HOW TO ATTRACT THE RIGHT TALENT AND MAKE JOB ADVERTS STAND OUT

HOW TO ATTRACT THE RIGHT TALENT
AND MAKE JOB ADVERTS STAND OUT

How to attract the right talent and make job adverts stand out

City recruiters remain cautiously optimistic of an upturn in financial services hiring as 2011
unfolds. But some challenges always remain the same: attracting the best talent, competing
with rivals for the attentions of the top candidates, and compiling the most appealing and
effective job adverts in the marketplace. What makes for a genuinely attractive job posting?
What do candidates really look for in an advert? And what mistakes could repel potential
employees and even damage a company’s brand?

Getting to the point: choosing the right job title

The initial challenge is to catch a candidate’s eye, which depends on an advert having a title
that stands out for all the right reasons. Sarah Leembruggen, managing partner of
recruitment firm The Works, warns that many financial services companies are still very
conservative when it comes to communicating their brand through the recruitment process
and the results can be somewhat dry and uninspiring. ‘A lot of financial services firms are
very corporate and serious in their approach which can lead to very dull adverts,’ she added.
‘Catchy, creative titles will liven up an advert and give a greater probability of someone being
drawn to read the job description. But it shouldn’t be gimmicky and still needs to be well
written, thoughtfully handled and, essentially, say what the job really is.’ There is a fine
balance between being creative and simply nonsensical.

The Campaign for Plain English has a vast collection of genuine job titles that have been
inflated to the point of absurdity: vision controller of multiplatform and portfolio, and manager
of futuring and innovation-based strategies are just two such examples. But while unique job
titles may be created by organisations themselves (and some of the more grandiose
examples may be a downturn-inspired substitute for pay rises and promotions) recruiters
should be wary of using those that are too abstract in adverts and of employing similarly
opaque terminology in the wording of job descriptions.

The financial services sector is particularly prone to using complex jargon and a seemingly
exclusive vocabulary. In a recent Channel Four documentary about the financial crisis Neil
Smith, chief investment officer of boutique corporate finance firm Corham Capital, pointed
out that much of the technical jargon used in the City can mask a lack of understanding,
whereas using plain language conveys openness and having a real grasp on a topic. ‘I do

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hate the kind of linguistic crucifixion that is rife in the financial services industry,’ he warned.
Speaking of the attitudes that were prevalent in the City before the credit crunch, Smith
added: ‘Simple fact is that things had become so complicated that only those people directly
involved with the creation of these products knew what they were.... Their whole strategy
was to make people feel silly if they didn’t understand the product.’ Marie Clair, spokesman
for the Plain English Campaign, agrees that dressing up language unnecessarily can be
counter-productive. She said: ‘Waffle leaves room for excuses and misinterpretation. Let’s
have some clarity and honesty, particularly at senior levels.’

But while some adverts fall foul of an excess of meaningless language, equally, serious
candidates will recognise when someone knows what they are talking about. Janine Parry,
marketing director of recruiter Search Consultancy, added: ‘In financial services employers
already know the type of people they are trying to attract with a very specific type of
experience. They’re professional and want to see what one company offers over another in a
short and snappy format.’

Commonly used descriptions for a position will get a higher hit rate than new and grand
sounding titles that mean little to anyone other than those who invented them. Parry added:
‘Too many job titles wax lyrical without saying what the position really is. If it’s a business
analyst say it’s a business analyst, even if a different title is used internally. These people
aren’t gimmicky and want information straight.’

Show your knowledge: understanding the role and talking candidates’ language

After obvious gripes such as incorrect spelling and poor use of grammar, one of the most
common complaints by candidates about job postings is that many appear to have been
written by people who have no understanding of the role being advertised. Leembruggen
believes this is often a negative reflection of the relationship between the parties involved.
She said: ‘You can see when the person who’s written the copy doesn’t understand the job
and has either just lifted the text from the company website or a job spec. It’s a mistake to
delegate the writing of adverts to junior staff members. It really needs to be someone who
has been put in front of the client, who knows the organisation they are writing about and
what it stands for.’

 eFinancialCareers is the leading global online job board for recruiters
 and hiring managers who need to source high quality finance professionals.

Parry also points out that many adverts fail to recognise the need to sell the company to the
candidate as much as tell applicants what the organisation is looking for. She said: ‘If you
really want to attract the best talent you need to persuade them that this is a company they
should really want to work in and a job they will really love. A list of bullet points saying what
the business needs will not tell a person why they should apply or give any sense of
organisational values and culture.’

