Ladan Davia: Referrals Vs Applicants

According to Linkedin, the #1 way to discover a new job is through a referral… and referrals are the top source of quality hires. 

Look, there are good people responding to posted jobs but most likely, they are being passed over. Why? 

Our guest today says “The answer is serving up less to maintain more” when looking for talent. Using AI and machine learning can help target the right applicants to diversify your talent pool to find the right hire. 

 Today’s Quote: 

“If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door.” - Milton Berle

I’m Rick Girard and welcome to the Hire Power Radio Show. Our mission is to help Entrepreneurs and hiring managers to avoid costly hiring mistakes by identifying a specific problem and provide proven solutions to enable you to WIN the right hire. We share insights from top-performing rebel entrepreneurs, disruptors & industry experts. 

Like our guest today: Ladan Davia, Founder & CEO for Beeya

Beeya, is a meta-search engine for jobs that hosts all jobs on the internet, in one place. It is the only platform that uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to accurately match candidates to jobs they are qualified for, solving the faulty keyword issue other online platforms serve users. 

Ladan has been featured in publications such as the New York Times, Fox Business, and The Wall Street Journal, and is using her influence to help young entrepreneurs, especially women, break through the tech industry.

 Which makes Ladan a perfect expert for today’s topic.

Ladan, Welcome to the Hire Power Radio Show today! 

Today we are going to cover 

Referrals vs. applicants -benefits to each
Other options for hiring 
How to level the playing field and bring the right talent forward regardless of where they came

Why it is wrong to focus on referral candidates?

Unfair advantage to people who are connected
Not based on merit

Why employers are losing good people?

Just because someone is in transition does not mean they are bad
Referrals are not necessarily the best hire

Why it costs employers more?

They are not hiring the right people
Taking the easy out by hiring the easy way.

Rick’s input

Time is the big factor here
Referrals take less time and are partially vetted
Not putting the right amount of diligence in the interview process
Other options
3rd option - targeted recruiting
More time-intensive, allows you to stack the deck with A-players

 

How do we fix this hiring issue?   

Different ways of filtering applicants
Keyword filtering does not work (no buzzwords)

Needs to go
What do we focus on then if not keywords??

Time issue?

How to replace the keyword with AI & ML
Challenges: the AI can become bias
Need to eliminate name, age & gender

Rick’s Nuggets

Applicant Filtering
Performance metrics in the job description
Eliminate buzzwords

Call to Action in the JD to self filter… answer to 3 questions
Time issue
Utilize the phone screen 
30-45 minutes will save hours in the long run

Key Takeaways:

Look for alternative ways to hire and stay away from a keyword match
Don’t be so open to referrals. Open your mind to other people