How Employers Hire 

Hiring practices vary, but most employers use a few common methods. Hiring is usually a process that goes: recruitment, screening, selection. 

Recruitment: Some of the most common ways employers recruit are: 

• Referral—the method employers prefer. Having someone they know and trust vouch for an applicant strengthens the applicant’s chances of being hired.
• Social/professional networking pages on the web, such as LinkedIn—Make sure you have a page with them, and maybe your own blog as well. Today’s employers want to see evidence that you are  comfortable with electronic media.
• Advertising—on the company’s web site, in newspapers, job hotlines, trade papers, the internet or radio/tv.
• Job Fairs—DWS holds job fairs around the state and large companies hold their own job fairs too. Job fairs are used to recruit entry-level employees. But the employers at job fairs may not always have current openings.
• Internal recruitment—Most employers will offer jobs first to their current employees, then go external if a bigger pool of applicants is needed.
• Private and public placement agencies—some charge a fee, some don’t.
• Temporary services—Temporary and contract employees are used more by companies now than in the past, and good temp workers often move into permanent jobs.
• The internet—Used mostly for recruiting higher-level professionals, and for technical occupations.
• “Head Hunters”—Professional recruiters who scout for promising applicants to fill high-level jobs.
• Other—School placement offices, union halls, etc. 

Screening

Once a pool of applicants is in place, employers screen or select the few most-qualified for interviews. Usually this is done quickly by skimming resumes or applications and deleting those that have errors, are badly written, incomplete or do not show minimum qualifications the employer has set for the job. 

The employer may search resumes to select those with key words that match the skills they are looking for. When the best of the pool are screened from the rest, employers will look more closely at their qualifications. 

Education may be verified, and former employers and other references from web pages or blogs contacted. The employer might call the applicant for an additional telephone screening. 

Selection

Most often, the interview is the tool used to make the final decision on who to hire. Generally, all the applicants who get an interview are qualified for the job. So the employer uses the interview to determine which one is the most qualified, as well as to assess personal qualities and how well the person will fit into the organization.

References will be called at this stage. Final candidates may also need to pass a test, come back for a second—or even third—i nterview, or demonstrate their skills in a simulated job situation.