2022 Recruiting Trends in the Time of the Pandemic
Everyone in the world has been affected by the worldwide pandemic in terms of work somehow. For some, losing a job and a sense of work stability meant losing their employment. Instead of enjoying the camaraderie of an office, others moved to a remote working environment.
Everyone went through a difficult transition.
But it is impossible to recall a period in recent memory that was as difficult for recruiters as this one. Due to the development of the Omicron strain, almost four million people resigned from their occupations in December of 2021 alone. While the number of new coronavirus cases fluctuates, the pandemic's effects on employee engagement, turnover, and recruitment are not going away anytime soon.
Recruiting During COVID: The Reality
Recruiting became a far more high-stakes game after the Great Resignation. Because employees have so many options for new jobs, HR leaders must sweeten their offers to compete in an era of talent scarcity.
While numerous causes contribute to this rising issue, the pandemic and a developing skills gap are two of the most notable. The skills gap is a "fundamental mismatch" between the skills required to fill unfilled positions and the talents of potential employees.
Businesses worldwide are seeking a means to bounce from a tumultuous 24-month period as the new year begins. However, even firms that have survived the epidemic pretty well will have a further difficulty in 2022: finding and retaining outstanding people.
Fortunately, this "perfect storm" has spawned a number of highly effective recruiting trends. Unfortunately, many of these trends are methods that are currently in limited usage. However, since organizations of all sizes battle for a limited number of qualified employees across all industries, they are now emerging into the mainstream.
Organizations that use these hiring strategies to improve their approaches will have a decent chance of recuperating within 12 months. On the other hand, those who do not will undoubtedly face similar employment and recruitment challenges as they have since the beginning of 2020.
COVID changed the world. As a result, recruiting techniques changed as well. Continue reading to learn about 2022 recruiting trends and what they signify for large and small enterprises.
7 of the Best 2022 Recruiting Trends
We were hoping for some form of normalcy after nearly two years of a job market influenced mainly by the COVID pandemic until lately. The new Omicron variant and subsequent mutations at that, on the other hand, look to have spun the world on its head once more.
What can we expect from hiring companies in 2022? Is there anything the pandemic has taught us that will help us hire more successfully in the coming year? What are the current recruiting trends?
In 2022, fresh recruiting trends will be introduced to the hiring process, reshaping how recruiters source, attract and hire prospects. Recruiters will need new techniques to appeal to talent since the candidate is now seen as customers.
1. The Great Resignation could go on for longer
Companies have been taken aback by the new resignation phenomena. According to some research, as many as one-third of employees want to leave their positions by 2022. Does this rule out the possibility of the remaining two-thirds of your staff going? Absolutely not.
As more people leave their occupations, new opportunities may arise that may appeal to the safe two-thirds of the workforce. Your most valuable employees may be enticed to join the mass departure. People will find it easier to quit and change employment in the future, not only because more jobs are available, but also because of remote working prospects.
2. Remote and hybrid work will continue
Companies quickly adjusted to the initial waves of the pandemic and the subsequent work-from-home mandates. Employees did as well. So much so that many people desire to continue working from home. According to polls, about a third of employees would contemplate quitting their current job if they were compelled to work full time in an office.
Offering hybrid working—part-time from home and part-time in the office—is an option that is gaining traction. This arrangement satisfies the needs of many for a better work-life balance. It even answers the desires of companies to have their employees back in the office.
As firms struggle to retain staff, this approach has become more vital than ever. Moreover, it is substantially less expensive than hiring new employees, especially given the current human resources scarcity.
3. Putting diversity and inclusion first
A renewed focus on representation in hiring and leadership is one bright light of COVID-19 and the significant transformations during extraordinary times. Eighty-five percent of businesses said they talked about racial injustice in the workplace. In addition, industry behemoths like Facebook and Procter & Gamble have set concrete goals for increasing diversity within their ranks.
This shift requires recruiting managers to rethink their hiring procedures and lenses to level the playing field. It is common knowledge that having a culturally diverse staff fosters innovation, increases creativity, and increases profitability. As a result, business leaders will place a greater emphasis on diversity and inclusion activities next year. This focus will include using cutting-edge applicant evaluation technologies to reduce prejudice in recruiting and hiring.