Leembruggen also thinks that the seniority of a position will affect the fine detail of a job
description. ‘Someone going for a more junior position may be more interested in training
and development, and they may also need some aspects of the job spelt out for them. But at
a more senior level one would imagine that serious candidates are going to understand what
the responsibilities of a given position are, but instead need to be told what the specific focus
may be, such as winning new business or building client relationships.’

As well as getting your terminology right, it is important to think about the key words and
phrases that candidates may be looking for when conducting a job search. Particularly now
that so much recruitment is carried out online, inserting commonly sought for terms high up
in the advert will mean that it registers with more relevant people through search engine
optimisation. Parry said: ‘When saying what essential skills are needed for the job ask for
specific experience and give detail, but don’t get lost in extraneous detail and jargon. If you
indicate the top four essential skills that are needed that will be enough at the initial stage
and it allows people to self select.’

Using the brand as bait

One recruiter refers to anecdotal evidence which suggests that adverts carrying a company’s
logo are viewed by twice as many people as those that are unbranded. ‘Logos let candidates
know quickly that the job is ‘real’ and candidates like that,’ he said. ‘It’s like a badge of
approval.’ This suggests that some candidates are attracted as much by the organisation
and what it is perceived as representing as the role itself. In light of this, any job advert must
attempt to relay the more abstract benefits of working for the company, such as the prestige
it may confer on employees, the global recognition of the brand, or its reputation for
employing particularly top class and innovative individuals.

 eFinancialCareers is the leading global online job board for recruiters
 and hiring managers who need to source high quality finance professionals.

Claire McCartney, the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development’s adviser for
resourcing and talent planning, points out that it is a particular challenge for companies to
communicate some of the more intangible benefits of being part of an organisation. She said:
‘In terms of employer brand, organisations need to develop a strong brand which is going to
appeal not only to their current employees, but also to potential future employees and, in
terms of values, around things such as corporate social responsibility. Trying to get those
messages out there are things that people are probably looking for.’

Attracting the right people while avoiding an avalanche

The advent of online applications may have widened the pool of potential candidates, but it
has also increased the probability of getting greater numbers of inappropriate and ineligible
applicants. But Leembruggen suggests this effect can be limited by being as specific in a job
description as possible without appearing exclusive or discriminatory. ‘Putting caveats in a
posting, saying that an organisation will only consider applicants that fit within a rigid set of
criteria, can backfire by sending a negative message about the company’s attitude in
general. But to attract the right kind of person – and dissuade others - it is possible to
suggest what type of role a candidate may be working in at present. This helps the process
of self selection and should prevent a large number of speculative attempts.’

Emily Lawson is the global leader of McKinsey & Company’s talent management and HR
service line. She believes that some organisations fall foul of focusing on the theory of talent
strategies without properly tailoring them to their particular firm’s needs. Lawson added: ‘We
see too much time spent on identifying the gold standard recruiting process and the gold
standard deployment process and they’re helpful, but not if you’re spending your time and
your money on recruitment which isn’t actually at the heart of what drives value for the
business. It’s about linking the HR and talent strategy to the business strategy and that’s
what makes all the difference.’

Parry adds that it is vital to have a clear method of application at the end of the advert.
‘Forget about giving people several methods of application,’ she added, ‘you’ll lose too many
along the way. Choose whichever method is best for the organisation, be that a link to an
online application form, an email address or ask for a hand-written application, but make it
one clear call to action.’

 eFinancialCareers is the leading global online job board for recruiters
 and hiring managers who need to source high quality finance professionals.

Money talks

Whether to include a guide to reward and salary Remuneration is an area that is often
shrouded in secrecy and many organisations like to keep their cards very close to their chest
in terms of revealing how much staff are paid in salary and bonus at different levels of the
company. But money will be one of the biggest considerations for most candidates when
looking for a new role and the decision to exclude some guide on pay from an advert will
certainly result in fewer applications for a job. This in itself may not be a bad thing. Serious
applicants will have an idea what their City peers are being paid and will probably go into the
application process prepared to be tough with prospective employers when it comes to pay
negotiations. However, there are ways to give a nod to salary levels despite the sensitivity of
the issue.

If you are not able to indicate the upper limits of the salary scale for a given post, when
speaking about other elements of a reward package a reference to the potential to earn a
‘generous’ bonus or ‘exceptional’ benefits could send a positive message about a company’s
remuneration policy. Saying that salary is ‘above competitive’ will give those in the know an
idea of what to expect – though a firm has to be able to back up such boasts. But
Leembruggen added: ‘Only state a salary if the company is definitively prepared to pay it.
Equally, make sure that it isn’t confidential information that could ruffle feathers internally. It
can be more appropriate to divulge that type of information in a one-to-one conversation.’

 eFinancialCareers is the leading global online job board for recruiters
 and hiring managers who need to source high quality finance professionals.