Where is the Candidate Goldrush?
Expecting a candidate goldrush right now? Well, don't get your hopes up.
A business contact of mine asked me last week about the current state of the market from a hiring point of view.
I said that despite slower workloads for some businesses and lower recruitment vacancy volumes, this would NOT lead to a stampede of super-qualified candidates beating his door down.
At face value, this seems counterintuitive, right? If fewer people are hiring, I should get my pick of candidates.
Well yes and no.
...The easiest thing for someone to do right now is NOT to move jobs.
There's a certain logic to the above, but it doesn't account for the general feelings and perceptions of candidates. They KNOW what's happening in the marketplace (and the wider economy as well). And their first instinct (rightly) will be to protect their livelihoods for themselves and their families and so the easiest thing for someone to do right now is NOT to move jobs - even if they're unhappy in their current role.?
Also, keep in mind that anyone planning to leave may well be counter-offered by an existing employer, especially if they're good.
So, realistically the potential pool of candidates we're looking at is smaller.
So, what can be done about this?
The obvious psychology is to think that you'll need to do less to attract people at the moment. The reality, however, is the exact opposite.
You need to do more. More to sell, convince and REASSURE someone who wants to make a move that your role and company are right for them.
?Sell the job and your company. Think about what this role could do to develop someone's career. And think about why it would be better to do it with YOU versus one of your competitors. For more on this, take an in-depth look on how to master this approach?in one of our previous articles, Sell to Win.
Selling financial stability could be seen as part of the above, but it's of paramount importance in a tougher economy that you spend extra time and are more thorough doing this.
Candidates will be thinking, "if I move am I going out of the frying pan and into the fire?"
领英推荐
Be prepared to discuss recent company financial performance reports and your order book to reassure people. They need to know if they do move, they'll be secure and this is best done with evidence, not just words.
Stories can be powerful and personal to help make a point. Telling someone there's the prospect of promotion is good; showing them a case study of someone else in the business who's already done this along with it is even better.
Again, I've written about this previously in Time Kills Deals. The longer you take - the more issues you're likely to have with your recruitment process. You also don't look certain, secure, and stable as a business if it takes you 2 months to make a decision.
Candidates will be thinking, "have they got the work they said they had?", "Is this a company I should move to?"
?Cover your bases on your recruitment process to make sure it runs effectively, and you don't lose potential star candidates who might become frustrated by the process or snapped up by another company because you took too long to return a call:
Don't forget the onboarding part of the process - someone might have verbally agreed to take the role, but they aren't through the door just yet. In the current climate, you run an even bigger risk of them being counter-offered during their notice period.
Best practice here is consistent, continuous, contact. Remember phone is good face to face is better.
And the longer the notice period the more of this you'll need to do.
So, there you have it.
There's a guide to successful recruiting in the current marketplace, with the fundamental approach being to double down on the basics for better prospects of success.
Some of these things may seem like more work, but they're a lot better than starting the process again when someone drops out at the 11th hour or not getting candidates into the process at all.? ?