7 ways to make an effective referral program

7 WAYS TO MAKE AN EFFECTIVE REFERRAL PROGRAM

Employee referral is one of the effective ways of carrying recruitment process where current employees of an organisation are asked to refer people from their network to appear for a job interview in the company. Recruiting candidates by this method is cost effective and efficient. The best part, employees could be more productive or comfortable to work among the people they know better. If a company already gives importance to a diversified workplace, referral programs can increase the strength of it further. Let’s see some of the referral programs which are commonly used.

1. Ask employees to share on social networks One cannot have a well-performing referral program without having a strong social media effort. Strong networking is generated because most of the connections and the relationships built among the professionals via social platforms. Ask employees to post about job openings on their social network.

2. Conduct networking events When companies focus more on conducting frequent events to gather audience and promote their product/service; they can dedicate some time for networking sessions as well. Employees present in the event can be communicated about how they should network with people and get to know if they would be interested to work in such a company.

3. Always accept referrals Never say no to a reference given by the employee, even when there are no current open positions in the company.

Recruiters must always be full with relevant profiles and also gives a notion to the employees that their words are valued.

4. Speak out loud Recruiters or the management should not be shy about telling people on the floor that company accepts referrals too.

Small gatherings, team meetings, events, celebrations wherever there is a gathering announce clearly to the employees about the possibilities of references.

5. Regular feedback For a much effective referral program, a regular feedback about the referrals to the employees is a must. To keep everyone on same page, recruiters should always share what made them reject a referred candidate or what parameters made them to select one. This transparency will help employees to modify their search accordingly.

6. Recognise and reward To keep the motivation and enthusiasm of employees towards more and more referrals, it is always recommended to recognise their efforts and reward them. Most preferably when a reference is converted as a new joinee. It could be monetary reward or some other perks. Similarly, team with highest referrals as new joinees can be rewarded on the floor.

7. Implement an online Referral Portal Having an online referral portal being spread across the organisation is the best way to get instant references from employees, no matter at whatever location they are. It also helps keep a track of all the references coming in and who is referring them.

Applicant Tracking System is a web based top recruiting software meant to automate the hiring process and bring quick closures in the organisation. It also comes with a free referral portal (with a pre-generated link) that can be advertised within the organisation. This portal captures the details about the employee who referred, as well.