Parents who left the workforce for a few years can offer employers experience and a wealth of knowledge from their former professional life. (Photo: Getty)

In September 2018, the unemployment rate dropped to 3.7 percent, the lowest it's been since 1969. Even if that rate has ticked up a bit by the time you read this, chances are we're still at historic lows of unemployment, and that you, as an HR leader tasked with filling new positions, are feeling it.

Finding top talent can be a challenge on a good day, which makes today's hiring environment all the more challenging. When the usual pools of applicants run dry, it's time to get creative. Here are three groups of potentially talented candidates we often overlook.

1. Stay-at-home parents who want to return to the workforce

Parents who left the workforce for a few years can offer employers experience and a wealth of knowledge from their former professional life. After a hiatus, moms and dads are often energized and excited to get back to what they were doing before changing diapers.

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Finding them, however, may require some creative tactics. The parents who are already actively looking most likely registered on all the job boards—so keep posting—but to reach this demographic most effectively, pull out the stops. First and foremost, consider an employee referral program. Your current employees are often the best recruiters. Additionally, you may want to advertise job postings on community boards (municipality, school), social media groups (including “mom” and “dad” groups) and in local parenting magazines.

Employers should keep a few things in mind when recruiting stay-at-home parents. Flexibility and the option to work from home a couple days a week could go a long way to attracting top talent. Learn to judge performance rather than face time in the office. And if you have a particularly interesting or well qualified candidate, feel free to forgive gaps in an otherwise excellent resume. After all, just think about the new transferable skills a parent learns while raising kids (patience, anyone?).

Finally, it's always a good idea in the interview to do some probing: why is the candidate re-entering the workforce? What's their primary motivation? Discovering the motivation behind the drive is key to matching applicants with the right type of job.

2. Veterans offer stability and dedication

More companies are actively hiring veterans , no doubt because veterans can bring unique qualities to the workplace. The nature of their military training often makes veterans goal-oriented problem solvers who take responsibility seriously. Many veterans are leaders with a great work ethic who never give up—in other words, they can be the perfect job candidates.

There are a few things you can do as a recruiter or HR department to make sure veterans are on your radar. First, understand that a veteran's resume probably won't look like others. During the interview process, give them an opportunity to explain their military service and ask them open-ended questions so you can connect the dots between what they've done in their military careers and what they'll need to do on the job. You might also consider hiring a veteran as a recruiter so he or she can help translate military jargon and skillsets. At the very least, train your current recruiters on how to identify and enable veteran applicants.

To that end, you might ask veterans currently working for you to help develop a plan. As for how best to advertise jobs to veterans, your first step is to identify the roles in your organization that are ideal for ex-military and then post those positions on military job boards such as Military.com's Veterans Career Network. Visit military bases, job fairs and ask current employees who are ex-military if they know of other veterans who are looking for work.

When recruiting veterans, it's important to keep in mind they may consider the corporate world foreign and overwhelming. In the military, the path to advancement is clearly defined, but in the civilian workforce it can sometimes be a mystery. To help veterans succeed in your organization, try establishing a mentoring system where you pair a new hire to a tenured employee (preferably a vet).

In general, it's always a good idea to offer flexibility if you can. A flex schedule will allow veterans to fulfill responsibilities to the National Guard or the Reserves. Finally, be sure to recognize a veteran's service to our country and provide education on the vast array of support systems available to them.

3. Returning citizens eager for a second chance

There are a couple of good reasons to consider expanding your search to include people with a criminal record. First, it significantly increases your pool of candidates. There are tens of millions of people in the U.S. with prior convictions. Opening your hiring process to this class of candidate also has practical benefits. Hiring people with a criminal record, or even just interviewing them, can become evidence of nondiscriminatory hiring practices. And your company might qualify for a tax credit.

Per the Department of Labor, “the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) is a Federal tax credit available to employers for hiring individuals from certain target groups who have consistently faced significant barriers to employment.” It's also worth checking into additional incentives at the state and local level. Finally, returning citizens who do in fact get a second chance are often more loyal, more focused and more committed than your average job candidate.

The next step is to remove any bias your current recruiting process may have toward people with criminal records. For many companies, that starts with striking the “have you ever been convicted of a felony?” from your application, because that question stops the process before it can even begin. And if you do find a promising candidate, don't dwell on their past during the interview. Instead, focus on an applicant's skills and what he or she can bring to your workplace.

If you're apprehensive, try partnering with a local organization that specializes in the training and rehabilitation of returning citizens. Check with your state's unemployment office for referrals.

Read more: 

• To better compete for talent, HR needs to adapt
• A hidden talent pool: Employees with disabilities
• Benefit costs less of a priority as employers compete for talent

Scott Conklin is vice president of HR at Paycor.