Top Recruiting Challenge: Onsite Job? No thanks.

Great news! According to top recruiters, the candidate market has shown growth and job seekers have many new options. The top recruiting challenge? Finding candidates that will consider onsite opportunities.
A top Matlen recruiter notes:
What I have been seeing from prospective employees is a resistance to go back onsite. There are so many other jobs out there that are remote. If you call a candidate about an opportunity that requires them to be onsite, they are not interested.
This observation is reflected in reports of survey results across the workforce, with headlines reading:

…and so on and so forth…
Even with remote-work rising over the last two decades, the pandemic ushered in an era of widespread work-from-home mandates in an emergency health and safety mitigation effort. For many employees, remote work was a drastic change, met with the need for hyper-quick adaptability from both workers and employers. Now, however, this “new way of work” is considered by many to be the “only way to work” – or at least for part of the work week anyway!
For candidates, the decision to accept for any position is truly a preference based on their own sustainability and the best management of their work-life. It’s crucial that job-seekers are clear with their expectations. Applying for and working through the vetting process for a position that you “hope” might go remote at one point is not in anyone’s best interest.
So, what can recruiters and hiring managers do to meet this new work-world challenge?

Be clear with expectations

Many recruiters would advise against job postings with a “we’ll see” tone. If the job is on-site, it must clearly be communicated and expectations must be transparent. Recruiters must develop their talent recommendations based on who is interested in on-site work vs. who really isn’t.  To engage with and hire someone under the pretense that remote work is a future possibility which never comes to fruition, puts you in the turnover boat quickly, spending again on hiring efforts and risking productivity loss.
On the other-hand, you could consider offering a well-defined, “we’ll reevaluate future remote options” position, as long as that possibility is based on specific goals and outcomes such as reaching certain milestones, productivity goals, sales/revenue, etc. This can be part of the negotiating process. Recruiters who have worked closely with both the hiring manager and the candidate will work towards the optimal outcome for both.

Flexibility is key

In light of the above sentiments, the notion of remote work is not a passing fad, and resistant companies will likely need to move the needle when it comes to flexible work options. If the job at hand could in some way have a work-remote component, it might be time to consider it, in order to maintain access to the talent that is seeking this way of work. And it seems more company leaders are embracing this reality as well, with 80% of surveyed CEOs saying at least a hybrid-work model is here to stay.
Hybrid-models could fast become the go-to hiring option, too. In fact, while most surveyed workers want some form of remote work option, only 1 in 4 want to work remotely entirely. Hiring companies have the opportunity to meet in the middle so to speak and negotiate work terms. Recruiters have an opportunity to work with hiring managers on their options based on what their candidate market is demanding. In the process, hiring managers might also discover some cost-savings afforded by even part-time telework.

Punch home the employer brand and the offer on the table

Make the thought of working in your organization so enticing, talent just can’t resist! This means creating and offering employment packages that hit every hot button on today’s candidate’s wish list. From GREAT benefits and health and mental wellness services, to extra perks (gas money for the commute maybe?) and creating a culture that aligns with their values, be that place where people want to work. As the candidate market continues to pick up, job-seekers will have more and more options, and competition for top talent will get tougher. Creative offers can be deal-makers.

Redefining the recruiting and talent search process – again

While, it’s encouraging to see the job market recovering, the definition of “the hard-to-fill position” may have just gotten a little more nuanced. Recruiters who have refined their skills over the last year in finding and placing remote talent are in a good position as remote opportunities abound. They adapted to a fully online vetting, interviewing and hiring process, much of what had been in practice before, but was dramatically amplified in 2020. Today as more professionals seek to maintain that remote work lifestyle, altered recruiting processes that clearly define talent pools for remote vs. on-site, expand searches for on-site-amenable candidates and create a more flexible and negotiable job planning opportunity between recruiters and hiring managers, will be key to filling roles based on where workers sit.
At Matlen Silver, the nature of our business is flexibility, since consultant and contract-driven staff supplementation is all about being flexible! For over 40 years, we’ve adapted and grown with the ebb and flow of the technology professional service industry, honing a search process that delivers remarkable working relationships for our clients and candidates alike. Call us today to discuss your hiring goals.

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