A (Safe) Client Led Market?

For just over a year now we have have had to deal with a lot in the recruitment and talent acquisition space. What with Brexit and now COVID-19, lockdown, furloughing and now, look at what is starting to happen, redundancies. The last 15 months have been a real roller-coaster.

What was very much a ‘candidate market’ back in March 2019, until the then Government and the Opposition didn’t, couldn’t, wouldn’t get its act together to make a decision on Brexit. It’s caused a huge amount of turmoil to business and subsequently to growth. Then an unforeseen pandemic has crowned all the shenanigans, shifting the markets and the opportunity for growth in the short term. As many companies are now restructuring, out and beyond the furloughing and into resizing and in some cases redundancies, it has shifted the markets from a candidate led market to a client led market.

Clients have used the opportunity to restructure, to pivot, (I hate that word) redefining who they are and what they need to do to meet the new opportunities in the marketplace. It will take many of them time to see where they can or even if they can, fit into the ‘new normal’. We now have a workforce that wants to work from home 90% of the time and only pop into the office for short periods, to avoid the risks of COVID-19. Everyone realises this is going to be with us for a while longer, it’s a lottery as to when the second wave will hit and I guess that’s down to how sensible we are all going to be. Some companies will struggle to create safe working environments for employees, some will simply need more space to make it acceptable. Others are embracing working from home (WFH) culture and putting in place process, workflows, that are engaging and inclusive, with strong communication and reporting systems.

The issue

But as companies get their act together and redefine themselves and what and who they need moving forward, they will also have to consider what is going to appeal to candidates. So just because the government has allowed air travel into certain European destinations, how many people this year are actually going to risk the airport, risk getting on a plane and breathe everyone else’s ‘recycled air‘ for 2 to 4 hours? My guess, not many! Airports and airlines are going to have to make things not just safe, but far more appealing, otherwise we simply will not fly.

The same will and can be said for candidates looking at a new job or a new company to work for. It won’t just be about salary, benefits, and job title, now more than ever it will be about the environment that they will be expected to work in. How safe is it? What flex is available? It’s not just going to be about the candidate but also about their immediate family, especially if they have one or more family members in a high-risk category (i.e. asthma, elderly relative with under lying conditions etc). Unnecessary exposure to others, does not just risk them but their family as well.

The fix

So, as we move into a (Safe) client led market, clients are going to have to consider these factors as well as the more traditional things. They are going to have to sell the company beyond what they have traditionally had to do. They will have to show a human face to the company, share the vision, the culture, attitude, and behaviour as well as the office location and environment. They can have the highest paying job, but if these other things are not right, they will simply not attract the people they need or want to fill the roles that they have.

Companies first have to decide who they are, what they need to do to re-position themselves, the culture and environment will need to change and adjust to meet the needs of existing employees as well as making it attractive to potentially new employees. If they get it wrong, or don’t take it seriously they will simply miss the boat. It is more like a marriage than ever before and the client has to be happy to make an offer, but candidates are going to have to be convinced more than ever that it is right for them to accept.

For many companies, the easiest option will be to allow flexible working/WFH, putting a process in place to monitor workload, achievement, regular communication, reporting, trust – earnt and given. The office dynamics culturally will change to accommodate what the ‘new norm’ needs to be and those companies that do not adapt, will simply lose out.

Better yet

This is a great time to review the hiring process, your whole talent acquisition process. Most companies accept that ‘Contingency Recruitment is dead’. Having loads of agencies throw, 4, 5 or 6 CV’s/Resumes over the fence is outdated and inefficient. You still end up with 50+ CV’s/Resumes to trawl through for just one open position it’s also ‘old hat’ and inefficient. More clients are looking at getting a better process in place, putting more rigor into the process. Large companies can do this more easily than smaller companies. Using technology, using digital, we have all been zooming, teaming and skyping. I am sure you will all agree this is now the ‘new norm’.

But the simplest way, is to find a recruitment partner that has already got the technology that you are looking for. Find partners that does the behavioural assessment of candidates, who select candidates not just on skills and experience but behaviour, emotional and cultural intelligence. They do exist. We do it and many others do it as well. Instead of throwing CV’s/Resumes over by email, find a partner that offers a ‘Private Client Portal’ that allows potential candidates to do introductory videos, go beyond just a CV’s/Resume. The chances are, you will end up, video interview candidates at this time anyway, so use the technology that is available to achieve a better process, a better selection.

Design your ideal process and find a recruitment partner that can help you deliver it. You will end up with less agencies, but better relationships with those you select, and partners that can really make a difference and a whole lot less CV’s/Resumes, but a better, more intelligent selection or shortlist of candidates