6 Tips for Making a Job Offer

When you’re searching for the right candidate for a role in your organisation, moving quickly when you do come across one is key. After all, a good candidate might have one or more options that they might be interested in checking out. A timely reaching out from your side can be the reason the candidate accepts your job offer instead. But to be able to respond quickly to a good candidate needs preparation and a deeper understanding of the recruitment process.

Here are six tips to help you move quickly when you come across the perfect candidate for a job at your business.

Keep a Contract of Employment Ready

So, you’ve found the perfect person for the job, and you’ve also told them verbally or by email about your interest in their candidacy. Now is the time to make good on your word and email a contract of employment. Too many organisations end up losing good candidates due to delays resulting from a lack of recruitment expertise. If you’re a small business, you can hire an HR outsourcing firm like HR Dept to help you create a professional contract of employment for the role. Such a firm can provide your business with both complete HR solutions as well as employment law advice.

Flesh Out the Job Offer

Hopefully, you’ve kept the potential employee up to date on the job expectations throughout the recruitment process. The final offer is when you flesh out the actual job in detail, so the employee knows what is expected of them before they begin. Not clarifying the actual job in the offer can lead to a misaligning of values and qualifications between the candidate and the firm. So, make sure your formal letter or email gives the candidate a good idea about what is expected of them.

Include All the Right Details

Make sure the formal job offer includes the potential employee’s correct full, legal name, the title of the job being offered, the remuneration offered, the date of joining, and the terms and conditions for accepting the job. The employment contract should also include benefits, probation period details, a request for proof of eligibility to work in the UK, and any other conditions including background checks necessary for the job.

Ensure the Offer Is Tailored to the Candidate

An experienced HR professional knows that the best job offers aren’t a ‘one size fits all’ type of deal. Ideally, the job offer should reflect the candidate’s aspirations and expectations from the role, while also aligning with the organisation’s needs. To make this happen, chart out what the organisation is looking for in a candidate. Once you meet a candidate that fits the bill, listen carefully to what they’re saying and take the cues from during the hiring process to create the right kind of job offer.

Make Room for Negotiation

The right candidate usually knows their worth and will want to negotiate. Check with the employer what parts of the compensation package are negotiable, and to what degree. If or when the candidate comes back to negotiate certain parts of the offer, see if their expectation can be met. If certain parts of the offer are fixed and cannot be changed, look at negotiating better incentives, benefits, or conditions. Sometimes, coming up with a creative win-win solution can be as simple as making inclusions that work for both parties, or minor changes that help the candidate and the firm start the working relationship on the right note.

Handle a Counteroffer

Sometimes, the candidate will be happy with your offer, but may then receive a counter offer from their existing employer in a bid to retain them. One way to avoid losing a candidate to a counteroffer is by maintaining contact with them throughout the recruitment journey. Flesh out their reasons for searching for a new job. Staying in touch with them can help the candidate keep the momentum of the new job offer. Remind the candidate of their reasons for wanting to leave, and why the new organisation is a better fit for their career in the long run. Offering an opportunity for further meetings with stakeholders and the employer can also be a good idea. This gives both parties the chance for open feedback and face-to-face interactions.

Making a job offer can be a positive phase of on-boarding an employee into your firm. Use the guide above to find and keep the right employee for your business.