“Hybrid” Recruitment Is Not a Thing

by RJ Taylor

Hybrid recruitment is not a thing… it’s just not.

At most, it’s a phrase created to describe the nuance and uncertainty we all felt over recent semesters and that we still feel during this time of transition.

But we don’t need it!

What some people are calling “hybrid recruitment” is actually not new. It’s been around for almost 20 years. It’s the modern strategy that the best sororities and fraternities use to attract, select, and secure quality members.

It’s Dynamic Recruitment! It’s proactive, relational, systems-based recruiting that doesn’t rely on “come to us” messaging and instead prioritizes the interested student’s experience over everything else.

But, RJ – “What about our new virtual round 1? What about the DMs we’ve learned to send to develop leads? What about the presence and visibility we’ve created by connecting with non-greek student organizations? What about all the hours on Zoom? Isn’t all that hybrid recruiting?”

Right! All of that is awesome. It’s dynamic! So here’s my pitch: Keep doing it! And DON’T. EVER. STOP.

Hybrid recruitment is inherently a part of Dynamic Recruitment. It’s our future!

It’s healthier.

It’s safer.

It’s more inclusive.

And it has the potential to entirely transform our organizations and our industry for the better.

In fact, I’d argue the word of the year for 2020 wasn’t pivot; it was dynamic!

• It took an extra human effort to find and welcome the members who joined this year. We went out of our way to connect and remind each other we are still humans, not Zoomans.
• More students had access to our organizations and the gift of belonging we offer than ever before!
  • Students studying abroad
  • Students who (for millions of legit reasons) had something important or challenging come up and missed that informational
  • Students with disabilities
  • International students
  • Students who have historically been disinterested in our overwhelming processes
• Many umbrella/national/international organizations took important steps to address hurtful exclusion and inequity in our joining practices.

Our Phired Up partners aren’t looking back to the past. They aren’t expecting flyers to communicate the value of their organizations. They aren’t asking people to register for recruitment in May and then not building relationships with them until August. They aren’t holding expensive BBQs and spamming the masses, begging them to show up… They are creating the future of fraternity and sorority by TRANSFORMING the way people join.

So if you’re planning your council’s formalized recruitment process, or your chapter’s summer recruiting strategy, or your organization’s fall informational… plan something that continues the hard work of our COVID- era leaders. Plan something that connects your members with more of the right people. Plan something modern. Plan something dynamic.

Want to learn more about how? We love sharing their stories. Let’s talk!

There’s also a ton of helpful resources here.