If you’ve felt a great disturbance in the workforce lately, you’re not alone. The past few months have been a roller-coaster ride for companies trying to navigate the one-two punch of rising interest rates and near-record inflation.
The technology sector, in particular, has taken it on the chin. Globally, more than 70,000 workers at tech startups have been laid off so far this year, exposing fissures in a labor market that finds itself in a whiplash moment where some companies are aggressively downsizing while others struggle to hire at scale. Things have gotten so dire that some executives are shedding tears on social media.
Analysts have called it The Great Uncertainty, and its effects can be dizzying for the talent acquisition community — a community that itself faces steep challenges as the economy shows signs of contracting. So the question is, with more workers being shown the door every day, what can recruiters do to help? Here are three things to consider.
1. Take the stigma out of resume gaps
Long seen as a red flag, gaps in employment are often used by hiring managers to screen out applicants, as they trigger concerns about performance and other professional shortcomings. The pandemic may have changed that. As The New York Times reported last year: “The importance of what are often referred to as ‘résumé gaps’ is fading.” Earlier this year, LinkedIn introduced Career Breaks for use on member profiles. The hope is that they will lead candidates and recruiters to have more open conversations around skills and experiences picked up away from the workplace.
With nearly 11 million open jobs in the United States alone, many companies are still desperate to attract and hire talent. The ones that focus on a candidate’s total package are more likely to succeed. “It’s important for us as people who are creating jobs . . . to really look at ‘What can this person contribute?’ as opposed to ‘What does this piece of paper say they have done in the past?’” says Zoë Harte, the chief people officer at Canva.
2. Create an open-source guide for job seekers
For the thousands of workers who are suddenly, forcibly, between gigs, there’s no better time to bone up on job-seeking skills. Australian design platform Canva recognized this opportunity, and actually did something about it.
Amy Schultz, the head of recruiting for Canva, unveiled her company’s latest initiative on LinkedIn: “We know many folks have recently been impacted by layoffs, so as part of our Recruitment for Good initiative, our Canva Recruiting Team have created this open-source job seeker guide aimed to help anyone brush up on skills and confidence to help them land that next role.”
Attached is a 59-slide interactive deck titled “Mastering Your Job Search” that addresses everything from identifying your PVP (Personal Value Proposition) to resume building to tips on how to prepare for, and nail, your Zoom interview. As more than one commenter points out, it’s clear, comprehensive, and easy to use. Not to mention, it’s free!
3. Find new ways to stay busy
When Carvana laid off 2,500 employees in May, the recruiting team took a big hit. “Companies view talent acquisition as a non-moneymaker,” says Sandra Delgado, a former recruiter at the online used-car retailer. “We fill positions. . . . What is TA doing if we’re not hiring anyone?”
It’s a good question and one that Michelle Mehlis has taken to heart. A senior recruiting consultant at Hirewell, Michelle recently tapped her LinkedIn network to identify projects recruiters can focus on during down cycles in hiring.
“Don’t lay off your internal recruiters,” Michelle writes in a series of posts. “Get strategic.”
Here are a few highlights from her list of project ideas:
- Upgrade your job postings.
- Standardize your hiring processes and assessments.
- Improve onboarding and first-week experience.
- Design internal apprenticeship and job-shadowing programs for current employees.
The comments section is wallpapered with dozens of more ideas (“Cross-train everyone on the team to develop knowledge in a new hiring domain”), as well as details on how to implement them.
One commenter, a recruiter from Seattle with 10 years of experience, praises the effort, then mentions her personal situation. She was laid off from her tech job last month and is looking for work.
It’s a rare moment of vulnerability, to which Michelle responds, “Let’s get you connected to our HR practice which has many open roles.”
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