4. Reassessing benefits and bonuses
Perks and bonuses, like pay, are an essential tool for recruiting. However, employers are re-evaluating their benefits in light of the pandemic's consequences and the added strain of a talent shortage, which is unlikely to alter this year.
As organizations transition to remote models, perks like in-office scooters and complimentary refreshments are no longer critical. Instead, many businesses have paid employees for office materials, improved childcare benefits, and increased mental health support.
Employers must come up with inventive advantages to give candidates looking for new positions in addition to traditional benefits such as health insurance, paid time off, and retirement plans. For example, because balancing parenting and working from home is complex, organizations that offer daycare and flexible schedules will be able to attract a wider pool of candidates. In addition, companies should add mental health support programs and fitness stipends to their current offers in 2022 since the emphasis on employee physical and emotional welfare will remain strong.
The primary point is that existing employee benefits may need to be reconsidered to adjust to the new normal.
4. Reassessing benefits and bonuses
Perks and bonuses, like pay, are an essential tool for recruiting. However, employers are re-evaluating their benefits in light of the pandemic's consequences and the added strain of a talent shortage, which is unlikely to alter this year.
As organizations transition to remote models, perks like in-office scooters and complimentary refreshments are no longer critical. Instead, many businesses have paid employees for office materials, improved childcare benefits, and increased mental health support.
Employers must come up with inventive advantages to give candidates looking for new positions in addition to traditional benefits such as health insurance, paid time off, and retirement plans. For example, because balancing parenting and working from home is complex, organizations that offer daycare and flexible schedules will be able to attract a wider pool of candidates. In addition, companies should add mental health support programs and fitness stipends to their current offers in 2022 since the emphasis on employee physical and emotional welfare will remain strong.
The primary point is that existing employee benefits may need to be reconsidered to adjust to the new normal.
5. Data-Driven Recruiting
Recruiting and hiring will become increasingly data-driven as the digital revolution proceeds. Companies will continue to place a premium on data research and in-depth knowledge of potential applicants. Companies can look to use data, automate duplicate processes, minimize the stress on human resource workers, and show how the organization's evaluation protocols can be streamlined.
With this trend, data gathered through HR technology such as ATS and recruitment marketing platforms are used to plan and make decisions. In addition, this trend reveals crucial information about which aspects of your hiring approach are compelling and which need to be improved.
6. Utilization of advanced screening techniques
Even though skills tests and other evaluation tools have existed for decades, many companies still screen applicants by checking resumes and conducting interviews. While these strategies have merits, they do not provide quantifiable information about candidates' talents and abilities.
Employers can use skills tests to screen candidates better and speed up the recruiting process. Companies are rushing to offer employment opportunities to qualified people before they find work elsewhere; thus, streamlining has become critical. Underqualified candidates can also be ruled out via skills tests.
Some companies include behavioral assessments in their screening procedure and skills exams. Behavioral tests can reveal important characteristics about a candidate, such as work ethic and motivation.
7. Expect the unexpected and put flexibility first
Many organizations employ a diversified workforce that comprises full-time employees, contractors, freelancers, and interns. In addition, as a result of the tight labor market, more firms provide innovative advantages such as flexible work hours. This innovation has helped distinguish brands and make the workplace more appealing to potential employees.
Flexibility is an intriguing bonus for self-employed workers who like the freedom to work wherever and whenever they wish. Technology has been a vital enabler of this expanding trend, allowing teams from all over the world to collaborate.
8. Transparency in pay is becoming increasingly important
In recent years, pay fairness and transparency have risen to the top of the employee wish list.
Even though corporations must comply with state pay transparency regulations, they may profit from being transparent about their compensation practices. Employees are more likely to apply to employers that include wage information in their job postings.
To wrap it up…
These new and faster trends are projected to impact recruiting methods in 2022, as many businesses emerge from hiring freezes and adjust to new processes.
While businesses will confront a lot of uncertainty in 2022, these hiring trends will help them find the appropriate people to help them take advantage of the new year's chances.
As we negotiate the ongoing consequences of COVID-19, you, like the employees you source, must be adaptable and willing to accept change.
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