What’s so wrong with employee referrals?

In my experience, absolutely nothing but it appears that some companies are failing to harness the benefits of employee referrals.

It does feel like tough times and no doubt you’re looking to cut your recruitment costs. You may well be incorporating social media into the mix because you’ve been hearing that you can showcase your opportunities cheaply and look for talent cost-effectively.

 

True, you can… but if you really want to cut costs and save time what about getting a handle on your referrals?

 

So what are the advantages of hiring based on referrals from your employees?

• a staggering 25% higher retention rate than employees hired through other recruitment methods!
• massive savings on your cost per hire,
• those referred will feel like a better fit your company culture better,
• you’ll strengthen the bond with your referring employee,
• you’ll be seen as truly caring for your employees through recognition and reward,
• you’ll save a lot of time sourcing new applicants via other methods,
• with lower churn, you won’t be looking to back-fill and therefore you’ll have a reduced work load, and
• you’ll know whether your company is a great place to work.

…and the disadvantages?

• Your employees network may not allow for diversity your targets,
• There is a small increase in your employees workload (unless you make it an easy process for them!), and
• You may miss a more suitable candidate because they’re not connected to your employee but this could happen anyway.

 

A survey from Referral Networks found that employees refer:

• 42% to help a friend,
• 24% to help the company,
• 24% for the reward & recognition, or
• 10% for other reasons.

…and that employees won’t refer because:

• they don’t know anyone suitable,
• afraid of the consequences if it does not work out, and
• the referral process is painful.

 

A successful referral program will have simple rules, be track-able, transparent and allow anyone to refer, whether they be an employee, ex-employee, client, friend or none of these.

When working with my client, Project Brokers, and first hearing about the referral aspect of MyPeopleBiz, I felt impressed by its uniqueness…. and I’ve been in this game a long time and am rarely impressed by something new!

It was easy to see that it leverages the fact that each employee has around 300 contacts on Social Networks, like Facebook & LinkedIn, and then empowers your referrals by drawing them to the attention of the MyPeopleBiz referrers.  These referrers feel like champions in your corner!

At the time, they were looking for a savvy PA and had been inundated with unsuitable applications from the job boards so felt truly frustrated. Thankfully, simply by adding the role to their MyPeopleBiz portal and ticking “yes” for referrals, they swiftly received a great applicant who they promptly hired and all for just £500!

Like me, I am confident that you will find the system easy to use, transparent and track-able for both internal and external referrals. You’ll see it engage your employees and give power to their professional and social networks. You’ll feel certain that you’ll fill the role and, the best part, is you’ll see your time freed up and recruitment costs cut!

To harness the power of your employee referrals, it makes sense to use MyPeopleBiz.

 

Have you had success hiring via employee referrals? Have you been a referrer? We’d love to hear from you.

 

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Today’s post is written by Katrina Collier of Winning Impression. As guest blogger she’ll post tips on social media, recruitment and job search which she has learned in her many years in the industry.

Her passion is combining her social media and recruitment expertise. She trains companies to hire the best talent and jobseekers to get a job opportunity by using social media networks.

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