Technology may be one of the greatest growth accelerators for a staffing business. In today’s increasingly digital world, there are literally hundreds of options available. In an incredibly challenging labour market with so many employers competing for talent, technology that delivers a game-changing candidate experience might be a smart choice. To create efficiencies in your business and implement technology that would allow you to scale for growth would point to an investment in more foundational enterprise technology systems. These could address critical operational functions in the front, middle or back office. To help you determine direction in the earliest stages of your exploration of options, there are a number of basic questions you need to answer before moving forward.

Investing in an Exceptional Candidate Experience

Finding good people is the number one challenge for CEOs and for staffing firms. Millions of jobs go unfilled month after month. At the same time, a rising number of the employed have made the decision to quit one job for another. With so many workers on the move, investing in a candidate experience that makes it easy and convenient for job seekers to connect with a potential employer makes a lot of sense. Introducing innovative technology to enable a mobile process, supported by a conversational bot, could be a game-changer for a staffing agency.

Attracting and retaining candidates requires more than a great candidate experience, however. It is the first step in the employment journey. If you are not prepared to follow through with what are quickly becoming nonnegotiable expectations for today’s workforce, you may quickly get candidates in the door who will just as quickly exit if they are not satisfied with what they find once they are on your payroll.

It is important to understand that technology is an enabler. It cannot replace traditional contributors to a great candidate – and employee — experience. For example: 

• Do you offer competitive pay and benefits?
• Is your culture welcoming and engaging?
• Is your workforce diverse, equitable and inclusive?
• Do you provide the training and career development opportunities employees want?

There are dozens and dozens of apps available on the market to differentiate the candidate experience, so the key question to ask is whether the technology you are considering offers the flexibility to deliver on current expectations as well as allow for plug-and-play additions as expectations change. If not, you might want to consider building a customised solution that meets your exact needs today and tomorrow.