1. Identifying the need

The full cycle recruiting process kicks off with identifying a hiring need within the organization. Recruiters and hiring managers must collaborate closely with department heads or team leaders to clearly define the job vacancy. This includes outlining job responsibilities, qualifications, and expected outcomes.

2. Creating a job description

Once the need is established, the next step is creating a compelling job description. A well-crafted job description should start with the benefits for the job seeker including pay, healthcare plans, and other offerings like career growth and flexibility.

Additionally it should provide a clear overview of the role, including key responsibilities, required qualifications, and any other relevant information.

3. Posting the job

With the job description in hand, recruiters and hiring managers move on to posting the job opening. This involves selecting appropriate job boards and social media platforms to reach potential candidates as well as distributing it internally to leverage your employee referral program. The right hiring software can distribute your job to all high-volume sites and communicate it within your organization instantly.

4. Resume screening

The next step in the recruitment process involves screening the applications you receive. Evaluate applicants based on their qualifications, experience, and alignment with the job description. This step helps in narrowing down the candidate pool to a more manageable size. Keep in mind that this can be a highly manual, time-consuming step. Recruitment software with automatic applicant screening capabilities can help streamline this process and reduce the burden on your HR team.

5. Initial interviews

Top candidates are then invited for initial interviews. These interviews are typically conducted by recruiters and focus on assessing a candidate’s basic qualifications, communication skills, and cultural fit as part of the interview process. They help in identifying candidates who meet the minimum requirements. Often, these initial interviews are conducted via phone or video conferencing.

6. Skills assessments

Depending on the nature of the role, candidates may be required to complete skills assessments as part of the hiring process. This step is crucial for evaluating specific training and competencies essential for the job. There are many providers of job-specific skills assessments. Look for a hiring platform that directly integrates with these providers to make the evaluation process more efficient.

7. In-depth interviews

Candidates who pass the initial assessments proceed to in-depth interviews during the hiring process. These interviews involve more probing questions and aim to gauge a candidate’s problem-solving abilities, cultural alignment, and interpersonal skills. A panel of interviewers, including team members and managers, may be involved. To ensure equal opportunity and eliminate any biases, it’s important that your team uses the same questionnaire for all candidates.

Step 8: Reference and background checks

Reference and background checks are conducted to verify a candidate’s qualifications, work history, and character during the hiring process. This step ensures that the information provided by the candidate aligns with their past experiences and performance and brings added peace of mind to your hiring decision. To speed up this process, look for hiring software with integrated reference and background check capabilities to eliminate the time-consuming manual back and forth that often comes with this part of the process.

Step 9: Job offers

Once a candidate successfully navigates all previous hiring process steps, you’ll then extend a formal job offer. The offer includes details about compensation, benefits, and other terms of employment. The right software provider can automate this process as well – eliminating the time it takes to write an offer letter from scratch and minimizing the risk of candidate ghosting after the final interview.

Step 10: Onboarding

After the candidate accepts the job offer, the onboarding process begins as the final step of the full recruitment cycle. This includes paperwork, orientation, and training to help the new employee acclimate to the organization and their role. A smooth onboarding process is essential for long-term employee retention and a positive candidate experience. One way to ensure this is to use digital onboarding software so that employees don’t spend their first few days on the job sitting in an office completing forms. With digital onboarding, your new hires can start off on a more engaging note, setting the stage for a great relationship with you long-term.