Why an Employee Referral Program is a must!

I am sure everyone is familiar with the phrase, “like attracts like” aka the law of attraction, but what does this have to do with recruiting or an employee referral program?  Well, it’s one of the most important factors in recruiting and something that should not be overlooked by any hiring professional.  People with similar interests tend to attract others with those same interests.  Employees with strong work ethics tend to seek out others with similar ethics, people who perform in similar roles tend to network with those in the same field, people seeking employment tend to know others seeking employment, and so on.

Some of the most common benefits of using an Employee Referral Program include:

1. 1. Referral hires actually perform anywhere from 3% to 15 % better than hires from job boards.
   2. A work force management study found that there is a 25% higher retention rate from referred employees versus non referred employees.
   3. HR World, found that An Employee Referral Program allows recruiter’s access to passive candidates or candidates that are not actively pursuing new opportunities thus increasing their pipeline of new talent.
   4. The monetary bonus typically paid to the referring employee for the successful referral can be a huge morale booster.

So with all the benefits of an Employee Referral Program why are companies not taking more advantage of this?  I cannot answer that, but for all the hiring specialists out there, you need to make sure you know your company’s employee referral program well and you sell it to your employees and candidates!

I recommend the following suggestions to get you started:

1. 1. Send out an email reminding your employees that the company offers an Employee Referral Bonus and what the bonuses are, along with the requirements; dress this email up so that you get your employee’s attention with it.
   2. Invest some of your own money into this to reap higher dividends in the future.  What I mean by this is, if you have a candidate that is referring people to you, but you have not placed that candidate, then send them a gift card for a nice dinner or take them out to lunch.  Let them know that you appreciate what they are doing for you.
   3. Build a solid relationship with your candidates by showing genuine concern for their well-being and career.  Ways in which you do this include sending them links to interesting articles in their professional field, inviting them to industry events like user meetings, or giving them advice for their resume or LinkedIn profile, etc.
   4. Be cognizant of how you are treating your candidates.  If you are offering your candidates a good interviewing and hiring experience, then they are going to be more willing to refer others to you since you left them with such a good experience.