Businesses are scaling at a rapid pace. As a result, you have an ever-growing need for more employees to help you in your journey towards growth, making it essential to remain updated and have a recruitment strategy in place throughout the year.
 
That said, hiring externally is a long, time-consuming and expensive process, where candidates can drop off at any stage of the funnel. As a result, it has become essential that hiring managers make the best use of the in-house quality talent using internal recruitment tactics.
 

What is internal recruitment?

Internal recruitment is recruiting existing employees to fill the open positions in your company, usually as promotions, or for changing the job role entirely. In case of the latter, internal recruitment goes through the same route as external recruitment; a job posting, candidate shortlisting, interviews, and final selection. 

It is the preferred choice as hiring managers know the candidates already, thereby and savinge on the screening time. There are fewer expenses involved, and the process is usually faster than external recruitment. Also, it proves to be highly beneficial for employee motivation within a company. 

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What does an internal recruitment method look like?

It is essential for businesses to create a standard internal recruitment method. Doing so can significantly help employees to get used to it and prepare for opportunities. Internal hiring is different from external recruiting, and hence, requires a unique plan and structure.

Here's how you should go about conducting internal recruitment:

For a business, it is critical to implement transparent processes for internal recruitment. Failing to do so can result in disruption of the balance at times. Your employees should clearly understand the job responsibilities and the process. The idea is to conduct a professional recruitment process that gives your employees a fair opportunity to grow in their careers. 
 

Types of internal recruitment:

In contrast to external recruitment that follows a standard process, internal recruitment can be quick and efficient. Companies worldwide conduct internal recruitment in various ways, depending upon the requirement and urgency. But it is important even when it is done internally, that recruitment has a proactive approach rather than a reactive approach.

Here are the different types of internal recruitment:

Advantages of Internal Recruitment
Disadvantages of Internal Recruitment

Limited financial risk
In the case of internal recruitment, you already have employees that are carved out for specific roles. If the recruit doesn't work out, they can always return to their old role as a proven commodity. You don't have this luxury in the case of external recruitment. 
 
A recruit sourced from outside the company is an unknown entity. There is the risk of being lied to and being furnished with fake documents. Also, the hiring process might stretch out for months. Therefore, with internal recruitment, you can reduce the financial risk to a significant extent.
 

Reduced collaboration
The smooth functioning of a business majorly depends upon seamless and effective collaboration among employees. If you decide to proceed with internal recruitment, it can lead to a bit of disruption to this balance. As soon as you communicate about the internal job posting, the sense of collaboration can turn into that of competition, at times unhealthy. 
 
Once the role is awarded to an employee, the others may consider it unfair and feel dejected. There may be cries of 'favoritism,' and the morale might be severely impacted. At times, it can even lead to loss of staff, leaving no choice but external recruitment.
 

Enhanced employer brand

Candidates want to know and verify that their potential workplace will allow them to succeed. Internal recruitment enables you to send that message across the desired talent pools.
 
By allowing your employees to progress in their careers, you let the world know that your workplace functions in a supportive and positive environment. 

Creation of empty spaces

You will have to hire an employee to replace the one promoted through internal recruitment. Looking at other employees to fill this role will initiate an unending circle. Hiring managers will find external recruitment as a last resort. However, this effort is worth its value if the internal recruit is for a management position. A business is bound to benefit from a long-term employee working in management. 
 

Highly cost-effective

 According to a study, internal recruitment is 1.7 times cheaper than external recruitment. It eliminates the costs associated with database subscriptions, background checks, and even website postings.
 
You can quickly inform all the employees about the internal open job roles. A simple email or poster in the everyday work area would be enough to start discussions and see applications pouring in. Once you have potential recruits in mind, you can schedule the interviews just as quickly and fill the open job role. 

 

Lack of fresh perspectives

Internal hiring can lead to a lack of fresher perspectives and opinions. The workforce of a company works in collaboration and is bound to develop similar ways of looking at things. This can lead to monotonous work and deprive the business of exciting advancements. Also, sticking to internal recruitment only for long periods can deter a lot of applications from your way in the future. 
 

Helps retain your top employees 
Employee experiences contribute a lot to the employer brand of a company. Your potential candidates want to know that they will be valued at the organization. Being unable to retain the top performers has the counter-effect and worsens your image in the talent market.
 
Recognizing the employees with internal recruitment opportunities can go a long way towards maintaining employee retention rates and improving the employer brand. 
 

Lack of choice

The primary purpose of recruitment is to hire the best-suited candidate for a job. With a limited talent pool that internal recruitment offers, it is critical to ensure that an employee is not promoted merely to save on expenses. A perfect weighing of the existing skill sets against the job requirements is the way to go. 
 

Use Freshteam for Internal Hiring!

Clearly define the job role

A clear job description is the first step to finding the perfect recruit. Make a list of all the skills you believe are required for the profile. Use Freshteam to keep a list of prepared job descriptions ready to use.

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Keep an eye out for potential candidates 

Monitor your employees' work regularly and note down all improvements and advancements. Club the resume of all employees that might be fit for a specific profile. With Freshteam, you can screen these resumes quickly and arrive at the result. 

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Create a transparent process 

A clear internal recruitment process is how you build trust with your employees. You can even try offering feedback to the candidates on their weak areas and how they can improve. With a recruitment software like Freshteam, it becomes easy to conduct interviews and offer feedback instantly. 

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Source internal recommendations 

By sourcing internal recommendations, you can solve the issue of resentment to a great extent. Your employees work shoulder to shoulder every day. They'd know their counterparts better than the management. Try Freshteam to let your employees see all the available job roles and make referrals with just one click. 

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