What about hiring referrals?
How do you feel about referrals? I think these can be a great resource for prospective employess as normally someone will not put themselves out t on a limb unless they know they will be a great employee.
Jeanine,
You make several valid points. It really is potentially a risk on the part of the referred as well as the one making the referral. If it doesn't work out, it can reflect badly on the one referring. On the other hand, if it does work out well, the one making the referral becomes the go to person for more referrals. A Similar work ethic is a great starting point for considering potential candidates. I totally agree that referrals should be part of several sources for recruiting candidates and not a sole source.
Dr. Patricia Kapper
There are pros and cons to referrals as there is with an outside recruiting company. In the past, I have been a referral for employment and I have also been the one who has referred someone. I weighed the pros and cons of working with a friend. I know my work ethic and I knew theirs. Having similar work ethics I knew our personal relationship would not interfere with our professional relationship. Referrals offer a wonderful opportunity for strong potential candidates if the person referring someone is a valued employee. I also agree that a company should use other sources for hiring.
Rachel,
I, too, would be extremely cautious of those I refer. Those referrals are a reflection on me, and I would want to make certain they are absolutely top quality candidates. These referrals, however, can be a wonderful source of candidates for various positions within an organization. Even if th company has a referral program whereby those making th referral are paid a "finder's fee," it is still significantly less costly than paying a recruiter.
Dr. Patricia Kapper
Sara, i tend to agree with your statement. I am very cautious about referring someone to an organization unless I have first hand experience working with that individual. I only refer candidates who I have had first hand experience working with that individual. I have worked with numerous companies who obtained quality talent from employee referrals.
Jason,
That is a risk that is probably worth taking. Referrals from employees are an indication to you that your employees recognize that this is a good place to work. That says a lot. They also will likely only refer those they know who will fit into your culture. I worked in a company which had a referral program and paid employees for referrals who were hired. That provides a nice incentive.
Dr. Patricia Kapper
Referrals can be a great way to find great canidates, it can also lead to conficts inside the company if you hire a referral and they have a falling out with the person who referred them.
James,
That is a great way to prevent mass referrals. With the stipend delay, those making the referrals will want to refer only those who have a great opportunity for lasting success. This is also a cost effective method for recruiting candidates.
Dr. Patricia Kapper
I have often had success in hiring referrals.
As Dr. Kapper states consider a referral stipend. We do provide a stipend after 6 months of successful employment.
Anna,
One posting cautioned about the potential for socializing on the job if the two individuals are too close. That then becomes a management issue and needs to be dealt with from that perspective. Referrals can be a cost effective way for creating a pool of candidates. It just needs to be done cautiously and the interviewing process needs to be thorough.
Dr. Patricia Kapper
Stephen,
The trust and respect that you have for the employee making the referral will play into your assessment of the candidate. If that employee has a work ethic which you would like to see replicated in others within your organization, then the referral probably has a similar work ethic. We tend to surround ourselves with others much like us.
Dr. Patricia Kapper
I agree that referrals are a great way to find good applicants. You must always consider the source of the referral. You would also want to consider how well they know each other and the influence they can have.
Referrals work great most of the time but I have found that you really need to be aware of the relationship of the Referral and the referrie. If the relationship is close enough they won't have a problem taking the chance on a really close friend/family member.
Danica,
Referrals are good as one source of candidates but I agree with you that other sources should be used as well. Referrals are an inexpensive way to recruit even if your college does pay a referral fee. Whether or not you get a number of referrals is an indication of the morale within your college. Your employees will not refer others if they themselves are not happy with where they work. I do agree on the socialization comment that you make. That, however, becomes a management issue with which to deal.
Dr. Patricia Kapper
A company should not rely solely on referrals for their pool of prospective candidates for an open position. I think referrals coming from current employees show that they enjoy working for that company and want to share that with a friend, relative, or whoever by inviting them to apply. If you did not like who you are working for, why would you want to have someone you know outside of work put in the same boat of working for someone you do not like? On a down side of referrals, I think they could backfire because you may have more socialization between the two instead of working like they should.
Linda,
Good point, Linda. It would require you to do some serious soul searching to determine if you can handle it. You would need to think about different situations and whether your friendship would allow you to do what you need to do. Do you really want to mix your work and personal life?
Dr. Patricia Kapper
I agree with Dr. Kapper,on her comment about having similar work habits, and work ethics. Also if they would be a good fit to the organization. I do have concerns with hiring people I know outside of my work, because you know them on a personnel level. How effectly can one separate personnel relationships with prefessional relationships?
Cassandra,
There can also be a cost factor involved her. Using an outside recruiter can have a significant impact on your bottom line. Even using your in house HR is going to have a cost factor. HR will need to advertise the vacancy some place whether it is a professional journal or an online resource. That is an expense to the Department. Referrals may be free unless you offer a referral fee. So there are advantages to using referrals as a recruiting source.
Dr. Patricia Kapper
I think this is a great way to get some qualified applicants for the position. Like you mentioned people don't like to refer unless they are 100% they will be a good fit b/c they don't want people to think badly of them. But i also think it is great b/c usually the staff referring someone has a good grasp of what we are looking for in the position and since they know the candidate they are referring they will know if it is a good fit for both the company and the candidate.
Given your comment, when you, as the supervisor, accept referrals, you need to consider the source of that referral as well. Is this an employee whose judgement you trust? Is this an employee whose work ethic mirrors that of the culture of your organization? Employees will refer others whose work habits are similar to their own, so you need to make sure that this is the work behavior you are looking for. If this is a potentially good source for helping to create that pool of candidates or if you are having difficulty recruiting for a particular position, you might want to consider a referral stipend. This will encourage employees to think about others with whom they have worked who might be a good organizational fit.
