11th January 2022
It’s a situation that’s been termed by some as “The
Great Resignation”. Whether it’s going to be quite that dramatic remains to be
seen but certainly a lot of the research is pointing to times of change. Globally,
a Microsoft
Work Trend Index survey found that around 41% of workers
are thinking about moving on. At the start of this year TotalJobs
released UK-based research that suggested a staggering 9 out of 10 workers were
planning to look for a new role. Almost half of respondents (45%) were looking
to move into a different sector.
Of course, some of these moves will be to do a similar job, albeit in a new sector and with a new employer. But not all of them. One survey found that around half of employees who were furloughed were considering a complete career change. And research across various professions suggests a significant amount of talent could soon be on the move. A recent British Medical Association tracker survey found that 21% of doctors were considering leaving for a totally new career. Royal College of Nursing research suggests that over a third of nurses are considering leaving the profession. In the education sector, one in three staff are thinking about moving on from teaching – including, according to one report, 47% of English schools’ head teachers.
Evidently a lot of talented people are having a
career rethink and while there will be differences in terms of projected
numbers, it’s apparent that a substantial proportion have concluded it’s time
to move on. And that means employers who are planning to recruit need to
consider the possibility of adopting a new mindset to find the opportunities
that this situation could present.
Many companies recognise that attracting the right
talent has become harder. But there are things employers can do to address that,
including challenging themselves about exactly what the ‘right’ talent is. When
employers identify a vacancy, they start thinking about the skills that person
should have, what they should be like and what experiences they should offer: usually
in the belief that the more precise and detailed the person spec is, the
greater the chances are of finding the perfect person. Yet it doesn’t automatically
follow that the more refined and prescriptive the specification, the more
likely it is that they will find a high-quality candidate.
While you do need to make sure that essential core
skills are specified, sometimes ‘requirements’ can turn out to be more about
preferences. Even though a candidate doesn’t tick all the traditional boxes of
the job description, they could still have a whole host of transferrable skills
that will enable them to quickly adapt to your job’s requirements. This
approach doesn’t mean your standards are lower; it means your emphasis shifts
more towards a person’s attitude and the genuine core skills required. And these
candidates frequently bring with them skills you hadn’t even considered that could
turn out to be very useful to your organisation.
Obviously the extent to which you can do this depends on the vacancy – there’s less scope to be flexible over a medical position as opposed to an office-based job for example. But there are many roles where an employer who is prepared to be more open-minded will find it works to their advantage.
It’s important to get this approach across in your
job adverts. It takes time to submit an application and a candidate will want
to have the confidence that they are genuinely going to be considered. They’ll
be attracted to employers who they can see are taking a more open-minded
approach: as we discussed in our recent article about attracting
the best talent in a candidate-driven market, adverts that
keep the requirements as open as possible will appeal to more potential
applicants.
You will need to think about the offer you are
making from a pay perspective. But also consider the overall package such as
the flexibility that’s available, the benefits that will be provided and the
overall culture of the company. Given that some people will be making career
moves because they’re looking for something more aligned with their values that
will give them a greater sense of purpose or improve their wellbeing, highlight
what it is that differentiates your business in that respect too.
There are real opportunities here for employers who
are willing to rethink their approach to recruitment. There’s some incredible
talent out there. So make sure your company is positioning itself effectively to
find it.
Being able to articulate what it is your company
offers through your job adverts will help make sure your vacancy stands out and
catches the eye of job seekers. We can provide you with specialist support for
your recruitment campaigns, ensuring your job advert copy attracts great
candidates and is highly visible across a broad range of job boards and social
media channels. We’ll guide you in capturing precisely what it is that makes
your company such a great place to work and make sure it comes across loud and
clear in your job adverts and throughout the recruitment process.
Please do get in touch with us
if you’d like to have a chat about how our cost-effective job advertising and
recruitment support can help your company.
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