Last week we laid out the results of studies indicating that the United States may have as many as 4.6 million more available jobs than workers. I got some feedback that makes me think there are a lot of people out there saying something like, “Dude, we get it. It’s bad. We don’t need you to keep telling us.”

In the next few Talent Talk columns, we will discuss things you can do to put your company in the best position to attract and land the people you really want, even in this insanely tight labor market. In the war for talent, the rules of engagement have changed, and you must adapt. Most companies are surprised to discover that they are losing potential candidates before they even begin the interview process.

The pool of top talent you want to hire can do quite a bit of research on your company without communicating with you. They can read reviews from current and former employees, and even candidates who interviewed with you but did not move forward. One survey showed that 92% of working Americans consider employee reviews to be important when deciding whether to apply to a job. This means you could be losing out on a potential candidate because of negative online reviews. Check your ratings on the various internet sites and, if they are not good, consider your options for improving that.

Another thing to check is your job application process. A CareerBuilder study found that 60% of job seekers quit in the middle of filling out online applications because of their complexity or length. This can be a “silent killer,” because when is the last time you applied for a job on your own website? The answer, of course, is never, so how would you even know if it is easy or hard? Best in class today means just a few clicks and easy to do on a mobile device.

We are just getting started on this topic. Check back next week as we begin to go deeper.

About the author

Paul Sturgeon is CEO of KLA Industries, a national search firm specializing in plastics, packaging, and polymer technology. If you have a topic you would like to see discussed, a company that is growing, or other ideas for this blog, e-mail Sturgeon at [email protected].