Top Recruitment Trends for 2019 and How They Affect Your Job Search

Top Recruitment Trends for 2019 and How They Affect Your Job SearchTop Recruitment Trends for 2019 and How They Affect Your Job SearchAs a company devoted to helping people get hired, we are in constant contact with recruiters. Human resource personnel tell us what they want to see in job applications, and we build these insights into our resume builder.Being surrounded by recruitment experts helps us understand how the job hiring process is subject to change. Like any industry, human resources and recruitment evolves based on technological advancement and shifting employer preferences.What does the future of recruitment look like? Well, we dont exactly have a time machine or crystal ball, but we do have a pretty strong sense of whats coming down the pipe, at least as far as 2019 is concerned.As we turn the page on 2018, and many aspiring workers make finding a new job their New Years resolution, its time for a glimpse of what job seekers will face in the year ahead.Weve asked the experts here are four recruitment trends you should be aware of in 2019.1 Multimedia ApplicationsTheres a good chance youve come across this one before if youve been on the job hunt within the last few years. But in case you havent, get used to the idea of employers demanding mora than just a cover letter and resume as your job application.No, the cover letter and resume arent dying off. They are the pillars of any application and will continue to be your ticket to getting hired. However, additional assets are being recognized as valuable in helping recruiters gauge candidate fitness.For example, more and more employers want to get a sense of a persons soft skills prior to committing to inviting them for an interview. Their solution? Asking for a short introductory video to accompany an application.Candidates are often being asked to compile a 1-2 minute video that answers broad questions like What unique qualities will you bring to this role? or Why are you interested in working f or Company X?.This helps employers assess verbal communication skills and whether a person is aligned with company culture.Speaking of culture, recruiters are also getting in the habit of asking for creative applications that include items like infographics, videos, or dedicated websites that showcase specific skills. This is especially true in fields like marketing or for jobs with technology-driven start-ups.Meanwhile, integrating your social media profiles into your application, for example by including usernames or URLs on your resume, has already become common practice, especially since recruiters are likely to search for you anyway.2 Inbound RecruitingInbound recruiting refers to the marketing efforts that companies undertake to attract top talent to their organization.In the past, the recruitment process typically involved developing a posting for a specific job, advertising that posting, then screening potential hires, and hoping that the right person applies.Yes, many comp anies still follow this process. But many are taking a far more proactive approach, and this is called inbound recruiting.The difference is that with inbound recruiting organizations develop a company brand using a set of marketing tools that will be enticing for both passive and active job seekers. These include career pages that provide a real sense of what its like working for the company and social media profiles that encourage people to engage online with career inquiries.This creates a system for continuously receiving inquiries from attractive candidates, not just when there is an immediate need for a specific position.What does this mean for the average job seeker? Basically, it should serve as motivation to not only look for job postings, but to start your job search by researching the companies that fit with your aspirations and background.From there, you should look to engage with the human resource department at these companies because they are expecting to get inquiries . Send a letter of interest through email or LinkedIn and look to arrange an informational interview.3 Automated Hiring ProcessAutomation is a trend taking over countless industries, all for the sake of added efficiency and precision. As the whole world goes this way, why would recruitment be any different?So, in 2019, you can expect even deeper automation in the hiring process. Considering that employers often receive hundreds of applications for posted positions, its easy to understand why they might have an increased reliance on screening software, such as applicant tracking systems (ATS).Weve said it before, but applying for a job online means a high probability that your application will be filtered based on keywords identified in the job description. Recruitment software packages like ATS are only going to get even more precise. Case in point the king of search, Google, has companies flocking to its hiring tool, Google Hire.Before you click send on your job application, remem ber this keywords, keywords, keywordsIt is also plausible that artificial intelligence (AI) begins to play a role in the interviewing process in 2019. Youre probably not likely to be interviewed by robots, but employers may start video or audio recording interviews to be analyzed through AI in order to arrive at the strongest candidate for a role.4 Blockchain TechnologyIs there a bigger buzzword right now in the tech world than blockchain? Nope.No surprise then that blockchain is being embraced as a technological tool for re-inventing the recruitment process. Dont believe us, check out Job.com or Aworker.The decentralized ledger associated with blockchain is seen as offering job candidates the benefit of greater security of their personal information. After all, who knows what companies do with all that data you enter in their online systems?More importantly, however, is how blockchain has the potential to cut out the middlemen of the hiring process, such as recruitment agencies. N ew online platforms allow job searchers to manage their own secure profiles that cannot be searched or accessed by anyone. Power is handed over to candidates who decide for which companies or roles they wish to share their information.Of course, blockchain for recruiting is a two-way street, so even if you as a job searcher love the idea and want to sign on to one of the emerging platforms, it may take some time for employers to jump on board as well. Lets see how far this goes in 2019.Speaking of which, imagine a world where all of your credentials and work history are recorded and verifiable. This is where blockchain may very well take us.