A new year means new opportunities for both employers and candidates alike. As you begin to prepare for hiring new talent this year as an employer or searching for a new career as a professional, there have been a variety of trends popping up throughout the workplace in these categories:
- Culture
- Employee / Candidate Expectations
- Employer Concerns
- Company Reputation
- Candidate Pipeline
If you’re wondering how to maintain your reputation as a company that many individuals want to work for or what you should know as a candidate seeking a new job, keep reading to find out what the top trends are this year.
Workplace Culture
Candidates are valuing workplace culture now more than ever, which means that if your organization isn’t actively seeking ways to improve your culture, you’re likely missing the opportunity to attract great talent. As stats have shown throughout the past few years, employees are continuing to make career changes. According to a study conducted by Robert Half, 46% of professionals are currently looking for a new job or plan to in the first half of 2023. Six months ago, that number was 41%.
Why is that change happening? The study showcases these reasons as the top three:
- 61% want a higher salary
- 37% seek better perks and benefits
- 36% desire greater work flexibility
In this day and age, professionals know that if their current employer isn’t able to provide what they’re looking for, they’ll be able to find another employer who will.
Additionally, there are several generational changes happening in the workplace. Baby boomers are preparing to retire, Gen Xers are moving up the corporate ladder, and Gen Zers are entering the workforce with a fresh perspective. As Wellable shares, companies must account for the organizational differences, especially when it comes to creating new roles. With a constantly changing workforce and technology advances, there are new positions evolving. This means new titles, responsibilities, and careers that are outside of the traditional mold to accommodate both the employer’s and employees’ needs.
Employee / Candidate Expectations
Employees and candidates are expecting more from employers. Knowing that they can easily make a change to another company that can offer those benefits and perks, it’s crucial for employers to develop strategies that will retain their employees. As your organization gets ready to hire in the new year, be sure to prioritize what candidates are looking for, which include:
Inclusion efforts. Employees want to know that companies are investing in DEI initiatives and incorporating equitable hiring practices to build an inclusive workplace. In addition, employees want to see benchmarks and tracking for inclusion efforts so they know their employer is truly making an effort to implement change.
Hybrid workplace and flexible hours. After the pandemic revealed that most jobs don’t require the employee to physically be in the office to get their work done, many professionals have a low desire to return back to the office full-time. Allowing employees to continue to work remotely in 2023, or at least allow for a hybrid option, is something that many individuals value. Additionally, after many companies have begun to adopt the 4-day workweek, candidates seek that flexibility as well as the option to work flex hours outside of the typical 9-5 timeframe, during windows that work best for them, their needs, and their work/life balance.
Feeling valued, working with purpose, and having a fulfilling career. Two of the things that employees want most is to feel valued and enjoy their careers, which comes through the form of employee recognition. This could be something as small as a social media shoutout or something bigger, like a reward or gift.
Company culture. There’s always room for improvement when it comes to your organization’s culture, especially because employees want to feel safe, connected, and comfortable. Create an environment where everyone feels welcome and supported, and you’ll immediately find that you’re retaining your employees.
Mentorship. Do you have a workplace mentoring program? If not, make 2023 the year you implement one, as it benefits both the employer and the employees. Employers who encourage mentoring find that they have reduced training costs, increased employee retention, improved DEI, and more. On the other hand, employees who get mentored gather career guidance and support, have the opportunity to network, learn new skills, and more.
Good pay / benefits and salary transparency to reduce the wage gap. One of the biggest driving factors for a professional leaving their job is wanting to get better pay with better benefits. Evaluate what your organization currently offers and see if there’s room for improvement — which there likely is. Additionally, female professionals want to ensure they’re making the equivalent of their male counterparts, which you can prove through salary transparency. The Boston Women’s Workforce Council (BWWC) has a helpful wage gap calculator for helping you to determine if a wage gap exists.
