Co-optation programme, the ideal recruitment strategy for companies

By Nathalie Pouillard

Published: 15 November 2024

Recruiting through co-option can be a great way of finding well-hidden talent that suits you and that has the support of your employees.

But when is it appropriate? Are there any conditions for its use? What are its advantages and disadvantages?

Before asking your employees for recommendations, we recommend that you read this article on how to successfully implement your sourcing strategy 😉

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What is co-option in recruitment?

Co-optation: HR definition

Co-optation is an innovative way of finding talent outside the traditional recruitment process.

So you don't miss out on :

atypical profiles,
talent that is rare on the market
or even experts who are not actively looking;

the company offers its employees the chance to take part in a co-option programme, i.e. recommending a candidate to meet a specific recruitment need, often in return for a bonus or gift.

In a way, this is a sponsorship or collaborative recruitment operation, where the employer leaves it up to its teams to source relevant profiles.

It is estimated that co-option accounts for around 37% of executive recruitment in France, and is the 3rd most common recruitment channel for these profiles, after job advertisements and candidate hunting.

APEC

A whole programme

Co-optation consists of involving your human resources and exploiting their professional or private network.

To do this, it is essential to establish the conditions of the co-optation programme in advance, as well as the clearest possible job description or job offer, so that the recommendation is based on well-defined search criteria.

The recommended candidate will nevertheless have to follow the usual recruitment procedure, i.e. go through the interview and test stages, which are open to all candidates.

The co-optation bonus

How much is a co-optation bonus?

In many cases, the employee who "co-operates" receives a referral bonus or a gift in return for the recommendation and the referral.

But some companies don't offer any remuneration for referrals, just the benefit of participating in the selection of staff, a real sign of trust, and the recognition of their employers and colleagues.

It all depends on the profile you're looking for, how rare it is, and how much you think you'll save.

What format should a co-optation bonus take?

A co-optation bonus can be :

fixed, communicated in advance
variable, in addition to or instead of the fixed bonus, depending on the quality of the profile co-opted (experience, seniority, contract concluded, etc.),
a benefit in kind, such as a travel voucher,
participation in a special event within the company, such as the gala launch of a major product,
a donation to a charity.

☝️ As an example of a bonus, Capgemini pays a co-optation bonus of €1,200 for an inexperienced profile and €2,000 for an experienced profile.

How and when should the co-optation bonus be paid?

The bonus or reward can be paid :

directly from the next pay packet,
via an investment in a company savings scheme (PEE), etc.
as soon as the co-optation is carried out, with no conditions as to results,
when recruitment is completed,
at the end of the trial period,
or in instalments, part at the time of co-option, part at the time of final recruitment.

Advantages and disadvantages of co-option

For a company's employees, the benefits of taking part in a co-optation programme are mainly financial, where there is a quid pro quo.

But it also involves helping to select future colleagues.

Nevertheless, they inevitably take on a degree of responsibility in the eyes of their superiors and acquaintances, and run the risk of losing credibility.

For the HR department or general management, co-option also has a number of advantages:

an increase in the number of qualified candidates
Reducing the time and expense involved in finding candidates, particularly the cost of a specialist recruitment agency ,
staff commitment and recognition,
recruitment of profiles with skills and interpersonal skills adapted to the corporate culture,
reduced staff turnover: according to a Careerfy study, a co-opted recruit is 23 times less likely to leave his or her post.

According to Softy, implementing a co-option policy would reduce recruitment time by 90% and increase the quality of applications by 60%.

In some cases, co-option is even used as an argument for recruitment, as shown by this example of a campaign by Gan Prévoyance :

Beware, however, of the risk of cronyism and internal conflict. With the lure of money, some employees sometimes go into " headhunting " mode. It's a good idea to limit the number of eligible candidates per employee and the amount of the bonus.

Another potential disadvantage is the brake on diversity. An employee who recommends a former colleague or classmate, with a background that is too similar in terms of training or professional experience, can prevent the company from being breathed new life into.

Lastly, you will save a great deal of time on recruitment, but you will have to waste some of it in defining the conditions of co-optation to anticipate any conflict if a candidate is turned down or a bonus is paid.

How do you set up a co-option programme?

1 - Define the relevance of co-option

First and foremost, your recruitment strategy needs to be clearly defined, and in particular the circumstances in which co-option is appropriate.

What are your objectives? If it's to recruit different, rare profiles, to develop participative recruitment or to save time and money, co-option may indeed be the right solution.

2 - Framing the co-optation programme

Once you've decided on the type of recruitment you want to carry out, you need to define which employees (managers, teams) and even which partners can take part, and how:

amount of the bonus
format of the bonus
conditions for payment of the bonus, etc.

Setting a deadline can turn the programme into a real challenge! A system for awarding points for each candidate put forward and for each stage in the recruitment process can also make it fun, especially if there is no reward.

Finally, if you're looking for very rare candidates, co-option can also go beyond the internal framework, as in the case of this recruitment agency specialising in BigData and DataScience, which fills its candidate pipeline with an open online co-option campaign:

3 - Use a suitable recruitment tool

Software specialising in recruiting and tracking candidates offers a cooptation module, such as Softy. This allows the recruiter to monitor ongoing co-optation processes and identify co-opters eligible for a bonus, depending on the company's co-optation policy.

It also allows employees to propose candidates directly on its platform, in a dedicated space.

And if you're looking for ATS software to encourage internal referrals, softgarden is for you. Secure and personalised, the solution offers native integration for receiving feedback from former employees on a job description, an integrated rewards system and multicasting to reach as many people as possible on social networks.

☝️ Another tool not to be overlooked is LinkedIn. It provides a form of indirect, digital co-option. By asking your employees to link their profile to your company and pass on your vacancies, for example, you are encouraging them to make contact with their network through them.

4 - Communicate about the co-optation programme

Well established, it's time to move on to communicating the co-optation programme to your employees, all its rules and benefits, to motivate them to take part.

In addition to the criteria relating to the possible reward, don't forget to explain :

job vacancies open to co-option,
priority positions,
the skills and profiles sought.

Don't hesitate to keep them informed of recruitment progress to keep the programme alive, for example on the company' s social network. This is also the right place to praise the co-opters, even those candidates who didn't go all the way. Otherwise, you risk their disengagement.

💡 Why not provide a small reward for employees who get involved in your search for candidates but don't make it to the bonus, with a consolation prize? Valuing their involvement in one way or another is essential.