Employee referrals more likely to be hired

Job interviews from employee referrals are much more likely to lead to a successful offer, according to new research.

For some time now HR management has acknowledged that personal connections matter. However the questions remained, just how much did these referrals matter in comparison with other more conventional methods of hiring? A report published by Glassdoor has found that staff referrals boost the odds of a successful job match by a statistically significant 2.6-6.6%.

The report also found that interviews based on university referrals, online applications without any personal contact with employers and recruiter recommendations led to significantly less likelihood of an accepted job offer.

Dr Andrew Chamberlain, Chief Economist at Glassdoor and author of the report, explained the implications this research will have for recruitment. He said: “This study underlines why diversifying your recruiting strategy is key. No one channel can be ignored, and employers who are underutilising their employee referral programs should re-evaluate how to engage employees to help recruit talent more.