While talks of recession and hiring slowdowns continue to dominate the economic landscape in the short term, employers must also consider the long-term in relation to their talent acquisition and recruiting strategies. If organizations minimize this new candidate-centric market, their business will be at a disadvantage in acquiring new talent and driving business results.
Your recruiting team is likely seeing these trends firsthand. Those that understand the macro recruiting trends, remain vigilant in the face of competition, and anticipate turbulence will be better suited to thrive through an uncertain hiring landscape. As companies are now firmly into 2023, make sure you understand the top recruiting challenges your team is facing and what leadership can do to support them in streamlining hiring this new year.
The Talent Landscape Is Still Treacherous
It should come as no surprise: Employ data shows 65% of recruiters say their job is more stressful today than it was a year ago. Of those that say it is harder to fill jobs this year than last year, 61% of recruiters say the lack of talent to fill open positions is the reason, while 51% indicate competition from other employers is to blame.
Hiring is a race for talent. Competing on speed is one of the biggest hurdles for recruiters today and, therefore, one of the biggest stressors. According to Employ data, the average time-to-hire is under two weeks for 32% of companies and between three and four weeks for 53% of employers. This means that within 30 days of posting a requisition, more than 8 in 10 recruiters expect to have their open positions filled.
Within the current labor market, companies face several challenges that make recruiting more difficult, including a notable shortage of talent. Not only are recruiters forced to hire candidates more quickly, but they’re also finding it harder to identify the talent needed to fill those roles. Unfortunately, this could lead to the wrong candidate filling your open positions and, therefore, more turnover within your organization.
Where Leadership Can Support
To stay competitive in this unique labor market, business and talent acquisition leaders must support recruiters in reducing manual tasks. Through recruiting automation technology, recruiters can do what they do best: focus on the human aspects of recruiting to ensure the best fit for the open position. Continued investment is clearly a priority for enterprises.
According to Employ survey data, 47% of companies also plan to invest in additional sourcing, including recruitment process outsourcing (RPO) to help them address current challenges they face in the hiring market. If these considerations aren’t yet in your 2023 hiring plan, consider this a priority to help recruiters feel more supported in their roles.
Attracting Top Talent Is an Uphill Battle
With rising interest rates, continued focus on remote work, and an increased emphasis on employee benefits, companies continue to battle for candidate attention. More than 8 in 10 (81%) of talent acquisition professionals indicate that attracting top talent has become more challenging over the past year, with 33% stating it has been very challenging.
As companies struggle to decide where to focus their efforts in meeting candidate expectations, recruiters are seeing firsthand what is working well and what leaves something to be desired.
Where Leadership Can Support
Hone in on feedback from your recruiting teams in regards to candidate expectations. Not every industry will have the same expectations, which is why broader data only gets us so far. Overall, flexible work schedules may be the highest ranked for attracting talent overall, but if your recruiters are hearing more comments about a low starting salary, that is where you’d do well to consider changes.
They’re Taking Chances — And Hope You Will Too
Recruiters in 2022 were not using the same tactics that worked in 2019. The market has changed so drastically in such a short time that your talent acquisition teams have nearly recreated the wheel to stay competitive.
Where Leadership Can Support
Recruiters have seen success in new job boards, automated systems that help them engage former applicants, and investments in their career sites and TA technologies, so this is where they’re hoping leadership will support them in 2023.
When recruiters have a say in the technologies they use, they are more likely to stay at an organization. In fact, Aptitude Research indicates that 1 in 2 recruiters would leave their current company for another organization if it had better technology.
Ensure Your Talent Teams Are Supported This Year
Get further insight into how you can empower your recruiting teams throughout 2023. Find out how to empower and invest in talent acquisition teams to drive recruiting results.
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