Any which way you slice it, experts agree: the U.S. economy is unpredictable right now. It sounds like the armchair economists out there are shaking a Magic 8 Ball before they suggest their forecasts. As we strategize our Q4 hiring, we’re all clear on the point- we can’t predict an upcoming recession, or how it will affect our companies. But our goal hasn’t changed- we intend to keep thriving. We plan for 2023 to be our best year yet.
Q4 hiring in any year can get interesting, even without the uncertainty of the financial climate causing us to second guess our growth trajectories. Holidays are coming up. Team members book vacations, and hiring recruiters take off extended time. The end of the year hands us a lot of excuses to ease up on the hiring. But that would be a mistake! Here are three tips to keep moving forward.
1. Continue to build relationships with your current candidates.
Top tier talent may need to pull together an exit strategy before pursuing any opportunity you’re offering. If they’re going to vest in November, or they’re getting a bonus in December, they won’t be ready to transition until next year.
Stay connected with the candidates you’re talking to, so that you can reach out to them at a later time.
Set calendar reminders for strong candidates that you’re talking to that can’t transition now but might be able to in a few months. And then send a quick email message, Remember me? We talked in November. Have things changed for you? You’re setting direction and showing them that you care about them.
2. Set time aside during the slow time of December to make a list of upcoming hires.
Build strong relationships with your hiring managers so that you’re aware of the roles they’ll need to fill in the near future. When they come open, you know exactly which candidates will be a perfect fit.
Work through any paperwork or administration that you can take care of- before the flurry of new year activities (and the fog of post-holiday celebrations) intersect in the first weeks of January.
3. Stay close with the recruiting team and follow up with any upcoming holiday plans.
There are a lot of moving parts at the end of the year. It can be tricky to find replacements. Keep a pulse on who is going out of town and coordinate your substitutes. This isn’t a bad thing- it’s the perfect opportunity for the candidates interviewing at the end of the year to see how your company models a healthy work/life balance.
The end of the year is the perfect time to evaluate your overall strategic hiring process. How did it go in 2022? Did you hire the right roles, in the right order, at the right time? Were you able to retain your recruits? Were your new team members a good match for your company’s culture? Were they qualified for their role?
If things didn’t quite run like clockwork, RecruitGyan can help you problem shoot your hiring challenges. We assess the health of your company and determine a growth strategy that fits your vision for your company using our three pillars in our recruitment methodology:
Compass leadership– We make sure that all key leadership is aligned with who they’re hiring and why. The first step in this process is for a company to identify their mission, vision, and values. You’re not going to attract top talent if you can’t articulate who you are, why your company exists, and how the world is going to be a better place with your product or service.
First impressions– The recruiting process is the first touchpoint when it comes to interacting with the candidates. Their experience with recruiters will help determine whether they decide to pursue a role in your company. A savvy recruit will also do her homework. If a company’s website and social media presence is patchy, she’ll pass.
Cohesive Culture– Are you the kind of company that top talent wants to invest in? The right recruits are motivated to change the world- and they want to do it with people that resonate with them. Setting a healthy corporate culture needs to happen long before the recruiting stage.
The end of the year is the perfect time to hammer out these strategic pieces so that in the New Year, you’re on the ball with these competitive advantages already in place and working in your favor. You’ll attract the right people on your team and increase the odds of experiencing your best year yet. We’d love to jump on a call and discuss any hiring challenges that we can assist you with.
Let’s get that ball rolling!
