Like any other industry, the staffing and recruiting industry regularly faces a variety of challenges: new technologies disrupting workflows, limited supply of qualified talent, additional governmental regulations, etc. The speed at which firms adapt to the challenges has a huge impact on how much money is saved, how fast projects can get started/finished, potential increase in market share, and more. These challenges must be faced alongside systemic challenges of rising interest rates, record-high inflation, and ongoing supply-chain issues. This article will highlight some of the most common challenges reported by staffing and recruiting firms via voluntary surveys and research studies.
The first challenge is that it is a candidate-driven market, which has multiple implications. First, this means that an increasing number of candidates know that there are more open positions than qualified candidates to fill said positions, across just about any industry, so they can be more picky/demanding when it comes to which jobs they will take. Second, because there are also so many different staffing and recruiting firms out there, it means that the same candidates know if they aren’t getting the results they want or the treatment they are looking for at one firm, they can easily find another firm which may do a better job. This puts pressure on firms to provide the best experience for candidates possible.
Next, firms have to become experts on the “new way of doing business” to survive. Technological tools like Indeed or LinkedIn are simply a must have for recruiters in today’s employment marketplace. Owners and executives at firms which began during the era of classified ads and phone call lists must adapt in order to survive. Having a database of contacts via one of the previously mentioned tools is not enough however; firms also need to have tools in place to efficiently qualify said candidates for positions.
Specialization is not going away anytime soon. A key way firms can improve their time-to-hire (a never-ending challenge) is to specialize in a specific industry or sub-section within an industry. Staffing analysts say that specialization increases the chances the firm is going to have more sought after, higher quality candidates. Such candidates don’t need additional investment (certifications, training, etc) to be placed into positions. They are “ready to go” and the more candidates a firm places within a specific field/industry, the more the word will spread that “if you need this type of position filled, contact that firm.”
The first challenge is that it is a candidate-driven market, which has multiple implications. First, this means that an increasing number of candidates know that there are more open positions than qualified candidates to fill said positions, across just about any industry, so they can be more picky/demanding when it comes to which jobs they will take. Second, because there are also so many different staffing and recruiting firms out there, it means that the same candidates know if they aren’t getting the results they want or the treatment they are looking for at one firm, they can easily find another firm which may do a better job. This puts pressure on firms to provide the best experience for candidates possible.
Next, firms have to become experts on the “new way of doing business” to survive. Technological tools like Indeed or LinkedIn are simply a must have for recruiters in today’s employment marketplace. Owners and executives at firms which began during the era of classified ads and phone call lists must adapt in order to survive. Having a database of contacts via one of the previously mentioned tools is not enough however; firms also need to have tools in place to efficiently qualify said candidates for positions.
Specialization is not going away anytime soon. A key way firms can improve their time-to-hire (a never-ending challenge) is to specialize in a specific industry or sub-section within an industry. Staffing analysts say that specialization increases the chances the firm is going to have more sought after, higher quality candidates. Such candidates don’t need additional investment (certifications, training, etc) to be placed into positions. They are “ready to go” and the more candidates a firm places within a specific field/industry, the more the word will spread that “if you need this type of position filled, contact that firm.”
