Recruitment Realities

Having been in the Durban recruitment market for over 25 years, I have seen the supply and demand of jobs and job seekers go through cycles. Employers and job seekers are often not sensitive to these shifts in cycles and many pay the price for it.

During a series of blogs, I will deal with a number of issues related to this reality and provide some tips to employers and job seekers.

Employers listen up!

Whilst there are high unemployment levels, this does not mean that the employers have a wide choice of talent available to them. Top talent is scarce to come by and if the recruitment process is approached correctly, the chances of attracting the best talent are greatly increased. Here are a few tips on how to achieve this goal:

• Sell the company - give as much thought as you can to the position you need to fill when preparing the job description and position requirements. Besides the obvious roles and tasks related to the job, you should also identify the selling points of the position and company, highlighting career prospects and then sell them to the candidate in the interview.

Remember that just as much as the job seeker is selling himself/herself, so the employer should be doing the same. We are seeing a number of employees declining offers, as they become more discerning about making good career moves. As a result the employer then ends up with 'second best' - not ideal!

• Candidates going off the boil... is another interesting phenomena we see. Candidates who are kept hanging for weeks on end with no feedback from the interview or decision from the employer, may start to think that maybe that job wasn't meant to be. So they continue applying elsewhere or even decide to rather stay where they are. Again, this is part of the selling process - so strike while it's hot.
• "Let's make you a temp and see how it goes": This is a real downer for candidates. Firstly, the employer is saying I am not actually sure about you. Secondly, the candidate may accept the job, but as they were looking for a permanent position originally, they certainly will continue searching whilst in your temporary employ and before you know it, you will be starting the recruitment process all over again
• Get the most out of your Recruitment Agencies: The selling process begins with your consultant. You should share all aspects of the company - good and bad - with the consultant, who needs all this information to sell your company to the candidate. Be open to considering candidates that the consultant believes will be great, even though they may not meet the exact criteria you are looking for in terms of qualifications or experience. Experienced consultants often have a good insight into which 'type' of person will do well in certain positions or industries. Regular feedback to the consultant is essential to ensure you snap up the right candidate.

Until next time, be mindful in everything you do...