2015 recruiting trends

I don’t know about you, but the older I get the more reflective I become.  Looking back at last year to see what worked and what didn't played a big role in me determining goals for this year.  At the end of 2013 I predicted three trends for 2014 – 1) increased M&A or lift-out activity, 2) the rise of the passive candidate, and 3) addition of unique one-off types of roles.  We saw success in all three areas, and I believe it will continue into 2015.

This year I believe we will see some new trends that are already transforming the way we do business here at Capstone and could likely impact your organization as well.

The rise of social media.  Okay, this may seem like a “sure bet” if I were a Vegas odds-maker, but it is for more than the old reasons we have known for the past couple of years.  We all know that candidates oftentimes have LinkedIn profiles, Facebook pages, and even a few have a blog.  The bigger change we have seen is how companies embrace this when trying to brand their company’s recruitment philosophy.  See this article for some confirmation of this -   http://blog.accuchex.com/top-four-recruiting-and-hiring-trends-for-2015

Paying more for the right candidate.  I have seen this firsthand recently regarding some offer negotiations with candidates in the fourth quarter.  I was pleasantly surprised by how often my clients were seeking the “enthusiastic yes” from candidates by providing a competitive offer right out of the gates.  More base salary, more vacation, and sign-on bonuses were witnessed more than I have seen since pre-2008 hiring levels.  Along with my prediction last year of seeing more qualified passive candidates, this may come into play if you really want to send a strong message that you are looking to procure the best talent available.

Making more opportunity hires.  This is when someone comes along that is too good to pass up, but you don’t have a place on the bench for them.  More and more companies are creating that capacity and sometimes even re-structuring to ensure the role is challenging enough for the candidate.  As the market continues to become more competitive and sway a little bit back to the low supply/high demand end of the curve employers will be forced to adjust or lose out on that top talent.  Your competitors are all doing this, so it may be time to pay more attention to this growing trend.

The final trend is more of an observation than anything, but has proved invaluable to our process in the past few months.  That idea is transparency.  Don’t be afraid to unapologetically wear your heart on your sleeve when seeking new talent.  The candidates will embrace that, we have appreciated that immensely from our perspective, and the branding you create will have a ripple effect that you may never even know its full power.  Our best call is from a referral from a candidate that we did NOT place.  They say that this individual had such a good experience (again, despite not being placed for employment through our firm) that we were highly recommended to guide them through their search too.  That is high praise and something we work for every day.

What trends did you see last year?  And what trends do you see for the coming year?  We hope to be a part of that strategy directly or indirectly.  As always, please feel free to see what we’re up to on our social media platforms and our website – www.csgrecruiting.com.

I wish you a very happy and prosperous 2015!