the challenges of recruiting and retaining talent in 2022.

A challenging labour market and the impacts from the pandemic made for a testing year for recruiters hiring new staff and HR professionals managing talent retention. Last year was also a significant period for people deciding to leave their jobs and shifting their perception towards values at work and life at home. It was a period when people felt more empowered and showed that they are more than just employees, but people with families, children and those that care about health and wellbeing.

The pandemic has had a direct and indirect impact on millions of people, family members and friends and has influenced their work-related decisions. In the U.S, a third of working mothers left their jobs or scaled back, as the pandemic forced them to adapt their responsibilities of working from home.

Talent retention plans

While some employees have made a clear decision to leave their jobs, employers can introduce new measures to encourage other individuals to remain. Employees are likely to be in control for some time, and so to retain workers, employers must select which benefits are critical to their workforce and highlight these to them.

An example of this is how businesses have responded to the increased demand for remote working. The changing need for flexible and remote work has been significant. Studies show that at the beginning of 2020, only 1 in 67 paid jobs on LinkedIn offered remote work. The number now stands at closer to 1 in 6. The flexibility concerned with remote work is vital in retaining people and enabling employees with more opportunities to balance their careers with life outside of work.

Business leaders recognise the importance of providing this balance and appreciate that the expectations of working long hours aren’t necessarily the most effective way to work anymore.

Employee burnout is a factor, and studies suggest that this added pressure and drive to work long hours is directly related to employee morale and the higher level of people leaving their jobs.

Deloitte is one large business that has invested into its benefit plans for this year. The consulting leader confirmed $1 billion of additional funds towards compensation and further benefits for its employees. This added investment includes enhanced time off, improved mental health and wellbeing benefits and subsidies for remote working.

If the current pattern associated with employees leaving their jobs continues, hiring managers will be under mounting pressure to attract the best talent and fill positions quickly. Recruiters need to remain focused on candidate attraction and become innovative and creative with their talent attraction plans. These changing plans already seem to be a trend and one that is likely to continue for several reasons. For starters, this way of working enables businesses to be more inclusive and allows people to stay for longer. But what techniques can companies use to tackle the rising competition for the best available talent?

Firstly, focusing on time and efficiency within the hiring process is critical. Like

the current housing market, you need to be decisive and act quickly. Recruiters need to reexamine their internal hiring processes and remove any potential barriers that could hinder the process.

Businesses should be considering the individual character and the opportunity to upskill. Quality individuals that have experience in other industries shouldn’t be discounted from the hiring process as these people could evolve into the ideal employee.

Investing in social platforms is another important factor. With a combined network of 3.5 billion users on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook, businesses need to leverage these platforms and build their brand and influence in this space. Social channels are an opportunity to reach out to new candidates without incurring considerable recruitment costs.

Enhancing your business culture is another area that has continued to be vital in talent attraction and retention. Employers are looking for leaders who show a style that emphasises trust, communication and teamwork. These observations become apparent in relationships with customers, partners and other work colleagues. Making employees feel valued has always been a critical element, but as the battle for top talent rises, the best organisations need to focus specifically on working with their employees and addressing their needs. Employees today want to see their role and value to a business and how an organisation is working towards a more sustainable future.

Finally, but equally as important as the other factors are accelerating learning and training opportunities within the business. Professional development is often forgotten and overlooked as an important part of recruitment and retention. It’s challenging to break up a working day by offering support and professional development. Training plans, however, allow employees to work to a better standard and prepare them for higher-level roles in the business. Learning and development can also strengthen the knowledge of the wider team and make planning and operation within an organisation easier to execute.