The retail hiring process has many challenges. It involves frequent hiring, a high volume of resumes, and high employee turnover. Because of the nature of the retail jobs, there is always a shortage of talent, especially during peak season times.

According to Avature:

• 75% of retail employees churn annually

• $86 spent on advertising on average for each retail position

With these figures in mind, it is clear that the retail hiring process is a complicated task. Recruiters and retail organizations are tasked with high volume hiring while maintaining talent standards. Therefore the retail hiring process should be super-efficient.

Ideas to improve your retail recruitment process

We have created a list of ideas and tips you can apply to your retail hiring process to become more efficient with your hiring process and hire better candidates.

Idea 1: Link your company values to the job descriptions

Your employer brand and values should be part of your career site and job descriptions. For example, Apple's career site headline is "An open invitation to open minds", promoting their key value. Every organization should promote their values in their hiring process because they should be hiring candidates that demonstrate them. When the employee shares the same values with the employer is much easier to communicate with the customers.

Idea 2: Offer a clear career path

Retail employers need employees that deal with challenges and maintain the employer's standards.

To engage and motivate retail employees, it's to offer them a career path that also involves development and training. For example, Harrods offers it's employees a clear career path complemented with training and development.

Idea 3: Create a great candidate experience

The candidate experience is defined as the perception of the applicant about an employer. With high volumes of application and high employee churn, you must give the candidates a great experience when they apply for an open position. According to PersonnelToday, you can create a great candidate experience by:

1. Creating clear job descriptions

2. Simplifying the application process and make it easy for candidates to find open positions

3. Communicating frequently with candidates

4. Having a transparent interview process in place and make it available to employees

5. Keeping in touch with promising candidates

Idea 4: Create a pool of candidates

Every company wants to have the right employees in the right roles. When a position becomes available, they want to fill it with talented people, but the right candidate might not be available at that time. That is why you need a talent pool.

A talent pool is a database with candidates that you know they take on successfully a role within your organization. To create a talent pool, you need to create a resume database and store candidate data from previous applications, job fairs, and placement events.

Idea 5: Create an employee referral process

An employee referral process is a method of letting employees refer candidates for open roles form their personal network. A referral program often offers a financial reward, and the referred candidate is hired. To set up a referral process, you need a referral policy. The referral policy should include the rules, incentives, and instructions on how an employee can make a referral. Once you create your referral policy, you can share it with your employees and also periodically remind them of the referral program.

Idea 6: Automate your hiring process

You can automate your hiring process by using recruitment software. Hiring software will help you automate and streamline your hiring process. Rather than using paper and spreadsheets, you can run your retail hiring process utilizing an Applicant Tracking System (ATS).

Idea 7: Test for cultural fit and personality

Validated psychometric and cognitive skills assessments measure the correct indicators for job performance. Software vendors like Bryq offer an automated solution to screen candidates and measure cognitive abilities. These tests can be customized to the role's requirements and can give an indication of the candidate's ability to perform the role.

Idea 8: Improve operational execution

A smooth operational execution of your hiring plan is essential. Developing and implementing a data-driven approach to retail hiring will help you learn and optimize the process over time.