My husband and I spent a recent Friday evening with two very good friends, who also juggle careers, family, pet care, social calendars, and spiritual obligations (among other things). We joked about how long it took for the four of us to find a night that worked – sadly, three months. As we stood in the kitchen, commiserating over the time crunch we feel day in and day out, our friends commented that the simple act of preparing lunches the night before has positively impacted the trajectory of their days. That comment gave me pause. Packing a lunch doesn’t take more than 3-5 minutes, and yet, the mornings run so much more smoothly when this task is checked off.
Why is that? Does having an extra 3-5 minutes in the morning really make a difference? Or, is it the peace of mind that comes from having applied a planful, disciplined approach to a necessary task, and then crossing that task off of your list? I tend to believe it’s the latter.
As a Talent Acquisition professional who can’t escape the pressures of time (e.g., Time-to-Source, Time-to-Submit, Time-to-Fill), I challenge myself and my team to consider ways to apply this same planful, disciplined philosophy to recruiting. It comes down to preparation. What can we do in advance to set ourselves up for success tomorrow, next week, next month?
One such act is preparing for an intake session with your Client or Hiring Manager. A quick review of the job description just won’t do. Here are a few steps, which if done in advance, will give you confidence, clout and ultimately more time:
The above steps may take a bit longer than packing a lunch, but the benefits will likewise outweigh the upfront investment of time. During the intake call, you’ll have more time to ask the important questions, because you’ve armed yourself with a strong foundation of knowledge. I guarantee the Hiring Manager will be impressed with your level of knowledge, and you may earn the distinction of being viewed as a consultative and strategic business partner.
But most importantly, you’ll be positioned for success and prepared to execute your recruitment strategy upon completion of the intake call. Who knows – you may even shave days off your Time-to-Fill metrics. Now, that’s what I consider peace of mind.
This post was written by Katie Witkowski. Katie is an RPO Operations Manager with Yoh, and has over 13 years of experience in recruiting, sourcing, and talent operations management. Katie holds a B.S. in Psychology from the University of Scranton. She resides in Pennsylvania with her husband and three children.