Employer Concerns
Employees’ expectations often lead to concerns for employers, which are showing in various ways this year, including:
Economic instability and uncertainty. As the talks of a recession continue to occur, many companies are left with the difficult tasks of layoffs and hiring freezes. Without knowing yet how things may go, it’s a challenge for companies to know which direction to take with their teams.
Shortage of skilled professionals. Although some companies are dealing with layoffs, other companies are struggling to hire due to a labor shortage. This means that workers in the labor market have more bargaining power, as organizations are desperate to fill empty positions, which may lead to candidates getting higher wages and benefits.
Matching candidates with culture fit. Not only does the culture have to be the right fit for the candidate, but the candidate also needs to be the right fit for the culture. Studies show that people who fit well into their organization often express greater job satisfaction, employee engagement, employee retention, and productivity.
Retention. Following the “Great Resignation,” high employee turnover not only brings a financial loss to companies but also brings “declining productivity, engagement and morale as remaining associates must often pick up the slack from departing team members,” according to Forbes.Retaining great talent has been a challenge for many organizations, and this year, it’s crucial to implement strategies that will focus on retention.
Company Reputation
Once people recognize your company as an excellent employer, it’s important to continue to live up to that status, which will help with employee retention, attraction, engagement, and more. Organizations can do that by:
Branding your company as a Great Place to Work. Completing the Great Place to Work certification helps candidates to recognize which organizations offer an excellent company culture while employers gain a recruiting advantage by showing they provide a great employee experience.
Meeting the expectations of employees. Do your employees feel supported, valued, connected, and safe? Ensuring that you create an environment where your employees can not only fit in but also thrive is crucial for receiving recognition for your organization.
Seeking alternative talent sourcing. Working with a firm like MomUp ensures you’re following equitable hiring practices and partnering with an expert who can help find and bring you the talent you’re looking for within your company.
Hiring consultants or employees for specialized roles. It’s common for organizations to let tasks that are outside of everyone else’s role fall onto the HR department or person, but they can’t — and shouldn’t — be expected to do it all. When you’re looking to enhance your culture, hire top talent, improve your DEI efforts, scale your HR efforts, or something else, it’s best to hire a consultant or a new full-time employee who can spearhead those initiatives for you, as they will have the experience to do so in the right way.
Retaining your employees and supporting them. Your work as an employer doesn’t end once you hire a new employee; it’s up to you to continue to support them and help them grow. That might entail understanding their career goals to provide them with a position that taps into their interests while supporting the company, paying for them to advance their education, establishing a mentorship program, and more.
Recruitment
As the workforce continues to change, it’s crucial for your hiring practices to adapt to those changes as well in order to ensure recruitment success. Our advice:
Companies need to be more strategic and less automated with hiring. Rather than using overly-saturated web platforms that will provide you with hundreds of applicants that might not be a good fit, work closely with a talent acquisition team who can support you. Whether you have that team within your organization already or you hire an external organization like MomUp, this direction will provide you with successful long-term hiring. If you do work with an outside recruiting firm, be sure to build a close relationship with them so they understand your corporate culture, needs, and challenges and can therefore provide you with the best solutions.
Stay on top of hiring trends and adapt accordingly. Hiring trends are constantly evolving, as both job seekers and employers adapt to the changing needs of the job market. In order to be successful with your hiring efforts, it’s crucial that you stay up-to-date on what candidates are looking for in an organization and adjust your processes and offers accordingly.
The different generations can also affect current hiring trends. If you have employees that span multiple generations, this affects your hiring process. For example, older workers may be more likely to have more experience and education, but younger workers may be more adept at using new technologies. Employers must take these differences into account when considering candidates from different age groups to ensure the best fit for your culture and needs.
As the world, economy, technology, and people continue to grow and evolve, it’s important to evaluate your hiring practices as an employer and your job seeking processes as a candidate to ensure ultimate success. Partnering with a firm like MomUp can help make this situation easier for all involved.
