Reflection on 2021

Like most I am very much looking forward to switching off the emails & phone over the Christmas / New Year period to rest, recharge, reconnect and enjoy time with family & friends.

Natalie and I will finally be travelling to the UK to introduce Lachlan to family and we are so excited, along with a tinge of anxiety with it!

From a professional perspective this year feels like it’s being moving at break neck speed and many of my network have not taken a break throughout. Looking around the offices I can see it in the faces of my colleagues and I implore everyone to ensure you take the time necessary to recharge. The responsibility to yourself starts with you acknowledging when it’s time to take a break.

From a recruitment perspective many of my network have commented how good it must be to be a recruiter right now. I would be foolish to say otherwise, when I see or hear of colleagues/peers complaining about the talent shortage or ‘unreasonable’ demands of clients & candidates my feedback is consistent. This is the time for us to shine, to show what doing the right thing by client, candidate and colleague is. Now is the time to conduct ourselves with the upmost professionalism and continue to challenge what has gone before.

The talent shortage is not going to change over 2022, and I encourage all of my network to now more than ever take yourself out of the box and look at everything you do from a different angle. And not only does it start with how you engage with incoming talent but more importantly your current team. They will want certainty, they will consistent communication, they will want to feel involved, they will want to participate, they will want to understand what the future looks like and what part they have to play in it. It sounds like they want a lot, but truth is it’s nothing more than they deserve.

At Design & Build we have continued to develop our EVP to ensure our systems, processes, procedures, branding, marketing, training & development, management, & leadership principles remain a priority along with the compensation and benefits we provide. Our goal is to create a great place to work and that will remain the continuing focus.

So let me sign off with this, the last 2 years should have taught all of us a lot about the good and bad in our businesses. We must continue to challenge them and change as if we do not, we will fall behind and then not only finding talent but retaining it will become even more difficult.

I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year when it lands.

Best Wishes,

Andy Mac