If there’s one word to describe this past year, it’s “uncertain.” With that in mind, how are you supposed to use 2022 as the foundation for planning for staffing needs in 2023? Here are some lessons to take from another challenging year, so you can fill gaps and hire better.
Lesson #1: Supporting families is a priority.
Millions of working families were hit incredibly hard during the pandemic. As a result of school closures, millions of parents, oftentimes mothers, also had to leave their jobs. Now, as workers are coming back into the workplace, it’s time to welcome them with better compensation, more flexibility and a greater work-life balance. As you’re recruiting, promote the benefits you offer to families, whether it’s flex scheduling or flexible spending accounts that can be used for child care.
Lesson #2: Mental health is key.
Another critical area to support your employees in is mental health. In fact, many times, candidates will weigh a companies approach to mental health and related benefits and resources into their decision about whether to accept an offer. Make sure you are discussing this in job interviews, answering candidate questions about mental health benefits, and potentially enhancing your benefits package if it’s an area that isn’t covered.
Lesson #3: Remote work is here to stay.
Another consequence of the pandemic has been the huge rise in remote positions. It used to be that working remotely was a benefit or perk. Now it’s the norm and an expected option for many candidates seeking remote. Even if your job openings can’t be fully remote, consider partial remote or hybrid scheduling options and promote these in job postings.
Lesson #4: Don’t forget about retention.
While you need to hire new people, you want to also keep your existing employees. It’s therefore important to also focus on ways to improve your retention efforts in the year ahead. In fact, you can avoid some vacancies by prioritizing retention. To do this, talk to your employees about what’s important, their level of satisfaction on the job, and ways you can better support them.
Do you need help staffing in 2023?
Turn to the Northwest recruiters at Provisional Recruiting. We can help you source and hire strong candidates, so you get off to the best start possible in the New Year. Contact us today to learn more.