What do purple squirrels and recruiting glossaries have in common? They’re both extremely rare. That’s why we put together an exhaustive glossary of the terms you need to know, whether you’re a recruiter, you work cross-functionally with hiring managers, or you’re partnering with a recruiting agency to find the perfect candidate.
In any of these roles, it’s critical that you and your recruiting partners speaking the same language. With new terms appearing every year, it can be hard to keep up.
The only thing harder than finding a purple squirrel is trying to decode the never-ending stream of acronyms. The recruiting world is a veritable sea of shorthand terminology for longer and more complex concepts. And sometimes, maddeningly, the acronyms themselves end up complicating things further.
Here are 5 recruiting terms you need to know now:
1. Culture add
Culture add considers a candidate’s contribution to the organizational culture. This way of thinking about hiring focuses on building diversity within an organization to foster innovation.
2. Informed candidate
An informed candidate is one who has researched the position and your company through research. Research can include reviewing company reports, news articles, and employer reviews as well as informal networking conversations.
3. Mobile strategy
Mobile strategy refers to the collection of activities that target candidates on mobile devices. It ensures that candidates are able to easily find jobs, learn about your company, apply, and communicate through the hiring process from a smartphone. It may also include a mobile-optimized component for recruiters, hiring managers, and interviewers.
4. Social recruiting
Social recruiting entails using social networks to find and attract candidates. Recruiters may engage in such activities as posting job ads and employer brand content on social networks, and engaging in groups on social websites.
And, last but not least...
5. Purple squirrel
Purple squirrel is a term used to describe a candidate who precisely matches all of the employer’s job requirements. Because purple squirrels don’t exist in real life, it is generally considered to be an unobtainable request.
Remember, the most effective words are the words that are understood. Your organization may define these terms a little bit differently than we do. If you discover you have alternate definition for any of these terms, use it as an opportunity to ask questions, do some research, and find alignment within your recruiting team – including company leaders, hiring managers, and interviewers.
To help you clarify definitions on terms you might not know, refresh your knowledge, and stay up to date on the latest recruiting and HR terminology, download the new Recruiting Glossary! It includes a roundup of all external and internal recruiting terms, plus general hiring terms. We also gathered all types of positions, plus sales terms, marketing terms and engineering terms – all the language that’s specific to those particular disciplines.
