As a Recruitment & HR professional with 12+ years experience in the industry, it is interesting to read and hear others view points about the employment market. A recent article in Recruiter Daily titled ‘Downturn won’t make recruiting easier’ cites that “Redundancies will mean there are more unsuitable applicants responding to job ads, he says, and this leads to recruiters wasting time filtering and sorting those applications.”
Whilst some write about the doom and gloom and take the view point that increased unemployment (both voluntary and involuntary) creates more unsuitable job applicants who will supposedly be wasting the time of Recruiters, I offer a different theory and perspective.
Indeed some industry sectors and professions such as IT, Engineering, Education, Government, Pharmaceutical and so on are holding up well whilst others such as the Financial, Manufacturing and the Retail sector are taking a bit of a battering. We also have large global organizations feeling the negative effectives of the market, as well as SME’s. As a result we are seeing a significant increase in redundancies by businesses and industries that are struggling because as demand for their product or service diminishes, they find they have excess staff. By and large this is not a reflection on the staff or their performance however it is rather a simple issue of supply and demand. Therefore in my opinion it is wrong to assume that those looking for employment in a market downturn are ‘a waste of time’ as commented by a contributor to Recruiter Daily. My theory is that those who are being made redundant in a booming market are perhaps more likely (though not always) to raise cause for concern as this generally suggests an individual performance issue or cultural fit as opposed to a sheer issue of business supply and demand.
I encourage Recruiters to look for opportunities and to approach their assignments with a positive view as it is always a better place to start from. Some see the glass as half empty whilst others see it as half full and you know which ones are going to be the most successful!
Consider the employment facts in the broader sense; you still have great people who are employed yet also on the look out for better opportunities (yes, even in the current market), you have those who are considering moving though are a little hesitant at the moment, you also have those who have been made redundant and are actively looking who are more than likely to be absolute gems and well worth speaking and meeting with. There are quality candidates everywhere all at different stages of their job search and great recruiters know that success comes down to building relationships (which are never a waste of time) both in the booming markets and market down turns.
2 Comments
I agree with your comments that there is a large number of highly desirable candidates available in these difficult economic times. I speak with people every day who are afraid to leave their current positions but are available for the right opportunity. Sure it is more difficult to make the correct match right now, but it is not impossible. In fact, many of these “gems” are unhappy that workforce reductions have placed larger workloads on them without them receiving any additional compensation. In addition, it is difficult to convince employers to hire even exceptional talent when they are convinced that layoffs are their only means of survival. Decision makers who understand this is a great time to strengthen their team not deplete it will be the winners in the future.
Thanks Kelly Great to hear positive comments
There is so much fear-response to our troubled economy that you have to be really disciplined to look for the silver lining. The media is heaping it on, as they would with a train wreck or a cyclone. That ok – that’s their job. However, have you noticed that every conversation seems to have the question in the background (asked or unasked): How is the economy affecting you? Who will “rescue” us from this intolerable condition?
It is no secret that great thinkers and savvy business leaders have always known no matter what the headlines say – no matter what doom and gloom you might be hearing – there are always people who do well because they think differently. When everyone else is focusing on the problem they are focusing on the opportunity. They focus on prosperity and abundance. They turn off the news and they think laterally about business.
I choose to focus on the many opportunites at within the current economy, as opposed to the doom and gloom.
Sally Healey
Jigsaw Consulting Group