As the economy continues to recover in the wake of COVID-19, with June and July’s economic numbers continuing to improve at a steady pace. many employees stayed at companies in the early days of the pandemic, hoping for stability amidst the uncertainty. However, more than a year of living with the pandemic human resource experts predict that employees are poised to quit in what's being called "The Great Resignation."
According to a recent Microsoft report, 41 percent of the global workforce is considering leaving their jobs, with the numbers from Bureau of Labor Statistics echoing those sentiments with 9.3million job openings in April alone, and almost 4 million people having already quit their jobs. So, what does this mean for recruiters and job seekers? A) There’s never been a better time to find a new job and B) recruiters are eager to find new talent to fill vacant roles and have tough competition to standout. So how can stand out from the crowd?
Here are five recruiting tips to consider:
- Diversify Your Candidate Pool Geographically: Remote work and recruiting should encourage your company to broaden your search for candidates outside of your geographic area, not just the universities within your company’s immediate orbit. Diversify your candidate pool by looking into recruiting from community colleges, smaller universities, tribally controlled colleges, and historically black colleges and universities that have often been overlooked by companies. Recruiting from these places diversifies your candidate pool leading to the discovery of new talent.
- Don’t Exclude the Disabled: Take a note out of global accounting firm Ernest & Young which has expanded its recruiting and interviews processes to include hiring those on the Autism spectrum for roles in artificial intelligence, blockchain technology, and cybersecurity. Consider partnering with your local disability community or reaching out to a disability services office on ways you can recruit within the disability community. For those on the Autism spectrum, as highlighted in a recent CBS 60 Minutes segment, their immense attention to detail and analytical skills are a huge benefit to companies looking for employers to look at things in a different way and identify more efficient workflows for companies. Be sure that your recruiting practices are inclusive of those who are disabled, if you don’t you could be loosing out on valuable talent. As Brian Evans told Anderson Cooper, “For me, having a job is important because it provides me with much-needed structure in my life.”
- Be Prepared to Talk About Your Company’s DEI Initiatives: According to a recent Pew Research Center Survey, 62 percent of Gen Z believe that increasing racial and ethnic diversity is good for society. As recruiters, expect recent graduates to ask about your company’s DEI programs and make sure you are executing this at all levels, not just in entry level positions, but in higher up positions. Being able to thoughtfully discuss your company’s policies and culture will set you apart from other opportunities a candidate might be pursuing.
- Be Transparent: Now more than ever, job seekers are looking for clarity from potential employers. Be sure that your job posting accurately describes the tasks and responsibilities of the position and that the expectations are clearly defined. In addition, be sure to have clear salary ranges as more and more candidates, particularly recent graduates are looking for meaningful work that is compensated appropriately. This not only ensures you are attracting the right candidates, but will help you save time by not having to sort through resumes of unqualified/uninterested candidates. Being transparent throughout the process also ensure that a candidate, even if not hired, will speak favorably of you and your company which can go a long way.
- Remain Flexible: What the pandemic has taught everyone is that we are all juggling work, personal and family responsibilities, along with our mental health. Therefore, in your interviewing process make sure to offer up a variety of time slots to interview with a prospective candidate and be flexible if something comes up. Doing so will mean you won’t miss out on quality candidates and also highlight your company’s inclusive culture.
With 1.4M+ students being reached every day, Symplicity Recruit empowers employers to find the right candidate on their own terms and adapt to the changing employment landscape. On Recruit, companies can build a path towards positive outcomes to increase connections with students by building trust, enhancing company branding, integrated workflows to control what jobs and employers come in, increase the number of employers and opportunities, and, finally, enhance the recruiting experience for everyone.
Symplicity Recruit is the place to discover, connect and engage with entry level talent. With our exclusive network of institutions and over 4 million active candidates, we help employers stay connected to top applicants by enabling them to create and post openings directly onto school job portals or set up campaigns to have qualified talent delivered directly to recruiters and hiring managers. Want to learn more? Sign up to create your own Symplicity Recruit account, or e-mail us at info@symplicity.com.