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By Lily Sachs on April 14th, 2022

Key Points:

  1. Shifting Priorities due to the ‘Great Resignation.’ 
  2. Pandemic-Related Challenges 
  3. What Candidates are Asking For

This year has proven no different than the last few – talent acquisition professionals everywhere will continue to face recruiting and hiring challenges. At ProTek Partners, we know that staying ahead of these trends is crucial to your role as a recruiter. So, while we head into our third year of an unprecedented labor market characterized by record-level turnover and job openings, increased stress, and significantly reformed candidate expectations it will be important for recruiters to remain agile.

A recruiter’s ability to be agile is their key to success, according to the annual Recruiter Nation survey from JobVite,. Because of the constant change, job seekers aren’t the only ones adapting. – Recruiters are too.

Shifting Priorities due to the ‘Great Resignation’

The ‘Great Resignation’ is something we never could’ve predicted based on how the working world has almost always functioned. But the phrase “work smarter, not harder” has caught on as job seekers and employees have seen work culture improve over the past few years. Why? Because of all of you, and it’s not a bad thing. At ProTek Partners, we give kudos to businesses and individuals alike who have recognized the value of your wellbeing and happiness within your career and how it’s tied to your personal and career-related successes.

Recruiters now are faced with shifting priorities and a significant shift in the need to fill positions, which are currently in abundance, with haste and efficiency. This is not always an easy task to fulfill when, in parallel, trying to accomplish what your candidates need. Which is someone who can communicate effectively, and right now, that might present difficulties without some form of recruiting technology or automation assisting you. Automation is a thing of the future, but it doesn’t necessarily strip us from having relationships with candidates. It gives us the ability to create more time for our candidates in an increasingly swamped market. This, in turn, gives recruiters an extra leg up in being more agile than their competitors.

Pandemic-Related Challenges

This year has been no different than the past two when it comes to recruiters making sure to dot all their ‘i’s and cross all their ‘t’s dealing with challenges presented by the pandemic. This includes addressing health and safety concerns, COVID-19 vaccination mandates, and whether jobs are fully remote, onsite, or hybrid.

Another big concern is that companies are losing talent by not adapting to employee expectations around these issues. Many recruiters face declined offers due to the lack of flexibility built into the proposal. With the ‘Great Resignation’ also at play, flexibility has become expected, not just a form of flattery.

With these challenges, it’s important for both job seekers and clientele to know that recruiters are people too. Recruiters juggle their own personal journeys and trials with added responsibility like many of you. So, the next time you chat with a recruiter, remember they’re doing the best they can with the time and challenges allotted.

What Candidates are Asking For

It’s no surprise that candidate expectations have also shifted during the last couple of years, making workers expect more from organizations.

One of the first requests is a higher salary among candidates and current employees. Many recruiters report back that companies need to pay much more for the same roles and the candidates are well-versed in their market value. So, what can recruiters do to help alleviate this issue? Being agile and savvy around negotiation earlier in the process and pre-closing candidates.

When it comes to the expectation of benefits, the traditional benefits (health care coverage, 401(k)) are without a doubt anticipated, but new benefits are increasing in popularity. These include; remote-working flexibility, unlimited PTO, family planning, child care, and parental leave.

Even with all the added challenges from the past few years, recruiters and their agencies still consistently prove their ability to be agile.

Smaller box agencies like ourselves were even able to prove our agility over the pandemic by never requiring a layoff and having a steady need to increase our internal employee base. So, if you’re looking for a smaller agency that will provide you with a remote work-life balance, untouchable benefits, and commission structure, reach out by sending your cover letter and resume to info@protekpartners.com.

References:

Agility and Adaptability, the Key to Successful Recruiting by Amber Ferrari at JobVite