Remote Hiring and Recruiting: Top 4 Challenges and Solutions

Working remotely has become so widespread that many professionals are now expecting the option to work at least partially remote in their next (or current) job. This means companies need to be ready for remote hiring. Virtual hiring and recruiting can be equally as complicated as supervising remote employees, if not more. MP’s HR services and recruiting experts share the top 3 challenges of hiring remote employees—and their solutions.

1. Remote hiring makes it difficult to showcase corporate culture.

Even if a candidate will be working entirely remotely, they’ll still want to understand what the company culture is like. Going to interviews in-person is, of course, not an option when recruiting remotely. This leaves companies with the task of finding other ways to share what their work environment is like. HR service experts like MP suggest tasking at least one or two employees with improving the company’s employer brand. This means building out their LinkedIn, Glassdoor, and Indeed pages. It also means asking happy employees to leave reviews about what it’s like to work there. On their own website, employers can create special pages dedicated to their corporate culture. These pages will be stronger with pictures of team members or events, videos of employees talking about why they like working at the company, and links back to their LinkedIn, Glassdoor, and Indeed pages. During the remote hiring process, the company’s recruiter should share these resources with candidates. The last tactic for addressing this challenge is to include more teammates in virtual interviews. Allowing candidates to meet the people they’d be working with, especially with video cameras on and without a manager present, can help them feel more comfortable in asking any questions they have about company culture.

2. Remote hiring can make it difficult to keep talent engaged.

When candidates never come into the office and meet with hiring managers, they will have significantly weaker impressions of an employer. This is something that employers should recognize and work to overcome at every stage of the hiring process. Employers should keep in touch with candidates slightly more than they would during an in-person hiring process. They can do so simply by sharing resources for candidates, like links to their Glassdoor or careers pages on their websites. They can also provide updates on the hiring process and check in to see if the candidate is closer to getting or receiving an offer from any other employers. Beyond checking in more, employers should consider using video whenever possible in the interview process. Even though it can feel a bit awkward, a video call will create a greater impression on a candidate than a phone call. Communication is about more than just voices; facial expressions and body language are important. When an employer does make an offer, they should ramp up their process and try to encourage the candidate to make their decision as quickly as possible. If everyone waits too long, the candidate may be distracted by another employer or by a counteroffer from their current workplace.

3. Interviewing over video and at home can be awkward.

As everyone who has worked remotely knows, conversations over Zoom or Microsoft Teams frequently have an awkward element to them. People have a difficult time truly connecting and making meaningful eye contact. There may be interruptions in internet service or people may feel uncomfortable seeing their own screen (or just being on video). In addition, when everyone is at home during the pandemic, children, pets, roommates, and/or spouses may interrupt a video call. Employers can tackle these challenges of video interviewing a few ways. Firstly, they can acknowledge these realities. Everyone will feel more relaxed when they acknowledge that meeting over a video call has its disadvantages. Another step that can be taken is to show some empathy. A recruiter might say, “Oh, my dog always barks during video calls, too!” Instead of getting annoyed when a child interrupts an interview, a recruiter or hiring manager can simply laugh or smile warmly. Making the candidate feel comfortable and as though the recruiter or hiring manager is empathetic to the awkwardness of at-home video interviewing will help to ensure that the whole interaction is more positive and fruitful.

4. Identity verification becomes tricker during remote hiring.

Employers will need to be extra cautious when hiring remotely because it’s much easier to run into HR compliance issues. I-9 documents will need to be physically inspected when the pandemic is over and identity fraud is more of a threat than ever if employers are hiring internationally. Employers that are doing their own remote hiring might consider using identity verification software if it will be applicable to avoid fraud issues. If employers choose not to do their own hiring, they should check with their recruiting services provider (like MP) to make sure that talent identity is always confirmed. As an additional safety measure, MP offers background and security checks on talent.