Why Hiring “Freshers” Could Be A Smart Strategy? | Aparna Sharma | Consulting Editor | The People Management

When it comes to hiring, every organisation has a different strategy. While some prefer to hire experienced candidates, some invest in new talent, and some like to hire a mix of both.

A lot of companies are often hesitant to hire freshers given that they don’t have much experience or expertise in the field and it may involve more investment from the employer’s end in training them. Some of the major concerns they have include lack of professionalism in freshers, lack of skills, lack of experience, validation of skills, and time and effort needed to make them job-ready.

While the above-mentioned concerns are valid, the situation has improved now. Hiring freshers could now be a great strategy for your organisation due to the following reasons —

1. They Bring Fresh Perspectives & Ideas –

Freshers are usually recent college graduates who are filled with enthusiasm and are eager to prove their mettle. They are quick learners and it isn’t as challenging to train them as you may expect. Freshers bring in new energy to your team, have fresh perspectives and thought process, and often have innovative ideas to share. They are even more interested and keen on executing those ideas.

This is especially true for creative profiles like social media marketing and design. The freshers spend a decent amount of time over multiple social media platforms and therefore, are acquainted with the latest trends in the same. Apart from this, they are users of multiple online platforms and apps, and may therefore have insights regarding the user experience and user interface of your platform.

2. Help You Recognise the Talent Early –

If you are a recruiter, you understand how challenging it is to find the right fit for a role in your organisation, especially when it comes to senior and leadership roles. Hiring freshers, recognising and honing their talent could help you in the longer run. They could turn into valuable assets to your organisation who understand the culture and vision well. They could help you in filling senior and leadership roles in your organisation in the future. And, we can all agree that someone who has been an important part of the company for long would have better prospects in leading the other team members.

3. They Are Tech-Savvy –

In today’s digital age, tech-savviness has become an essential skill to have. The Covid-19 situation has also catalysed the need to be more comfortable with technology. The generation of fresh graduates has grown up with technology & that’s why they are aptly called “Digital Natives”.

Moreover, they have spent an entire year studying or interning through online means. In today’s virtual working environment, these aspirants will be a good fit for your organisation given they are already comfortable with functioning through virtual means and will save you the extra effort to train them in the same.

4. Validated Skill-Set With Experience –

Yes, you got it right! The fresh job seekers have found a way around the paradox of requiring work experience to bag an entry-level job. This is called Internships. Over the past couple of years, the student community has become more aware and has been pursuing internships to gain new skills, validate their existing skills, gain hands-on work experience, and explore multiple fields. Freshers who start early, often end up having their resume filled with multiple meaningful experiences. These job seekers have worked in professional environments, hence understand what professionalism means.