WHAT RECRUITERS CAN LEARN FROM SHERLOCK HOLMESOctober 7, 2015 Mukul Agarwal

The role of recruiters is changing daily due to the evolving workforce. Recruiters have to create new techniques, removing old procedures, and think how to find that ideal candidate who can impact the business. For people who don’t know Sherlock Holmes, he is a fictional character based in London. He is a consultingdetective whose crime and mystery solving abilities along with his friend Dr. Watson, take on a plethora of cases. Recruiters are recommended to followSherlock Holmes through this article, and learn how they can solve the mystery of recruitment.

1. Sherlock Holmes has trained himself to see what others overlook

Sherlock Holmes ability to read a person and situation has fascinated not only Dr. Watson but also many readers.

This is the quality every recruiter must learn from Sherlock Holmes and apply whenever they are taking the

interviews. Easier said than done, but not when you overlook what other recruiters are doing. Most of the recruiters

are overlooking the abundance ways of communications. Find out the ideal candidate and see how they are

communicating and see how they preferred to get communicated about the job opening at hand.

2. Holmes utilise all the available tools and resources to their full potential

Holmes is a great promoter for using one’s senses and resources to their full potential in order to make best decisions.

He has the will to utilise any object and/or situation in his favor, from what is available within his surroundings.

Recruiters have to make sure they are exploring and equipped with the desired tools and resources (like – job portals,

candidate database, mass emailing etc.) to reach out to maximum target audience. Like Holmes, they should have a

keen eye on what medium can give best results.

3. Sherlock keeps his brain attic stocked with all the tricks he is likely to use

Holmes always try to look back at the tricks and lessons learnt from previous cases, while solving new mysteries.

This gives him an edge over the culprits and always keeps him one step ahead. Recruiters should also maintain

reports/analytics of previous interview processes, read and analyse them, and prepare themselves to achieve results in

the upcoming process. This method is helpful in understanding effectiveness of medium, turnover ratio, acceptance

of job ratio and rejection ratio of the candidates. Lesson learnt from previous process can help recruiters to

communicate job offer more effectively for desired attendance of interviewees.

4. For Holmes there is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact

Baker Street’s most infamous resident has the strange ability to pay attention to and derive answers from what is not

there and not just what it looks like. This is the most important trick for recruiters to differentiate between fake

candidates and genuine ones. Candidates will be providing some information, which can be correct or manipulated.

However, a smart recruiter should look beyond what is presented and do verification of details and reference check

as much as possible.

5. Sherlock Holmes never makes assumptions

Be smart at recruiting the right candidate. When handling a recruitment project, never make assumptions. Be clear on

the timelines, budget required, available facilities and available talent in the market. Sherlock Holmes never take the

risk of assuming his facts and take an action. Recruitment is a battle of proven and testified facts and not numbers

derived on assumptions.

This open source applicant tracking system is the best tool for recruiters to train themselves like Sherlock Holmes do

with his techniques. This provides smart ways to automate hiring process, track recruitment process with real time

reports and bring quick closures.