With the onset of COVID-19, we witnessed a swift downturn in the global economy, with unemployment surging to 21.3 million. Even though we have been able to grow our business during this unprecedented time, we, too, have faced complex challenges when it comes to recruiting and hiring. Many months into the pandemic, the Network ESC management reflects on what we have learned from the company's recruiting and hiring growth in order to help your remote team succeed. Here are some key lessons we learned to inspiring successful performance culture so far into the pandemic.
Hiring isn’t easy right now.
It is a no-brainer with much of the working-age Americans currently unemployed, you might reasonably believe that finding talent is “easy” at the moment. Many companies now have access to a wide pool of qualified candidates and prospects from San Francisco, Austin, Chicago, New York, and beyond - but so do other giants companies across the country. That is why the elements of culture are important to communicate with job seekers. It is so crucial to create and communicate your workplace culture, even if the workplace is virtual more now than ever knowing candidates no longer have the benefit of sitting in the office rooms, observing lunchtime, having hallway conversations, or attending meetings in progress. While the majority of business work may be remote for the foreseeable future, culture remains of utmost importance to candidates hungry for meaningful work. While not a new concept, Network ESC is seeing a surge of interest among job seekers in working for mission-based organizations since the shock of a global health crisis makes people think about how they’re spending their time.
Virtual recruiting and remote work is here to stay.
The current state has forced us to realize that modern technology is both seamless and intuitive. Virtual recruiting can help compress the interview process and convert new hires more quickly, as it eliminates many of the headaches associated with coordinating interview schedules. In a remote recruiting and working environment, more of us need to be reminded that we are truly in this together, even though we may be far apart. Let your colleagues know that you too are scared, disappointed, frustrated, sad, angry, or whatever else you're feeling. Take time to get to know your remote employees as people because they want to be recognized for their skills and what they bring to the team. As we all know, these are confusing times and everything we are doing is an experiment. In order for us to learn from our experiments and to become better leaders, we need to reflect on what we're doing that's working well, what isn't working well, and what we need to adapt and adjust to improve.
Proactively engage with talent.
Take advantage of every opportunity to recruit, hire and retain top talent. Continue to be proactively engaged with talent communities that are relevant to your business, even if your ability to hire has been stifled due to the economic downturn. Keep job seekers engaged as much as possible so they’re the first to apply when things improve and you can activate your recruiting strategy more quickly.
As HR professionals, it is imperative that we be nimble and responsive to factors like the economic landscape, shifting job-seeker behavior, and more.
The pandemic has come with many new challenges, but it has encouraged us to think beyond our creative scope and innovate at a faster pace.