The hiring landscape has changed more dramatically than ever since March 2020.
Let’s count the ways:
- Remote interviewing, hiring & on-boarding is the new norm.
- A renewed emphasis on diversity hiring is finally here to stay.
- New recruiting challenges have come about due to the sheer volume of talented folks on the market.
- There’s a much higher degree of difficulty persuading top talent to leave their current, “safe” position.
All of this is happening while, fortunately, there’s still relatively strong hiring activity in the Greater Boston tech and agency sectors.
If your current recruitment efforts are not breaking through the noise, attracting the right candidates, and positioning your company as a leader in this New World of Work, you risk losing the battle for talent to your competition. Here are 4 core recruiting strategies you can use right now:
1. Your employer brand may need to be polished or redefined. Are you (still) a great place to work now that that “place” is home? What has replaced your old perks (e.g. office dogs, free beer & lunches, pool tables, etc.)? Be sure to communicate what makes your company great TODAY.
2. Employed talent is more reluctant than ever to change jobs. How can you get them to engage?
- Take a “soft-sell” approach and lead with empathy.
- Mine the networks of your employees for warm intros.
- Show candidates your company has survived the downturn and is poised to thrive, perhaps in a blog post or video on your site (or LinkedIn).
This is an unprecedented opportunity to land newly-available top talent – but not ALL talent is tops. Invest more time doing due diligence on candidates (e.g. 4 or 5 reference checks; more interviewers than usual; a homework assignment and/or presentation)
4. Your recruiting approach likely needs to be re-tooled to attract more diverse candidates.
- Do your job descriptions use inclusive language? Do they encourage diverse candidates to apply?
- Are you implementing advanced querying techniques on LinkedIn to tap into diverse candidate pools?
5. Don’t make the mistake of dragging out your hiring process because of the slower job market. Hiring is still happening and the best candidates can still receive multiple offers (or strong counter-offers from their employer). If you feel good about someone, take action because, as they say, time kills deals.
2020 is a year none of us will ever forget. Changes to the world of work and talent acquisition brought about by the pandemic will undoubtedly continue to impact us for years to come. Innovative tech companies and agencies that adapt their strategies and methods of hiring on the fly are poised to succeed both now and in the future.