Why hire now?

The end of the calendar year is fast approaching.  Which for most companies also means the fiscal year is just about over.  Many interviews during this time of year end up with a January start date, if not later.  But there are some definite advantages of hiring now.

This time of year is always a coin flip.  Half of the time employers wait to start a new employee until the new year.  The other half actually do start new employees before the end of the current year.  Why is that?  There are many reasons.

1)  It goes on the current year's budget for P&L purposes.  If you had planned on making ten new hires in 2015 and stand at eight or nine, it makes a lot of sense to hire someone in the current fiscal year.  I have even had employers in the past specifically request a Dec. 31 start date for that very reason.

2)  It will allow a new employee to attend holiday functions.  This may seem a little subjective, but I'm here to tell you that it can matter greatly.  If you have an annual holiday tradition that happens in December, it is nice to include a new employee.  Sometimes it may even be a charitable event or some sort of volunteering.  This allows the new team member to get to know everyone a little better without impacting work productivity at the office.

3)  It allows a new employee some time off during their first few weeks.  Again, this could probably be debated whether or not it is beneficial.  But I'm here to say it matters.  It is the same reason schools often start kids and teachers back after summer break on a Wednesday or Thursday.  Then you have a weekend coming up quickly to help make the transition.  If you start mid to late December and immediately get a few days off, that helps boost your good feelings when you come back to work.

4)  Stay ahead of the curve.  If you are currently interviewing a candidate who is active in the search process, that is likely to continue, if not accelerate, during the holidays and year-end stretch.  There may be another employer that capitalizes on that and hires someone out from under your nose.  If you see that coming and act first, it could turn into you landing that next great employee instead of your competition.

5)  The new employee can help with year-end projects.  With the holiday season there are always people in and out of the office.  So wouldn't it be great to have an extra person around to help?  Even if they are not completely trained, they can help with the easy tasks and step in right away to ease the burden of another team member out for an extended period of time.

The final thing to keep in mind with hiring around the holidays is that people are generally in a good mood.  What better time to start a new employee?!?

Is it possible to have bad luck in a job interview?

On the way into work this morning I encountered a black cat.  I immediately feared I would have bad luck and the first few emails I read in my inbox could be categorized as bad luck.  Or at the very least bad news.  Is it possible the two events are related?  Of course not.  But have you ever been in an interview process and felt like something went just slightly wrong that took the entire interview process off track?

The bottom line is that many things can de-rail a job interview that have absolutely nothing to do with luck at all.  But it sure might feel that way.  Recently I had a candidate that had verbally accepted an offer, was hammering out a start date, and then had to back out after a close friend was in a terrible auto accident.  Bad luck or just bad timing?

Earlier this year I had a company back out of an offer because of something quirky that was found on a background check that was eventually cleared up.  But because so much confusion had ensued, everyone decided to move on.  The candidate sure thought it felt like bad luck as it transpired on a Friday before they were supposed to start on a Monday.

Another example I can think of is when a candidate was interviewing for a job where the person currently in the role was retiring.  After a few rounds of things going quite well, the employer called to let us know the person in the role decided not to retire after all.

I could give example after example of things that can be considered bad luck.  Here's the thing about luck -- you can't control it one way or another, even if you believe there is such a thing as good luck or bad luck.  Instead I would argue the job search and interview process is usually more closely attributed to good or bad timing.  I know that is a subtle difference, but it drastically changes how you respond.

If you believe in luck, you are destined to grieve after bad luck and rejoice after good luck.  If instead you buy into the theory that it is all about timing when talking about a job interview, it allows you to free up your mind and consider good OR bad timing to possibly be good news.  Just because a role isn't available now, it doesn't mean it won't be down the road.  Or if you are not a match for a particular position today, perhaps there is another role in the future that is a better match.

See the difference?  It especially applies at the end of a calendar year when holidays, fourth quarter results, and first quarter projections can impact a job search.  Forget about the black cats, the bad signs, and the non-related issues that may seem like they impact a job interviews.  Focus on the positive and move forward with a good attitude.

Have you ever experienced bad luck in a job interview?  Could it possibly be bad timing as you look back on it?