How To Hire Quality Talent In Today's Crazy Labor Market

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 It’s a weird time to be hiring. Job seekers and employees have grievances that morphed into The Great Resignation, yet many companies haven’t adapted their hiring practices to the times. If you’re trying to hire a quality candidate to fill an open position, here’s eight factors to consider as you look at talent.

1. It’s not 2008. Remember The Great Recession? Let’s think back. A housing crisis, failing banks, double-digit unemployment, the global economy teetering on the verge of collapse, and a thousand job applicants per job. 2021 isn’t 2008. It’s a seller’s market for labor. There are a lot of jobs. You will not be able to choose from an endless parade of candidates, and the ones you interview are more discriminating. They have the power. Prepare accordingly.

2. Align your hiring expectations to what you really need. If you’re hiring someone to run the cash register, you don’t hire someone with a Ph.D. from Berkeley (see 2008). If you’re hiring someone to run the show, you don’t hire someone right out of college whose only previous job is “influencer.” Take the time to understand what you need, find candidates with the transferable skills to do the job, and be willing to train.

3.  Treat people like people. The job process is impersonal and cold. It opens with labor-intensive online applications with multiple third-party operators (e.g., job boards/application administrators). Then candidates move on to applicant tracking systems designed to filter people out, followed by a phone screen, then maybe a Zoom. When a job candidate reaches a person, they feel like they’ve endured the longest deli line in history. The way you treat people during the hiring process matters.

4.  Respect a candidate’s time. The job hiring process best serves both parties when it’s respectful and fair. Job candidates go through a lot of trouble to be ready for interviews, and it’s a reasonable expectation that the interviewers are as well. Be on time and make the candidate feel valued for being there.

5.  You’re not the only one hiring. Don’t expect a candidate to sell themselves if you’re not prepared to sell the company.  Hiring is a two-way street. Companies should express why someone should want to work for them. What does it mean to work at your company? What is the culture? What kind of personal and professional growth can a potential employee expect? Job seekers know when they’re getting a fair assessment and when they’re getting lip service.

6.  Consider offering some variation of Work From Home (WFH). Is WFH really out of the question? Workers overwhelmingly want at least some WFH options, yet many companies want employees back in the office full time. Hybrid models may attract more and better candidates. Companies may want to roll WFH options into overall compensation packages or offer it as a company-wide perk. For example, say 25% of a company’s employees work remotely, but 100% have flexible schedules that include well-defined remote periods when kids are home for fall and winter break; or when a loved one needs medical care. That type of benefit may be a powerful recruiting tool.

7. Look at the compensation you’re offering. No, really, look at it. Now add a pinch of inflation. Wait, no. Not a pinch. The worst inflation in thirty years. If your compensation hasn’t increased to match rising costs, your competitor’s compensation may be. If your company can’t afford the employees it needs in dollars and cents, selling candidates on deferred compensation may be more difficult these days.

8.  Don’t wait around. Job seekers are fed-up with hiring processes that take months, and you don’t have the luxury to wait around. If your hiring process takes too long, quality candidates will lose interest. People make job decisions much faster, and you need to make faster hiring decisions.

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Philip Roufail contributed to this article.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, career coaching services, and outplacement services. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.

Fill that Hole in your Resume!

Candidates often find themselves between jobs. Layoffs, family leave, or whatever the reason. Thus, it’s not unusual for job seekers to have what’s known as a "hole" on their resume, or a “gap” in employment.

In employers’ terms, that time is unaccounted. Without proper context, an employer might imagine that you’re spending your time on the couch eating bonbons and watching Roseanne reruns.

The point here is not to advise you how to hide such gaps on your resume. Rather, how do you really use that time effectively so that you don't have a hole?

Okay, let’s paint a picture.

You and your employer have parted ways, leaving you unemployed.

Yes, it sucks. You’ve indulged in the obligatory week of self-pity and doubt.

Now, shake it off! We’re going to make some lemonade out of these lemons.

You now have an abundance of a resource which was in seriously short supply. I refer to time.

Here are some suggestions on ways you can close that pending gap on your resume, by keeping busy with meaningful activities. Fill the hole!

• Assuming you know what type of position you would like pursue, devote a standing portion of every day to your job hunt. Block the time on your calendar when you will check job listings, apply to jobs, send out resumes, visit an outplacement center (assuming your prior employer gave you that benefit). Routine will reinforce in your mind that searching for a job is a job in itself. Consider dressing in business attire to put yourself in the mindset.

• Find temporary, part-time work to keep busy. A few years ago, I left a recruitment position without another job in hand (the position and I were a poor fit for each other). Through my network, I came across a part-time opportunity with a staffing firm. We were able to come to an arrangement where I was able to work a flexible schedule. They allowed me to interview for full-time jobs on an as-needed basis, and at the same time, I kept my skills sharp. Plus, after taking the ego hit of being unemployed, I was able to rebuild my confidence and demonstrate to potential employers that my skills and I were still in demand.

• Volunteer. Do you have a favorite cause? Skills you can share? Consider volunteering with a charitable cause close to your heart. In the nonprofit world, dollars are tight – and giving freely of your time a few hours a week can ease a substantial burden. A benefit in addition to adding some karma to your account, is that you can pick and choose the work you wish to contribute. Are you an accountant, and your church could use some help installing QuickBooks? Or does the local food pantry need help boxing meals? Or can you provide extra assistance in some other area of your expertise?

Obviously, if the hole in your résumé is in your past, try to think back of how you spent that time. If you used it working in an unrelated field or volunteering, account for that time on your résumé as such.

Oh - in case you were wondering, full-time parenting counts as work. Take your credit where it's due.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. He is a Human Resources professional and staffing expert with almost two decades of in-house corporate HR and staffing firm experience, and is a Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW) and Certified Professional Career Coach (CPCC).

Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, and career coaching services, including a free resume review. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.

Three Weekly Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy Job Hunting Tips – June 22, 2015

Lemon Squeezy

Here are three simple job hunting tips for you to begin your week!

1. Any time you prepare a paper résumé (yes, these still exist) to give to anybody, print it up on your printer. DO NOT make photocopies - the copier glass tends to get filthy and shows all sorts of residue, lines, and other grossness. Don't believe me? Compare for yourself. And, yes, people will notice the lines and dots that are copier artifacts.
2. Treat an internal job application (i.e., an application for a position inside your current employer) with the same level of respect you'd treat one on the outside. This means: apply in a timely manner; dress professionally for the interview; and send thank-you notes to everyone you meet with; and should you not be selected for the job, handle the defeat with graciousness and dignity. Keeping doors open applies in your current job, too.
3. After the interview, if you don't hear anything after repeated attempts to find out your status, know when to stop asking for feedback. It's crappy for an employer to not get back to you after an interview, but you need to recognize the line between persistence and stalking.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. He is a Human Resources professional and staffing expert with almost two decades of in-house corporate HR and staffing firm experience, and is a Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW) and Certified Professional Career Coach (CPCC).

Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, and career coaching services, including a free resume review. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.