Hiring in 2022: What to look out for
A new year is a fresh start, and with it brings hiring trends that employers should be aware of in their recruitment process. With the reopening of the economy and companies looking to acquire new talent to join their organisations, this is what employers must look out for when hiring in 2022:
1. Candidate driven market
The world of recruitment is seeing a shift to a candidate-driven market. This is due to the combined factors of economic-recovery post-lockdown coupled with a shift in how candidates view employment post-pandemic as more people realise that they prefer the flexibility of working from home more than the routine of going to the office.
In a candidate-driven market, candidates have the upper hand and for employers, this means having to compete to recruit talent. In a market such as this, employers will have to factor in what the candidate market seeks from prospective employers, and adjust their hiring strategies accordingly. Typically a raise in salary and benefits would attract candidates to apply for vacancies, however this may not be enough. Employers will now have to employ a more people-first approach in hiring strategies, and put forth the value their organisation brings to candidates and the kind of work culture they offer in order to attract candidates.
2. Employer branding is key
As competition for talent rises, it is increasingly important for companies to position themselves as an ideal place to work. Candidates are placing more importance on the value that a company can bring to their employment. Therefore, companies must set themselves apart from the competition in order to attract more talent from the candidate market.
How this can be achieved is for companies to develop an employer brand to attract candidates to their organisation and take active steps to foster a positive employer brand in order to attract talented workers. Not only that, companies would benefit from developing a company-specific employee value proposition or EVP to set themselves apart from other companies in the recruitment market. An EVP presents employers with the opportunity to show to the talent pool what they can offer to an employee such as pay, benefits, perks, training and rewards. Not only that, companies should also develop an EVP which covers the intangible and emotional elements of a workplace such as a company’s culture, values, and mission. No one company’s EVP will be the same as another company’s, therefore it will become important for companies to recognise what value they bring to candidates which can serve as a fundamental base to attract talent and drive recruitment.
3. Hybrid work and remote recruitment processes
With the transition to an endemic phase, the work force is moving towards adopting hybrid work models. Even though businesses and business leaders want to go back to the pre-pandemic work model, covid-19 is here to stay for the foreseeable future. The pandemic has shown how businesses have had to adapt and run despite the workforce having to work remotely, and there is no turning back in the way we now work. This sees the embrace of hybrid work models by companies across industries.
What this means is that employers now have access to a greater talent pool as certain work can be done remotely. With remote recruiting, employers no longer have to limit their net to a local talent pool as there are no bounds to geography. Besides that, this signals to candidates that, as a business, employers are adapting to the pandemic and this will make companies appealing to many more. Remote recruitment is also a time-saving and efficient way of screening candidates and may speed up the recruitment process.
4. Employing digital marketing strategies in recruitment
Present day recruitment is now shifting, with candidates having access to information and using the internet more than ever. Companies that have this in mind can use this to their advantage in order to access a larger portion of the candidate market. One of the means for companies to tap into this wider audience is by creating a strong online presence through a well-made company website and utilising social media platforms.
Besides that, companies should use social media platforms to their advantage. Social media is no longer limited to the everyday person, as more and more companies across different markets are becoming increasingly active in their social media usage as a means to increase their brand awareness. Companies are also using social media as a means to connect with candidates by participating by creating conversations online through posting related articles and deploying the use of hashtags to initiate these communications.
With these recruitment trends in mind going into 2022, employers can maximise their recruitment strategies in order to tap into the candidate talent pool and make them more attractive to potential hires.
