commitment from candidates, often with no return on investment. While you can’t guarantee the ROI that every applicant is seeking (a job offer), your business can take steps to improve the hiring experience.

Reduce the time commitment: If your job application is lengthy, trim it down to the essentials. If you plan to have multiple interviews, make some of them phone or video screenings so that candidates don’t have to come into the office multiple times. Finally, be transparent and upfront about how soon you hope to fill the position. By minimizing the time that you are asking candidates to invest in applying and competing for a position, you can maximize the size, reach, and quality of your applicant pool.

Use technology to streamline everything: Employers in every industry are benefitting from applicant tracking systems that allow them to manage every step of the hiring process digitally. This reliance on technology will not only make things easier for your hiring managers but may also streamline the process for your candidates. Make sure your digital application can be filled out and submitted on a mobile device. Have a system in place with which candidates can check on application status. Automate the video screening process so that candidates can record their responses to interview questions on their own time. The easier and more digital-friendly your application process is, the better.

Emphasize transparency and open the lines of communication: No job seeker wants to be left in the dark. If you keep candidates waiting to hear from you for days or weeks on end, you will lose them to other employers. Making your hiring decisions quickly is something you should strive for, but it isn’t always possible--so double down on communication and transparency. Give your candidates a single point of contact they can reach out to if they have questions. Provide regular updates on whether candidates are still in consideration for a job. Make it easy for your hires to check the status of steps such as background checks. Candidates will appreciate your candor even if they don’t end up getting the job.

Maintain the pace as you move from hiring to onboarding. Many applicant tracking systems integrate onboarding steps into one platform, including collecting financial information for payroll and taxes. Streamlining the process of collecting new-employee information—and being clear about the next steps for orientation, training, and other matters—will help you bring your hiring process to a successful close.