This is a great time to hire new employees if you can stretch the budget and do so. There are a lot of highly qualified people that are currently out of work. Bring them in and create loyalty.

These talented people are available because they were either laid off due to the pandemic, or they feel their job may be in jeopardy of an employer cut-back. On average, this situation is not due to the person’s level of competence or job performance.

Unlike many businesses that have completely stopped hiring, you are preparing for the future if you do continue to hire. You will be many steps ahead of other businesses as they scramble in an “employee’s market” to find qualified candidates when the pandemic is no longer in existence.

Smart Employee Hiring

This is an “employer’s market” right now! You can take your time and dig deep into your resources and not only hire talented people, but you can develop a pool of potential employees that will provide your business with a cushion of eligible candidates. Now is the ideal time to be innovative in your recruitment process.

Here are a few creative hiring strategies to consider:

Word of Mouth Resources

In the sense of marketing, word of mouth reviews from your clients and vendors are priceless to your business. Professionals do not risk their reputation by giving false reviews. Similarly, when you create a system to locate potential candidates through recommendations from your trusted staff, clients, or vendors, well-suited people are identified without your human resources department seeking and searching.

Check with your hiring managers or professionals. Did any employee(s) leave the company that they would like to rehire? Show commitment by asking good employees to return. Also, identify prior candidates that were at the top level of consideration but were not selected for a position. Reach out to them or add them to a pool of potential call-backs.

Motivate the Best Candidates

Your top candidate for employment may know the basics of what your company does as well as the job description for the position they applied for, but they may not know the dynamics and focused values of your team, nor the strengths that are fostered in each team member.

Once you have identified someone you want to bring on board, get the ball of communication rolling. Set up virtual meetings between the candidate and your senior leader(s) to share their inspiration and passion for your company, as well as their vision of what they want to create with the new teammate.

Decent pay and flexible work hours are often motivators for employees, but the best motivation is learning opportunities and growth. Motivated employees talk about the great opportunities that they have in their position; hence, interest expands, and people want to be hired by your company.

Development, Growth, and Change

To retain and grow a healthy business foundation, start with development opportunities for your employees. Not only will you motivate your employees to stay long-term, but you will also inspire them to be resourceful and creative.

It is always smart to stay focused on the current needs and direction your company is moving (think beyond the pandemic), as well as the exact role that each of your team players carries out to make growth possible.

Take a solid look at each job description. This calls for creativity. For example, can you make any changes to a position that will enhance the development and growth of both the individual and your future business, and in the process can you split the role and create a new position from what remains, such as a starting position?

We have learned from this pandemic. Employees that were originally hired as distance workers feel much more secure in their positions compared to those that were hired to work in-house but now must work from home due to the pandemic. Consider creating more work-from-home positions, specifically starting positions, which saves your business both time and money over the long run. While you are at it, consider broadening the area from which you hire. If you hire a remote employee, must they live in your city or town?  

Your Human Resources Team

You may need a recruiter or a full human resources team to get your business into a smart and innovative position for hiring during a pandemic.

Who takes care of the process of identifying, attracting, interviewing, selecting, hiring, and onboarding new employees for your company? It starts with pinpointing staffing needs, and it ends with the paperwork, orientation, and training process involved with bringing in each new employee. It can take a single set of hands, or many, depending upon your needs, your projection for business growth, and the size of your business.

Combs Consulting Group is excited to announce that we have launched our new online HR service (now available in all states!). Let us be your HR department with the HR navigation service.

Outsource Your HR Team!