FAQ’s – Recruiting over Christmas with Sales Manager Tina Rooke

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As the silly season approaches, we’re often asked if this time of year is effective for recruitment advertising campaigns.

With 10 years in the recruitment industry and working with big name clients like Sullivan Nicolaides, KFC Queensland & Centacare, Sales Manager Tina Rooke understands the uncertainty the holiday season brings.

So is what is the job market like over the Christmas Period?

“This time of year brings a lot of movement in the job market based on a number of factors. Time off over Christmas gives candidates a chance to review the year that was and the New Year often prompts candidates to consider a new career,” Ms Rooke said.

What kind of people should I target?

“Whether you are looking to hire professionals or support staff, it’s essential your Christmas recruitment is tailored to the right people,” Ms Rooke said.

“Often these jobseekers are passive candidates, so an effective passive strategy including print advertising and sites like Linkedin is usually more successful.”

Is interviewing people during holidays more difficult?

“Your chosen candidate is often not working over December and the start of January, so it’s a great time to set up an interview,” Ms Rooke said.

“Not only do they have a lot of free time on their hands, as they don’t have to arrange around current employment schedules, they often spend a lot of time networking with friends and family.”

“It can be a great time to meet up with company referrals over drinks, or just connect with potential contacts on Linkedin,” she said.

What other benefits are there with advertising over Christmas?

“Advertising over the Christmas period is often underrated, with many candidates feeling the pre-New Year depression starting to set in as the thought of returning to their disliked job in January looms.”

“Your candidates won’t turn down the perfect role, just because it’s Christmas,” Ms Rooke said.

“Often a new job offer, or at least a potential interview, can brighten their day and be just the Christmas present they are looking for – especially with all the penny pinching that goes on at this time of year.”

“Returning to your company in the New Year with a quality talent pool of candidates after getting a jump on the rest of the recruiters is always a nice Christmas bonus too,” she said.

How successfully do you manage your unsuccessfuls?

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When a candidate applies for a job with your organisation, that candidate is engaged with your brand and genuinely wants to work for your company.  Now we all know that only one or a few prospective candidates can get the job, but how you respond to your unsuccessful candidates can seriously impact your organisation.

Too often companies underestimate how their recruitment process can positively or negatively affect their brand.

The answer? Treat your candidates like a customer!

Effective candidate care can be a competitive advantage when positioning your company as a preferred employer and also can increase your organisation’s brand equity.  Not only is there the possibility that your customers could also be your potential candidates, but also consider the value of “word of mouth” when attracting talent to your brand. With so many touch points along the recruitment process, how do you ensure your candidates are receiving a positive experience, even if they’re unsuccessful?

  1. Who’s talking to your talent? In a sales role there is a specific process & support in place to ensure your clients get a great impression of your company right from the beginning. So consider, who’s actually the first touch point in your organisation for candidates? Whether it’s reception staff, line manager, HR manager or coordinator, it’s important for candidates to receive the same professional approach that you would offer a client.
  2. Do what you say. When a sales person says they’ll be in touch you can guarantee that they’ll diarise to call you and the same approach needs to be taken for your candidates. At the end of a phone call or interview when you say “I’ll be in touch,” make sure you do contact the candidate to let them know the outcome. The same applies for candidates who’ve sent in their applications but weren’t successful. Send a polite email thanking them for their application and notifying them that they were unsuccessful. A “no” is still better than nothing.
  3. Get to know your candidate. Building rapport with a candidate is a great way to promote your organisation & culture. Remember that whilst you’re interviewing to ascertain whether the candidate is a good fit for your organisation, your candidate is trying to decide whether the role/company/culture will be a good fit for them. Making an effort to get to know your candidate will help you make the right decision when recruiting and also create a positive impression for the candidate.
  4. Stay in touch with your talent pool. Every time you recruit for a position, you build a list of candidates who want to work for your organisation. Just like your sales teams would continue to prospect and build a client database, a candidate database or talent pool is a valuable asset for your organisation. Send your prospective candidates regular news about your organisation to keep them engaged with your employer brand and advertise opportunities to them as they become available.

Remember, people want to work with people they like, so creating a positive experience during the recruitment process is so important for attracting talent to your organisation and strengthening your reputation as an employer of choice.

New Year, New Career – The One That Got Away

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The Christmas and New Year holiday period is fast approaching and most Recruitment or Human Resources teams around Australia are currently looking forward to taking a break from writing vacancy advertisements, poring over resumes, conducting interviews and phoning referees.  It’s an understandable sentiment – these duties can be time consuming and often fruitless, leaving you right where you were when you began the process.  But you should ask yourself, is the Christmas and New Year holiday period your perfect opportunity to fill that vacancy you’ve struggled with over the past few months?

Consider this: according to research conducted by the independent market research agency 72point, nearly 40% of the UK’s working population plan to spend time over the Christmas and New Year holidays to look for new positions and further their career.  While this might not seem relevant to the Australian market, trends in Australia generally follow or closely resemble their UK counterparts.  If the theory holds, that means nearly 5 million Australians will be looking for a new employer over the holidays.

If this sounds unlikely, consider the following sentiments you’ve probably held yourself at one time or another:

  • “This year will be better than the last.” New Year’s resolutions are made by millions of people every year with the goal of bettering themselves, be it financially, physically, socially or psychologically.  A career change or taking a new position with a rival employer offering a better benefits package satisfies the desire better oneself in the New Year.
  • “I’ve finally got enough time and the privacy I need to safely browse for a new job.” While retail or hospitality workers are unlikely to have a significant amount of time off over the Holiday period, in general, most businesses will be closed for a week or two over the Holidays.  It would be naïve to think that your employees will spend all of this extended time away from the office at barbecues with friends and family.
  • “I wish I had more money to spend on presents for my family” Families are often strained financially over the holidays and what better way to increase your financial security than to look for a new job?  With bank accounts dangerously low, many people will start looking a new job that offers more financial security.

This is the reason why you should push aside your instincts to start wrapping up around the office and begin a recruitment campaign, especially if you’ve had a tough vacancy you’ve been struggling with.

If you’ve been looking forward to winding up your recruitment operations and starting fresh early in January, it’s highly likely your competitors are thinking the same thing. Take advantage of their absence in the market to recruit for that difficult role or to sure up your workforce with some new recruits.

If you’re concerned about undertaking a labour intensive recruitment campaign over the holidays, it’s a great time to take advantage of Employment Office’s unique recruitment service.  We’ll build your custom recruitment web page and integrated online application form. Our team of experienced and professional copywriters will write the content and deploy all of your advertising and you’ll be able to quickly and easily manage your candidates through our exclusive user friendly candidate management system, SCOUT.

Don’t spend the new year wondering about the one that got away, let Employment Office professionally manage your recruitment campaign over the holidays and start 2013 off the right way – with all of your vacancies filled!