Howdy recruiters! I'm sick and tired of talking about technology. At the end of the day, you became a recruiter the same way we all did, failed all our exams then became recruiters.....
we didn't need technology to do that, we needed that right combination of curiosity, energy and EQ that makes us good at recruitment, but not good at literally anything else.
So heres 3 top tips to be a better recruiter that harness your natural awesomeness
1. Block it Like its Hot.....
Ok I admit I chose this topic largely to make that pun, but never the less its still valuable information so lets move on..
Cal Newport popularised the idea of focused, distraction-free time in his awesome book, Deep Work.
Recruiters need this more than almost anyone.
Your job naturally splits into:
Deep work : sourcing strategy, writing outreach, stakeholder planning, market mapping
Shallow work: Emails, Slack, scheduling, quick approvals
If you don’t deliberately separate them, shallow work eats everything. And I bet when you are crazy busy with reqs you notice the deep work stuff slipping don't you....come on...don't you!
Block time for:
- 60–90 minutes of sourcing per day Structured hiring manager planning, documenting etc Pipeline review and analysis and getting into your pipeline data
Two awesome things happen:
- You become dramatically more efficient (most people see a huge productivity lift just from protected focus time, up to 50%). With calendar blocking, you can actually see how you spent your week, and its way easier to then improve it next week.
2. Run 30-Minute Candidate Prep Calls
Before skills interviews and before final stages.
Yes, it feels like extra work.
I PROMISE YOU....It isn’t.
A 30-minute prep session:
- Candidate feels supported Candidate goes in more confident Candidate has been prepped on stuff not related to performance, like when to log in or what white-boarding tool you will be using. Candidates is more likely to pass the interview. You have another touch point to validate the candidates expectations.
The overall result is a Higher conversion to next stage AND a higher offer conversion.
And that means days less sourcing and screening to replace avoidable drop-offs....DAYS
You trade a couple of half-hour calls per week for entire days of saved effort.....DAYS
Plus:
- Candidates feel supported Candidate NPS improves You build real trust They walk into interviews feeling like rock stars
Its you doing more of the stuff you are brilliant at, using your high EQ to build relationships and support.
3. 15-Minute Friday Decision Sprints
Every Thursday, send a one-page doc:
- Borderline candidates Soft yes / soft no cases Pending feedback Any unmade decisions
Give stakeholders time to pre-read.
Then on Friday:
15 minute sync. Live. Fast. Decision-y.
Bang through the list. No storytelling. No rehashing interviews. Just:
- Yes No Next step
The outcome is every candidate gets clarity before the weekend. and time to hire drops.
Remember, all unanswered questions feel negative.
If your boss messages you on Friday saying, “Can we talk first thing Monday?”, you don’t spend the weekend thinking "awesome...I'm probably getting a raise!!"
Candidates don’t either. Remove uncertainty, increase conversion. Protect candidate experience.
None of This Is Fancy
It’s calendar discipline, better preparation. Faster decisions, clearer communication.
Low tech but high leverage stuff that makes you a happy, in control, high performing recrutier.
Luke Update
I'll be down in London for a couple of events in March.
March 3rd I'll be speaking at the Greenhouse Open event for TA Leaders
March 25th I'll be speaking at an event organised by Calyptus on real AI applications in TA & HR
Come say hi if you are about those days.
Well... that's issue sixty one! If you have any questions about it, or any feedback on this issue of The Data Driven Recruiter, grab me on LinkedIn for a chat.
I'll see you next week!