Antiquated pre-Covid tactics -- like just flaunting nap rooms and massage chairs -- are, and will continue to be, ineffective in wooing top talent but creating meaningful relationships with candidates is the key, a report says.

Nearly 46% businesses say creating meaningful relationships with candidates is more important than ever, reveal the findings from the recent report by GoodTime, whose flagship product, Hire, allows organisations to win top talent faster with Candidate Relationship Intelligence.

Among the leading candidate-focused hiring practices include flexibility in scheduling during the interview process and demonstration of the company's culture, mission, and values. Providing office tours and free lunch during the interview were also noted but considered "relics of the past".

The Hiring Insights Report by GoodTime surveyed 560 HR, talent, and recruiting leaders across the US to hear about their most critical hiring challenges—and how they're meeting the demands of modern candidates in a changed hiring landscape.

The report highlights the challenges of hiring during both the 'Great Resignation' as well as the emerging 'Distance Economy', focusing on what companies are doing, not doing, or are planning to do to hit their hiring goals.

50% of hiring goals were not met in 2021

It's hard out there for HR and talent leaders. In 2021, companies fell 50% short of their hiring goals and felt the sting of the Great Resignation, evidenced in part by the number one reported hiring challenge: retaining top talent. As employees resigned for greener pastures, companies scrambled to backfill roles, hiring 108 new employees, on average, in 2021.

According to the GoodTime Hiring Insights Report, respondents averaged just 50% of their hiring goals in 2021. To make matters worse, 60% of HR and talent leaders report that it is taking longer to fill an open position in 2021 than in previous years.

Retaining top talent top challenge

Some assume that fully in-office companies have the most challenging time retaining talent. However, that wasn't the case.

As many as 63% of fully-remote companies selected "retaining top talent," far above the average (30%). And while 34% of fully or mostly remote companies struggled with a lack of qualified candidates, only 22% of fully or mostly in-office companies reported the same challenge, as per the report.

While the Distance Economy widens the talent pool, it also widens the employer pool, making it more critical for remote and hybrid companies to take meaningful steps to retain, attract, and win candidates. As a result, HR teams expect to struggle to retain top talent and attract qualified candidates in the year ahead.

DEIB becomes low commitment in hiring 

The findings in the report cast a dull light on the state of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) in the hiring process.

A total of 31%  of companies made DEIB a measurable priority in the past 12 months, and 38% of companies plan to make DEIB a measurable priority over the next 12 months. While this is a 7% YoY increase, DEIB is at the bottom of the list.

Further findings showed that commitment to DEIB was the least selected item (32%) in response to the question, "Which of the following do you communicate to candidates during the hiring process to attract top talent?"

"Winning the war for talent moves beyond the one-sided, staged candidate experience to the two-way, genuine candidate relationship. Companies that take a human-centered approach to talent acquisition are 2x more likely to achieve financial goals," said Ahryun Moon, CEO & co-founder, GoodTime, which helps people and companies drive better results from their most important meetings. The GoodTime Meeting Optimisation Engine automates scheduling, makes sure the right people are in the room, and provides actionable insights to meet smarter. Over 300 leading companies like Spotify, Slack, Pinterest, Okta, HubSpot, and Box have scheduled more than 7 million smart meetings with it.

“The report findings clearly show that winning talent through outdated methods like free lunches and ping pong tables are over. Companies need to put more emphasis on cultivating the candidate relationship if they want to create impactful hires in today's Distance Economy.”