Written by Chris West

Candidate attraction! Many people still believe that candidates can be attracted to a position based purely on money but actually, the world has changed and now there are many variables’ candidates consider when looking at a new role.

A great acronym to consider is CLAMPS, this is something we use to help both clients and candidates to realise what is important to them when either hiring or looking.

Here’s what Clamps stands for:

• C: Challenge. Is the role offering a challenging environment where the candidate is regularly presented with new development opportunities or new products/services?
• L: Location. In a world that has now adopted remote working a lot of candidates still prefer being in the office, if this is the case, is the location suitable? Is the space fit for purpose?
• A: Advancement. Is performance monitored? Is there progression opportunities? Are there pay reviews?
• M: Money/Package. Are you offering a competitive package? If not, why? Are you underpaying your staff? When did you last benchmark your salaries against current market rates? Do you think you’re competitive where benefits are concerned?
• P: People. Do you employ like-minded people? What’s the company culture really like? Is it a sociable environment? Do you have a diverse workforce?
• S: Security/Stability. Can your business offer a long term plan for the employee? Are there any upcoming changes that will impact the candidate? Is the job comfortable and relatively stress-free?

These variables are things that every candidate will subconsciously be considering when looking at new roles. It’s important that you’re asking yourself these questions because in what is a candidate short market it’s important to set yourself against the rest.

I wanted to include some figures about candidate what candidates feedback when considering new roles.

• 75% of candidates will research a company’s reputation before applying for a job opening. So make sure you are engaging with your employees as much as possible to limit negative feedback on sites like Glassdoor
• 60% of people report that benefits and perks are a major factor in considering whether to accept a job offer.
• The top reasons employees are looking or would consider leaving their company were “compensation” (52%), “career advancement” (43%), and “lack of recognition” (19
• 65% of Millennials value company culture compared to 52% of people 45 and older.

Hopefully, you can see the value in CLAMPS and how it can enable you to have a better overall offering when trying to attract the best talent in the market.