We live and function in what I refer to as a ‘talent-centric economy’. Brands and businesses are almost desperate to get their hands on the best talent out there and it is no surprise that recruitment has emerged as one of the frontrunners when we talk about companies wanting to invest huge amounts of money in their functions this year.

According to the 2017 India Salary and Employment Outlook, 60% of Indian companies will add new headcount to their setup in 2017.

Planning to stay one step ahead of the competition, Indian businesses are always on the lookout for the most innovative strategies to satisfy their talent acquisition goals every year. And it is imperative that you stay on top of the latest and the hottest talent acquisition trends. In order to plan for the imminent future, you need to evaluate where you stand right now compared to your talent acquisition competitors.

The objective of this piece is to help talent leaders like you get a point of reference in terms of recruitment metrics and key trends.

Top recruitment trends for 2017

Trend #1 – Increasing emphasis on ‘Quality of Hire’

Talent Acquisition Managers are looked at as strategic partners within the organization. The business wants them to demonstrate and justify the resources you consume and the quality of output you deliver, thus making this an important metric. The quality of hire directly or indirectly represents your effectiveness as a recruiter.

Parameters like the value brought in by new employees, on-the-job performance, engagement with the corporate culture, candidate satisfaction, ramp-up speed, year-on-year retention percentage, and the overall contribution to the betterment of the recruitment process are often considered by organizations to calculate the quality of hire. And as important as it is to focus on the quality of and time to hire, ‘time to productivity’ is also a chief criterion that needs to be emphasized upon, since it has a direct impact on the business. You can read more about time to productivity in our recently-published article.

This trend will not cease to grow any time soon, and hence, is one to keep an eye on.

Trend #2 – Social Technology is driving huge re-alignment of recruitment processes 

o   Over 94% recruiters use LinkedIn to recruit new candidates

o   79% of job seekers use social media to find new jobs

o   KPMG India Partner and Head (People and Change) Nishchae Suri reckons over 80% of companies use social media for recruitment.

Millennials have changed the face of the Indian workforce, multitasking efficiently, bringing in more business, adding new dimensions to their profiles with new technology, and working smartly. And these guys are everywhere – LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Behance, and several other portals.

o   With businesses striving to get the cream of this digitally-savvy lot, leveraging social networks to source talent has emerged as one of the top recruitment priorities for 43% of Indian companies.

Today’s employers are open to leveraging technological and social media innovation to attract quality talent. Unlike the days gone by, access to potential candidates via professional and social networks is making it easy for businesses to source talent and build a strong pool without relying on external support.

o   67% of your time is being spent on following up and taking care of administrative transactions.

Recruiters need to rethink traditional models of hiring in 2017. Automated processes and smart applicant tracking systems can electronically ensure that you save more time and the staffing process is more streamlined. This is a key trend that will drive talent acquisition in unprecedented ways.

Trend #3 – Speed of hiring and proliferation of Analytics and Big Data

Speed of hiring is highly critical in the modern world, since today’s job-seekers are not going to apply for one job and then sit back till the company takes a decision. The rise of startups in India has made it immensely difficult for mid-sized and large enterprises to keep up with the expectations of millennials. And with the amount of competition vying for the same talent as you are and quality candidates exploring job opportunities with multiple prospective employees at the same time, it is important for you to cut down the time spent on identifying the right prospects, rummaging through CVs, cross-examining facts, and taking decisions. Of all the possible parameters, this one action could possibly yield the highest gains in recruitment success.

The smart usage of talent analytics has taken the global world of recruitment by storm. Big data is enabling talent acquisition teams to become strategic partners to the business. Demand and supply trends, individual-specific insights, salary trends, identification of talent pools and many such learnings through data mining are helping hiring managers take a data-backed view in their decision-making process.

It is quite likely that there will be an upsurge in the extensive use of this highly effective tool in India this year. Startups and small businesses, too, will take to analytics, trying their level best to master this novel tool to make their recruiting process more proactive, real time, contextual, and predictive in nature.

Trend #4 – Candidate Experience and employees as brand ambassadors

Referrals is a much-loved term thrown around by the HR management in businesses small and big. And why not – referrals account for a large chunk of new recruits in Indian companies. It is looked at as a preferred sourcing channels for multiple reasons. Cold calling is a tiresome job, small and mid-sized businesses don’t have the budget to hire recruitment consultants, and quite often, new recruits don’t even show up on day one. Referrals is, without doubt, a quicker, cheaper, and more reliable way to go about it.

o   33% of Indian companies will increase their spend on this front to help decrease external dependency and make the most of their brand with resources that are already at their disposal.

And the one surefire way to encourage employees to spread the word is by providing them with a remarkable experience – right from the day a candidate shows up for the interview. A lot of companies lose out on attracting and retaining the cream because they fail to deliver on what I  popularly refer to as ‘exceptional candidate experience’.

84% of talent leaders reckon that ‘employer brand’ has a significant impact on their ability to hire great talent.

A lot of our client conversations inadvertently turn towards this eye-catching statistic. And it all starts with ‘defining your company DNA’ – highlight why your organization (and offer) is way better than anything else out there. Company culture messaging that grabs candidates’ attention and then lives up to the promise is a great tool to invite the best talent.

Trend #5 – Mobility & Employee Wellness

o   55% companies will provide flexible working hours

o   47% companies will enable employees to Work from home

o   42% companies will promote their (existing or new) wellness programmes

The millennial generation looks at perks like the ones mentioned above; over and above their basic pay package. What matters more to them is the flexibility and freedom a company can offer. Work-from-home options, telecommuting, elastic Work timings, and independence to deal with projects the way they deem best are things that today’s recruits take a special liking to. Wellness programmes is another area Indian companies have started taking more seriously in the recent past and this trend is one that will not fizz out any time soon. While there are extreme opinions about the relevance of corporate perks in today’s world, we believe it still stands tall as a recruitment and retention trend.

Apart from these five major trends, the desire to extend a sound feedback mechanism, involving employees in key decision-making processes, and replacing ‘performance management’ with a mentoring and development-oriented process are some of the other key trends that are expected to cause a massive shift in the way talent acquisition is looked at in the near future.

If you think we’ve missed out on any other significant developments in this area, your thoughts and comments are welcome!