In 2021, the Candidate is King… or Queen!

I typically start my blog out with a quote that aligns with the narrative of my subject and leave it at that. However, in this case, I feel it’s necessary to explain that this quote by Confucius is something that most of us were forced to ponder over the last year and a half. While on our own forced version of house arrest, we were faced with examining our career circumstances. Many of us took up hobbies, cultivated a victory garden, or took masked trips to Home Depot to work on the "honey-do" list of home projects we were ordinarily unable to complete. All the while, we had to learn to perform our jobs remotely while staving off Zoom fatigue from attending back-to-back online meetings.

As more and more people are vaccinated, companies are setting expectations to return to work – but from our more self-aware vantage point, we are asking, is this really what we want? To return to normal?

Bryan Robinson, Ph.D., recently coined the phrase "the Great Resignation." With a resounding, no thank you, people are looking for something different, not a return to normal. In April of this year, the Economist posted an article causing the shift to remote work a “massive rupture to office work.”

Without a doubt, there is a tectonic shift occurring in the job market. While so many experts expected the economy to falter and hiring to slow down, quite the opposite has happened. The unemployment rate decreased 0.4% at the start of 2021. The job market is more than just recovering; it's thriving. As a result, job seekers can be much more selective.

What does this mean?

The candidates are king or queen. Applicants are looking for something different, and many companies find those job openings are more complicated to fill than ever. The time spent in isolation and self-reflection has caused job seekers to be much more selective, look for balance and explore options. Companies are scrambling to figure out how to accommodate their demands, offering hybrid remote possibilities and sprinkling other incentives to attract candidates.

Organizations looking to hire will need to think about these six things to re-focus their strategy and attract candidates. 

1. Focus Communication and decision making– Covid caused many companies to centralize decisions to only leadership. Marketing efforts and communication revolved around reactive strategies to adapt to the Covid world and away from the company's vision. It's time to re-focus on the company's overall Mission Statement and move away from reactionary Covid strategies.

2. Focus on Company Culture – I'm not the first person to say this, but I will reiterate that being forced to work remotely has permanently altered priorities for most employees. Now more than ever, your company's culture and the benefits, including but not limited to the option to occasionally work from home or remotely, are brought to bear. Giving them the option is a key to changing your company culture.

3. Examine diversity and inclusion – Covid was not the only shift that happened in 2020. The racial unrest and horrible events around George Floyd's murder bubbled up the long-standing societal divides around race. This isn't something to be ignored and cannot be half-measures. Healing comes from acknowledgment and attention. Foster a company culture where every voice is welcome, heard, and respected.

4. Have one-on-one meetings with your team – Believe it or not, this is a necessary strategy. We've been without face-to-face interaction, and people have moved away from "performance management" to "development conversations." Frontline management is the cultural link between employees and organizations.

5. Offer Decentralized or hybrid remote options – I stated this earlier, but companies will see more attrition without offering this as an option. At the same time, many employees want to return to work and appreciate the face-to-face interaction and social aspect of being onsite, just as many will wish to either hybrid or full-time remote options. Offering variety and not penalizing the individual's decision to choose will only lead to success for everyone.

6. Offer digital learning – Moving away from classroom or onsite to online or recorded sessions will only increase attendance, broaden the attendance as online learning is not bound by geography, time, or immediacy of viewing.

In my best guess, this market is here for quite a while. There is a lot of talk of a new “Roaring 20’s” as businesses open, travel restrictions are lifted, and people tired of being homebound are seeking to get back out into the world. As such, to attract suitable candidates open up ideas, start a dialogue and consider reinvention as an approach.

As always, I am here as your friend, confidant, and advisor. If you are looking for some ideas, I'm available to you. Until next time. 

#leadership #realestate #recruiting #corporatemanagementadvisors #hiring