Hiring has taken on a new form in 2021, following a year that saw the unemployment rate go as high as 14.7%. The COVID 19 pandemic flipped the job market upside-down and left those in charge of hiring in a different spot at the end of Q1 in 2021 vs. years prior.
If you’re in a position to grow your team this year, you deserve a pat on the back because that means you made it through 2020. But what you might not be prepared to do is hire under entirely different circumstances.
Focus on Diversity and Stay Gender Neutral
Bias has no place in your screening or hiring practices, especially in 2021, with the technology available to weed out any lingering human bias. And abiding by this practice will help attract top talent with 48% of job seekers looking for companies, with a commitment to diversity and inclusion. With social injustices brought to light and movements pushing for change, diversity and inclusion should be a part of the hiring process.
Whenever you promote the open jobs you have, don’t use gender-biased language. This means any words that skew one way towards feminine biased or masculine stereotypes. For example, use the phrase workforce or employees, not manpower, or instead of chairman or chairwoman, use chair.
Support and Encourage Remote Work
If remote work wasn’t a part of your structure before 2020, don’t see it as a passing pandemic fad. Remote work is here to stay, and how you work it into your operations can make or break your business success. Could working parents be part of the demographic you’re looking to attract with your job posts? Offering schedule flexibility can move your opening into the lead position for a sought-after candidate, with 34% of all job seekers ranking a flexible work schedule as the third most-desired aspect of a job offer.
Think about the benefits for your company. Having the ability to hire someone from anywhere opens up your talent pool options and allows you to truly find the right fit, not settle. This leads to less turnover, better quality production, and a healthier bottom line.
Remember Technology and Digital Hiring
With the rise and stay of remote work, it’s evident that your technology needs and cybersecurity demands must keep up. When it comes to hiring practices, have you worked automation and AI into your process to sift through a larger talent pool? Digital hiring will save time and increase hiring quality, with 79% of job seekers using online resources and information in their job search. Digital hiring assessments and video interviewing might’ve been put in place as a band-aid during the height of COVID 19, but instead a long-term solution.
Showcase Health and Safety Prioritization
After living through a pandemic, it’s no surprise that 53% of job seekers are happy to work as long as safety precautions are in place. Explain in your job posts specifically how your organization has created an environment that makes the workplace safer, including sanitation protocols, social distancing guidelines, and hybrid scheduling options.
Throw Titles Out the Window
The days of titles classifying where someone falls in the hiring process are gone. It shouldn’t be about what a candidate calls what they can do, it should be about what they can actually do. 93% of job seekers are open to taking a position that they have the skills for but is not exactly tied to their most recent job title.
How have your hiring practices in 2021 changed from the mainstay recruiting you were used to doing? Join the conversation on LinkedIn and check out What Are the Benefits of Using a Recruiter?
