With the economy in its current state, we’ve all been left wondering when and where the global economy will recover first. With that, there are a few other questions worth asking such as: How did we get here? How can this be fixed? How do I prepare my company?
Unfortunately, only the last question is within the control of people like you and me. What we’ve seen and continue to see is step one of the contraction of the market which comes in the form of the tightening of corporate budgets. You know the old adage – spend less, borrow less. Of course we’ve all see the hiring freezes and rounds of layoffs, but the next step is even more important.
Step two is to not forget that we all still have to continue to provide great products and services to our clients and users. In other words, go back to the basics. Go back to what got your company here to begin with. It’s time to focus on your most valuable asset as a company – your talent. As you recall from step one, you may not have the resources to bring in more talent, but you can at the very least retain what you have now. This is not the time to take your best employees for granted by hoping that they won’t be able to find another job in this market. Just remember that the top 20% of your employees – and you know who they are – can find a great job in any market.
Once you’ve stabilized and gotten your hands wrapped tightly around step two, it’s time to plan for the road to recovery. You and I can’t predict the when and where of the recovery, but we can sow the seeds for renewed growth. For hiring managers and human resources, that means continuing to meet and greet potential candidates through free social media like LinkedIn and organizing or reorganizing your approved recruiting firms. If you’re saying,
“Recruiting firms? We don’t use recruiting firms right now,” you have a valid point. Why, in this market, would you pay 20% to hire a candidate when there are candidates galore flooding the job market? Therein lies the rub. You see, while the economy is in a recession you are going to receive more solicitation calls from recruiting firms than you know what to do with, but while you delete their voicemails and emails and even throw away the nifty beer koozie they sent you with their logo on it, you are potentially missing out on recruiters that could be of great value to you when hiring picks back up. As counter intuitive as it may seem, now may be a great time to revisit how you’ll manage your vendor list in the years to come.
As you make the necessary adjustments during an economic downturn, remember that the best companies with the best employees will survive and flourish through any economy – it’s all about maintaining stability and preparing for the turn around.
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