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?!?