6 Top Tips for Recruiting in a Downturn Posted: 08.09.2011
For some organisations, things may be looking up and strategies for growth are on the agenda. If this doesn’t sound familiar and the downturn isn’t over yet, don’t be unnecessarily scared into making decisions now that could threaten your longer term sustainability or your readiness to seize the upturn.
When it comes to managing your most important resource, remain focused on what your organisation is trying to achieve in the long term and approach staffing in an innovative and practical way.
The priority should remain to get the right people in the right places at the right time.
1. Don’t automatically blanket freeze recruitment
2. Stay open to transferable skills
3. Use your internal talent pool
4. Don’t let your standards slip
5. Dedicate time and attention to Employer Branding, as this is more essential in a tough market
6. Never request references from two people selected by the candidate
1. Don’t automatically blanket freeze recruitment
Carefully review the activity of each different area of your service to assess business critical areas and areas where demand or work load is still high. The key is to ensure that you ride out the recession by maintaining and even growing your areas of strength and opportunity and only reduce or freeze head count in areas that are directly affected by a business downturn or funding squeeze.
2. Stay open to transferable skills
In a time where nearly half the UK workforce are open to changing careers, and following a summer of reports that as many as 100 people were applying for one job, don’t be tempted to narrow your field of applicants. At a time of change and increased competition it is essential that you remain open to fresh, enthusiastic and committed new talent, an approach that remains key in stopping negative, disaffected and even incompetent individuals getting recycled. Conversely, remember that recruiting for potential (essentially core competencies and attitude) rather than experience doubles the volume and quadruples the quality of the applicant base for almost any job.
3. Use your internal talent pool
Identify your talented staff in all areas of the business and use them. Moving super stars around can keep them engaged and cross fertilises skills and competencies. Some areas of your business will be easier to recruit to than others so if you are struggling in one department look at secondments and recruit to backfill where the candidate pool is more readily available. Secondments are great for giving people the chance to further their career and develop skills so remember to look for transferable skills and competencies in potential secondees as well as with new recruits.
4. Don’t let your standards slip
Demanding a high standard of candidates and only recruiting top talent is always essential but in a period of economic downturn the market will be flooded with people that other organisations were willing to let go. There will of course be some real gems out there and your priority has to be distinguishing these from the average.
5. Employer Branding is more essential in a tough market
A job for life simply doesn’t exist anymore but if you have just won a new contract, shout about it. If you have just opened a new service or obtained new funding, put it in your job advert. Never promise what you can’t deliver but, if you can demonstrate areas of growth or areas of success, in a market where people are concerned about going from one redundancy to another, advertising your staying power will entice candidates and set you apart from the crowd. If you don’t have anything like this to shout about you can still strengthen your Employer Brand through conveying the culture and values of your workplace. Present clear, positive messages and images about what is great about working for you. Presenting these messages consistently through the job advert, recruitment packs, website or interviews allows candidates to develop a sense of what it might be like to work with you and will help you attract, motivate and retain people who share your values.
6. Never request references from two people selected by the candidate
Standards of pre-employment screening by some organisations are lax to the point of negligent at the best of times and it is always advisable to seek references from at least the last five years of an individual’s work history, including more then two referees. Too often organisations rely on the two references nominated by the candidate on their application form. Remember that these referees might have been carefully chosen and wont necessarily give you accurate feedback. An additional pitfall in a recession is that in cases of redundancy, standard, and even inaccurate glowing, references are commonly issued to sweeten a severance package. If you are handed a pre-typed reference ensure that you insist on following up on further references going back five years. In any case invest time and money in this process; don’t let anyone start in your organisation just because you’re desperate to fill a gap, don’t get hung up on giving someone with a poor reference a second chance, and don’t be afraid to check the provenance of references or act on negative information. Being strict in your requirements at these initial stages will save you a whole lot of bother later down the line.
Summary
Don’t be unnecessarily scared by the recession into making short term decisions that threaten your long term sustainability. Focus on what you are trying to achieve in the long term and approach staffing in an innovative and practical way to get the right people in the right places at the right time for you. Remember that excellence attracts excellence so don’t lower your standards or rush decisions without committing time and effort to getting them right.