Y/our
Ikigai in practice; recruitment writing, pt 9
Why do your people enjoy working for you?
Why might others leave what might be great jobs to work for you?
Why would they stick around?
Share the answers to these questions, with meaning, in your messaging and you’ll attract better-suited candidates, if they aren’t ready to apply.
Offer them an appealing reason to take their first step – which might simply be a conversation.
While ‘apply now’ can be your first experience of an applicant, it may not be their first experience of your process, especially if their CV is outdated or they hadn’t been considering a move.
What will encourage further consideration, perhaps an application, a 2nd interview, accepting a job offer, declining a counteroffer, or starting a job successfully?
That final step doesn’t happen without the first, and all those in-between.
A first step that may not happen, if you haven’t given good enough reason to do so.
It’s all very well grabbing attention, but why should anyone seriously consider engaging with you?
Fail to do the latter, and you’re left with clickbait.
That’s what ikigai is for.
It can be found in every touchpoint in your process and it’s closely tied to the experience of your candidate.
For now, let’s focus on attraction.
Many employers have a kernel of truth about why they are a great place to work.
But it slips away when they start describing that truth because they focus on what it means for them.
Our company. Our culture. Our values. Our vacancy. Our needs.
That’s no advert. It’s a boast.
Most adverts lead with company info first, presumably for promotion purposes, yet why should a candidate care?
If it matters, show why.
If it doesn’t, strip it out.
“We’re a high-growth market leader”
You’re growing through acquisition?
Growing because the world demands a sustainable product only you can provide, creating lots of opportunities for career development?
Growing because you work your team really hard, and pay them through the nose to compensate?
Get to the root of your statement to give meaning.
“We’re innovative and disruptive”
So is every other company. What does it mean and why does it matter?
If there’s no benefit for the candidate, will they care to read about your company? And if they don’t, why are you writing about it?
Values are a great example of truth being lost in words.
Often because the values employers think are important aren’t values at all – they’re principles.
“We value honesty, fairness and respect”
Ah, so you don’t hire narcissistic criminals?
I’m pretty sure most people believe they fulfil these three principles, even if they don’t because they read it from their perspective.
Principles like these are both universal and ambiguous, letting readers find their own meaning: it might mean “we make fact-based decisions, based on impartial research, and no BS” or it might mean “we work openly and toward a common goal, we have each other’s backs, without politics”. Or anything else.
Whereas values are more personal and part of your story.
Learning from success and failure, giving the world more than I take, and helping others improve their lot - a few of the things I aspire to, even when I get them hideously wrong 🤣.
What is the story of your values?
What do they mean to your ideal candidates, and why might it matter?
If your perfect candidate is fed up with the corporate rat race and wants to contribute their experience in a more meaningful way, with honesty, fairness and respect… isn’t that something to appeal to?
Culture is often described from intent, not from the experience of performing a role in a team.
“We have a brilliant culture of learning, teamwork, and bringing people forward”
But what does Alan in Accounts experience or Mandy in Marketing? Harry in HR?
Alan at one company might love the quiet time he spends with Excel.
Another Alan might help his manufacturing leadership team make better decisions by establishing cost variances. Joy.
How are they brought forward?
Mandy may be thrilled by automation, or maybe she’s totally into creativity.
What does teamwork look like for them?
Harry might find delight in telling agencies to PSL off, or perhaps he wants to make a difference and not be trapped by firefighting ER issues.
What part does HR have to play in a culture of learning?
All might fit into a single definition of culture while being very different candidates, experiencing their roles very differently.
Some who would make great hires, and some who are great people yet not the right employees.
What does the culture of your vacancy mean to the right candidates?
Maybe candidates don’t care if your culture is toxic, they just want money for their habits.
Flexi-time to care for the horses.
Working from home because they’re better team players when they don’t have to hang around humans.
Working from the office because that’s how ideas are inspired.
Joining a friendly team who all like crochet.
Knowing that their professional development will be invested in.
Earning money to pay the bills, because work is just a transaction.
Everyone’s different.
So talking about you, as an employer, makes much less sense than appealing to their needs, inclusively, in the way your vacancy inherently offers.
Culture, values, pay, working arrangements, career development, commute – what matters to them, and why.
What you can offer that meets their ikigai.
Why not spend time with your teams and find out what their roles are really like, what makes them tick, and what frustrates them?
If they genuinely want a career with you, might it be that their ikigai is the same as those you want to attract?
Look at why people leave your business. Is it because their new roles are actually better, or is it because you no longer meet their needs?
Is that something you can change, have everyone benefit from, and show a new attraction point to candidates?
What makes your ideal candidates tick? If you’ve established what good is, in your candidates, you should also have established what motivates them.
How can you make their life better?
What problem does working for you solve?
Candidates don’t care about you when you’re words on a page, they care about them.
Why not give them good reason to start a conversation with you, by distilling the ikigai you can offer into a simple concept or two that makes them want to learn more?
The next post is about how you can provide ikigai to candidates at every step in your process, and how it can benefit you.
Thanks for sticking around.
Regards,
Greg
p.s. While you are here, if you like the idea of improving how you recruit, lack capacity or need better candidates, and are curious how I can help, these are my services:
- commercial, operational and technical leadership recruitment (available for no more than three vacancies)
- manage part or all of your recruitment on an individually designed basis for one client
- recruitment coaching and mentoring
- recruitment strategy setting
- outplacement support
Just hit reply to check if my approach is right for you.