How Companies Maintain Momentum During a Hiring Freeze
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Ways recruiters and organizations can bolster essential processes until the freeze lifts
Many companies have put hiring freezes in place, given reduced revenue and tighter budgets due to COVID-19. In the early months of the pandemic, 4 in 10 companies implemented a hiring freeze, with another 28% planning to do so soon.
These freezes (and layoffs) may have thrown immediate hiring plans out the window, but this doesn’t mean recruiting efforts have to come to a complete halt. Here are ways that recruiters and human resources personnel can bridge the gap productively until a freeze lifts.
Hiring on hold?
1. Make it work with what you have
If you’ve effectively prioritized culture fit, agility, and soft skills in your hiring thus far, you will most likely have a flexible team that can cover the gaps until recruitment resumes. Consider the capabilities of your current team members, what essential tasks are needed soon, and how you can adjust the team's deployment.
If some employees need to temporarily take on new roles, investing in re-skilling is often more affordable than a new hire, and it will set you up with a more diversified workforce when hiring resumes.
It's also essential to engage current employees and foster company culture throughout the pandemic to reduce turnover. Consider growth opportunities for those looking for upward movement, and maintain open communication throughout the process.
2. Communicate with your pipeline
Even in non-COVID times, many employers struggle with candidate communication; 63% of candidates say employers do not communicate adequately.
Reach out to candidates in your funnel (no matter what the stage) and let them know that your process is paused for the time being. Encourage them to follow the company on social media for updates, and let them know that you will be in touch when hiring resumes. Candidates will remember your honesty and appreciate your acknowledgment of their efforts.
3. Tackle key projects
Use this time to develop employer branding and career tools—tasks that many companies can’t seem to find time for normally.
Job Descriptions: Does your company provide compelling information about the company, it’s successes, company benefits, perks, and culture? Use this time to draft language to include in all job descriptions for the company that distinguishes the company, excites the candidates, and conveys why a candidate should want to work at your company.
Create and improve employer branding content: Great employer branding tells the organization's story by connecting people with the purpose of the work. Use this time to build a library of content for future use in your recruiting and hiring efforts. This material can include blogs and articles, videos, images, e-books, social media posts, etc. If you are new to employer branding, use this time to strategize with company leadership and formulate a plan for future success. Here are some good examples of inspiring employer branding.
Remodel the career page: One of the best tools available to organizations and recruiters is the career page. Unfortunately, it is extremely underutilized, averaging an 8% conversion rate. Elevate the content, imagery, and calls to action to improve the engagement on this page. Note that 34% of applications come from this page. It’s often a candidate’s first impression of the company, so it should be a resource they can use to answer critical questions, easily apply for a position, and learn more about what it's like to work for your organization.
When the freeze lifts
When the hiring freeze is over, you will be glad that you continued efforts where possible. In the meantime, focus on making the most of your current resources and revitalizing your candidate experience. This effort will optimize your recruiting and hiring processes, now and in the future.
Carrington Legal Search is celebrating 20 years in business: we were in the trenches with our clients during 9/11 and 2008. We partner with our clients to identify leaders and mission-critical talent to shore up and grow companies even during the most challenging times. We are here for you! To make our nationwide network work for you, get in touch at 512-627-7467 or email carrie@carringtonlegal.com.