In the recruiting profession there is no magic formula that will guarantee that once a candidate accepts your offer that they will remain with the company for several years or even a decade. What companies can guarantee is that they provide their staffing department with the needed resources to hire candidates with the greatest potential to stay. Just as they review their skills and experience to determine whether a candidate is a fit for the opportunity, a recruiter or hiring manager should look at their tenure with an organization. This analysis of their career tenure is not just to see if they were a job hopper, but also to see who they worked for, types of roles and their impact in the company.

Employee turn-over can be quite expensive for any organization whether big or small. A company can reduce their overall cost per hire by developing a culture where people want to work. Here are three ways to increase your chances of employing candidates that will stay with your company.

1. Have a potential candidate show you their accomplishments, not just talk about it. In most sales organizations part of the interview process is to ask for documents of sale success with their current or former employer. Most other professions do not require candidates to show any documentation that indicates their performance or standing with a company. In sales there are rankings and awards, but most companies will show their appreciation for an employee’s contribution in some fashion. Training certificates, attendance notifications, mention in the company newsletter, appreciation notes, recognition gifts/awards and other types of documents can be used to help an employer determine a potential employee’s accomplishments or achievements. I would not suggest requesting references until you are ready to offer a candidate the opportunity, but encouraging the candidate to share tangible accolades of their hard work can help you determine their potential career engagement.
2. Not all departures from a company are on bad terms. A company’s alumni network is a valuable resource that should be utilized when hiring. Some employees leave for career or educational advancement, relocation or personal issues. Many times these are valued employees that unfortunately have to leave the company. Use this network to rehire or request referrals. An employee that left five years ago because their spouse took a job in another state may be a perfect fit for an opportunity in their new location. Some roles allow employees to work remotely, so location would no longer be an issue for the former employee. Other instances can be a former employee that left to further their education. The skills and education they obtained while gone may be a good fit for another or new role within the company. Former and current employee referrals are also an untapped resource for many recruiters. Ask strong employees to recommend someone for an opportunity. Most will refer a candidate they would not just be confident to recommend but also to work with.
3. Employers expect candidates to do their research, but so should the employer. If a candidate has a history of leaving jobs in less than 18 months there is a good chance they will leave your employment too. Article after article talks about how candidates whose resumes show a pattern of job hopping are finding it harder to obtain employment. There is a clear reason-Cost per hire! Bottom line is that when employees leave a company continuously it affects the company’s bottom line. The company will see a direct impact financially and in their brand. This can sometimes be avoided by looking at a person’s work history carefully. There may be valid reasons for leaving a company in a short period of time. New opportunities that were misleading, companies that fail and close-up shop and other professional or personal issues, but most people want security and are not looking to take a job only to leave it as quickly as possible. A recruiter’s responsibility is to investigate the candidates work history objectively, but with caution. Ask probing question if there are gaps or shorten stints of employment that are not habitual.

How does your organization identify candidates with the POTENTIAL to stay? Employee retention is a critical part to any organizations success. Make sure your company has a plan to prevent turnover as a part of the hiring process. This will eliminate the greater need to address employee retention after employees begin to leave.