I recently overheard two ladies in the elevator talking about the state of their workplace. The quote that stayed with me as I exited the elevator was, “Yeah, all the good people are gone now.” Immediately I thought not about retention and people leaving – but about recruiting.
Why recruiting? Because today companies need to think about how to create a wider door coming into their organization than going out. Notice that the elevator lady said all the people are “gone” now. She wasn’t talking about all the great new people that are coming in, only those that are gone.
Here’s why: In the years since the Great Recession, there has been a steady stream of high performers (and even some not-so-high performers) leaving organizations as companies look for experienced people. Unfortunately, for many of the unemployed, companies overlook those not currently working (read more about why that’s not ideal here), for those who are currently employed. Why? Because it’s less risky and many thought they could get a good deal on a good hire.
But this change hasn’t caught up to many HR and recruiting departments. In fact, at the same time this has been happening, recruiting and HR staffs have been cut. So it got harder to recruit, but HR has fewer resources than ever.
Fast forward to today. This is why Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) and contingent labor are on the increase. HR has little choice but to get help in some way.
So as you are fighting for your HR budget or working on recruiting strategies, here are a few things to consider:
Think about it as you look at your recruiting strategies. If the elevator lady is right, it’s already too late. And even if she’s wrong, it will be soon.