Towards the end of 2019, many of us were consuming blogs around the hiring and recruitment trends predicted for 2020, figuring out how they were going to affect our markets and activities. It is safe to say that none of those blogs predicted what 2020 had in store for the world, and the impact it was going to have on our industry.

At this time last year, social distancing, flattening the curve, and having a Zoom cocktail hour were foreign concepts. As the pandemic remains ongoing, our speech patterns and our social patterns have changed. Seasonal hiring has not been immune to the changing nature of how we shop and how we work.

In March as schools and offices closed across the country, many parents found themselves suddenly providing crisis schooling. Back then it seemed unfathomable that homeschooling while trying to maintain a full working schedule would be the reality come back-to-school season.

The hiring process has become more complex because of the need to run background checks, pre-hire assessments, and multiple interview rounds. None should be used as an excuse to drop off the radar once you have engaged a job candidate.

It’s already difficult to find good job candidates.  As a hiring manager, you don’t want to drive potential candidates away. Recent research published by Glassdoor shows that the average interviewing time continues to lengthen.

Andrea addresses some of the barriers with communication that she has seen in organizations. These include:

1. Perception
2. Body Language
3. Channel in which message is communicated

Andrea reiterates the importance of making your employees feel respected and acknowledging that they indeed are a contribution to the company. Sharing where the organization is heading and asking for feedback will build trust. Communicating expectations regularly and helping to cultivate their development will surely help to create a happy and hard working team.