Employee Referral Programs are brilliant in theory. They save you the time and money of searching for new hires by asking the experts (your own, hardworking employees!) to bring them to you. This way, you’ll automatically have staff who get along. Plus, if a productive, upbeat worker vouches for someone they know, it stands to reason that the new person will be of a similar caliber. It sounds like a perfect plan, and it can be—but you’ll need to review your referral program and update it as needed to keep it working well. Just follow these tips from a leader among Atlanta staffing agencies—Snelling Georgia Group.
How to Assess Your Employee Referral Program
One a regular, ongoing basis, you’ll want to analyze certain metrics to help you gauge your program’s effectiveness. These include:
- Employee participation. How many employees actually use the referral program? A low participation rate can indicate it’s time for a revamp.
- HR turnaround time. Once an employee submits a referral, the time it takes Human Resources to review the form and make a hiring decision affects how long it takes the referring employee to get his or her reward. And let’s face it—the reward is the key motivator for the program. You can review: time to respond to potential candidate, time to schedule an interview, time to make a job offer, and time to update the referring employee on the success of the referral.
- New hire productivity and turnover. How productive are referred employees versus those hired using your standard hiring method? You’ll want to track results you can easily measure, such as tasks completed, time to complete tasks, frequency of late arrivals, frequency of calling off work, etc. Plus, how many referred employees decide to leave the company or are terminated, and within what time frame? All of these metrics can help you determine if your employee referral program is resulting in high-quality hires.
- Reward value. Does program participation increase with a particular type or quantity of reward? It may take a little time and experimentation to see what entices your particular employee population.
Three Ways to Make it Better
- Make it easy. If it’s too time-consuming or difficult to make an employee referral—no matter what reward you’re offering—your employees won’t do it. The referral form should be easy to find, either available in the HR department or online (or both), and easy to fill in. It’s also a good idea to make the form mobile-friendly, so your employees can access it anytime, anywhere.
- Offer a valuable reward. Cash is king, and it’s important to determine the amount that will make your workers jump, while keeping it affordable for your budget. Employees may also be swayed by gift cards to popular locations, or merchandise. It all depends on your population.
- Conduct a survey. When in doubt, ask your employees what they think! Using an online service such as SurveyMonkey, ask questions to determine how your employees feel about the referral program and suggestions for improving it.
Another great way to find new employees
If you’re looking for staff in the Atlanta Metropolitan Area, Snelling Georgia Group is at your service! We’ll work with you to understand your needs and place you with candidates who fit your company and culture. To learn more, contact us today!
