Return to normal?
With Coronavirus lockdown restrictions currently in the process of being lifted across some of the major cities in Europe and around the world, attention is now turning to getting businesses back on track and refocusing on key priorities from the beginning of the year. There has been a major shock to the economy caused by the coronavirus pandemic, and its consequences will be far reaching for several more months. But, the easing of restrictions is a positive step forward for multinationals everywhere who are keen to get back on track and work on meeting ambitious growth targets.
Recruitment always plays a major part in growth and scaling into new territories- and this is an area that has been hit very hard by the Coronavirus situation. Selecting and interviewing qualified candidates for a role usually involves more than one face to face meeting to assess candidate suitability. With many companies still operating a remote working policy, it is likely that some level of recruitment needs to happen in this remote environment. In this article, we will take a look at what the pandemic has meant for global recruitment and the hiring process at multinational companies and how it may take place in this new environment we are currently operating in.
Examine the talent market
A good place for hiring managers and recruiters to start is to look at the marketplace, understand what available talent is there and align it to current and future recruitment needs. The global pandemic has changed everything and now there is likely to be a new wave of job seekers (including new talent released into the labour market due to job losses) who may no longer be interested in applying for positions that required them to be in the office five days a week. First and foremost, HR managers must have a full and clear picture of potential candidate’s attitudes and feelings towards the corporate environment and how they have changed as a result of the pandemic.
HR professionals need to assess the impact on their particular industry; What was the supply and quality of candidates like before COVID-19 and how is it looking now? Most of us are aware, thanks to 24/7 news feeds, that the travel and hospitality sector has suffered greatly while health care, logistics and retail are experiencing a recruitment surge in response to product demand. HR professionals need to do their research and get as many statistics as possible for targeted information on their specific industry and what is happening at present.
Next, they need to anticipate their short and long term hiring needs, and build in some flexibility to their hiring plans for the next six months- things are unlikely to be perfect, but a plan needs to be put in place to get through this turbulent period. Hiring managers will look fill skills gaps as normal but they will also need to identify likely future skills gaps as the post pandemic world will likely create a need for something different. New business priorities will have emerged, for example, business continuity processes and roles may not have been a huge priority in 2019 but going forward, skills in this area will be very much in demand.
Team Effort
HR managers now need to make sure that the entire HR team is fully aware of what the next six months will look like, so it is time for these managers to focus on their communication skills. Clarity and focus is important- it is quite likely that thousands of companies will return to normal on an almost overnight basis in certain cities and competition for employees could be huge- there is a potential recruitment storm coming, and any HR professionals who are not fully aware or aligned with the new strategy may lose out on qualified candidates.
It will be the responsibility of the senior HR managers to ensure that all the team are moving in the same direction together as a unit. This is also an opportunity for HR professionals to raise issues, share learnings or state concerns- these are the kind of positive interactions that will result in a recruitment strategy playbook capable of meeting hiring obligations.
Define your technology stack
It is generally accepted that for the next six months, a lot of recruitment is going to happen using video technology and other innovative tools. Consistency is an important part of the recruitment process both for the employer and the candidate, so it is important to define and articulate the technology stack that you want in place for your recruitment needs. A candidate will feel more confident in an employer if they are not switching between various video conferencing tools for interviews.
They want to see a recruiter in control of their technology stack and using the best, most advanced and innovative technology- this can serve to reassure the candidate that the employer has invested in and prioritized technology and is doing everything they can to incorporate a smooth recruitment process during a challenging period. At the same time, it enables the employer to see how a potential candidate is reacting to this technology which may also play a large part in the candidate’s day-to-day duties at the multinational.
Needless to say, this technology stack used needs to be robust, reliable and consistent. It would help if the technology was capable of delivering an end to end recruitment process, from applicant tracking to remote video interviews to pre-employment assessment tools, right the way through to actual remote candidate on-boarding software. If such technology is not currently in place, HR managers are in a strong position to put forward a serious business case for investment- as such technology is likely to be the future of hiring for many years to come and there is a real risk of losing out on highly qualified candidates due to ineffective recruitment technology.
Be agile and flexible
Now more than ever, human resources departments need to adopt an agile inflexible approach to the recruitment strategies. The old way of selection interview and job offer will need to be tweaked and updated to account for the post COVID-19 world. Candidates will approach job interviews with different expectations and the immediate priority will be the safety and health of both parties involved in the interview process. Both parties can therefore expect more video conferencing calls and possibly online capability assessment tests.
There will likely be a need for senior managers to attend video interviews as the recruitment process progresses to an advanced stage. Senior hiring managers may need to get creative and adaptable when it comes to issuing a job offer and the subsequent new hires contract signing process. They will also need to consider how to on-board a new recruit remotely- depending on the situation, the qualified candidate’s first day in the job may involve them working from home and meeting colleagues and future teammates via video conferencing tools.
You may consider hiring fully remote workers for some open positions and operating some lines of business as distributed geo-dispersed workforces. In the short term, an agile approach to talent acquisition may be to focus on contract workers until you get clear on what the requirements will be for full-time employees in the future. It may be good practice to start networking with experienced freelance workers, so you have a pool of skilled workers open to flexible short-term contracts.
Remember you employer brand
There may be a rush to get everything in order and put in place the best technology stack for your recruitment needs but this does not mean that you deprioritize your employer brand. From a candidate experience perspective, while COVID-19 has radically changed things, many of the reasons for seeking out new opportunities or switching employers will remain the same. This means that candidates will still want to know what you stand for and what your plans are.
Things like employer brand, culture and values remain important and just because the focus has switched to a different kind of recruitment strategy does not mean that candidates will have lost interest in hearing about these things. HR managers and business leaders need to keep things like diversity and inclusion close to the recruitment process. The focus will be on building a productive and engaged workforce during a period of economic disturbance and sourcing diverse talent while promoting a culture of inclusivity has a key role to play here. Remember, how you treat your employees during times of stress and challenge can define your external reputation for years to come so maintaining a strong employer brand must remain a priority.