Relocation and Recruitment: Look outside your local sandbox

Although there exists a wide demand for skilled healthcare professionals across the country, some regions attract more job seekers than do others. With growing shortages that are expected to continue their increase over the next decade, professional and experienced staff may have more options for a nation-wide job search.

In many areas of the country the local candidate pool is deep enough to meet all hiring needs without looking at non-local, relocating candidates. This isn’t always the case, though, and for some fields it’s an absolute necessity to widen the radius of a search. Relocation costs money, but to hire the most competitive, best fit in the field, spending may be a necessity.

Whether you choose to look outside your market depends on a number of factors, including the difficulty in finding someone to fit the position and the desirability of a candidate. Some professionals are aggressively recruited and employers are eager to pay for the relocation (and even spousal relocation); this, however, is the exception to the rule. While a number of seekers can negotiate an ideal relocation package, most candidates are not in such a position. With an increasingly competitive job market and a number of local job seekers with comparable qualifications, many relocation candidates are willing to bear the burden of their own move, whether it be across the state or across the country. For some folks, a better standard of living, better schools, or more hospitable climate is all worth the time, trouble, and cost of moving. 

If you decide to go this route – to look outside your sandbox – how do you both locate and pique the interest of these candidates who are willing to move?  What kind of recruitment strategy should you employ?

1. Be in the know
First, keeping up with geographic market trends is a crucial first step in formulating your relocation strategy.  Which markets are currently seeing a noticeable decrease in the number of residents, and which markets are steadily seeing their population numbers increase?  This is a clue as to which markets can be considered the most migration-friendly, and can help shape your geo-targeting efforts when locating candidates.

2. Connect
After identifying the appropriate markets to target, it’s time to think about how you will connect with those potential relocation candidates about your open positions.  Will you just use traditional strategies like ads and internet job boards  or will you use an integrated strategy that is more targeted?  You want to target the right candidates, and not just the entire pool of active job seekers. If you’re looking outside of your local area for the best possible candidates, you shouldn’t neglect to target the passive seekers as well as the active.

3. Brand & Message
How are you communicating to potential candidates? With non-local seekers, it’s even more crucial to ensure your message is clear, your brand is strong and your reputation is solid. Because we’re talking about distant, non-local candidates, the need to pique their interest is of the utmost importance. Make a personal connection and promote yourself as the employer of choice. Your message should be strong, relevant and memorable.

In the end, it always makes the most sense to search for workers in and fill open positions from your local market. When that’s not possible, having a comprehensive, far-reaching recruitment strategy is a must.

Source:

http://realestate.msn.com/slideshow.aspx?cp-documentid=20441328