It’s how a candidate feels they’ve been treated throughout the recruitment process and how that treatment makes them feel about the organization.

Job Seekers Still Feel Fully in Control

When it comes to the current labor market, more than half of all job seekers (51%) believe that finding a job is easy, and 58% believe the current job market favors candidates. More than two-thirds (68%) believe their job search will take one to three months, and 41% would even feel comfortable quitting without having another job lined up.

Candidates feel confident that they are still in the driver’s seat of the job market, and organizations would do well to respond to these perceptions by focusing on areas that can speed the hiring process, better nurture candidates, and cater to worker priorities. Here’s the top reasons why candidates are starting the job search:

Candidate Expectations Through Recruiting

Job seekers have high expectations when it comes to the candidate experience and their interactions with recruiters. An overwhelming majority of workers expect to work with either a recruiter working on behalf of the company (47%) or a corporate recruiter (34%) during the recruiting process.

In some industries, such as financial services, manufacturing, and retail, recruiters working on behalf of the company are more common than corporate recruiters (approximately 20 percentage points more likely than corporate recruiters). This is affirming news for organizations that outsource part or all of their recruiting process to strategic RPO partners.

Within the candidate experience, job seekers believe there are areas of the recruiting process that should be deprioritized. These may be areas that candidates feel are unnecessary, don’t give an accurate picture of who they are, or even lengthen the hiring process. Job seekers believe that recruiters and hiring managers should focus less on:

Candidates Push Back on the Pain Points of Hiring

There are several areas of the recruiting process job seekers dislike. But for employers, this provides a list of opportunities within the job search, application, interview, and offer stage to improve, optimize, or transform.

Whether it’s a lack of transparency, a slow process, or outdated technologies, identify areas your company can seek to improve to bolster the candidate experience and connect with quality talent to drive your business forward.

Candidates Say: Communication is Key

Once a job seeker has applied for a job, they have expectations about what kinds of communication they should receive from an employer.

Nearly half (49%) believe they should either receive an automated email from the company or a personal email from the recruiter. Less than one in five job seekers have no expectations for communication.

Given many candidates prefer messaging from employers throughout the recruiting process, companies that prioritize timely, personalized messaging can better engage prospects for open roles.

Organizations must take the opportunity to improve their communication with candidates and deliver higher-quality experiences.

The Positive Candidate Experience Checklist

A great candidate experience means providing active and passive job seekers with engaging content, a fast application process, streamlined communications, consumer-grade technologies to answer questions quickly, and prompt feedback throughout their experiences.

Whether it’s making them feel valued during the application process, providing helpful feedback or communication, or treating them with professionalism and respect after their candidacy has ended, the candidate experience encompasses every interaction a job seeker has with an employer.

If you’re looking to improve your candidate experience, the key is to always keep the candidate at the heart of everything you do.

By nurturing each individual and prioritizing candidate engagement at every step of their journey, you’ll be well on your way to building stronger relationships with top talent that will deliver results for your business.

Top candidate experiences include:

• Consistent employer brand messages
• Automated messaging with recruiters
• Personalized job recommendations
• Feedback loops at each hiring stage
• AI-powered chatbots to optimize candidate interactions
• Easy to schedule interviews
• Mobile-optimized career sites
• Seamless job application process
• Tailored content and experiences
• Easy to find information

Make the Candidate Experience a Priority

Providing a quality candidate experience allows companies to find and recruit top talent to impact the success of the business. A solid candidate experience also ensures organizations can build a robust talent pipeline and employer brand that strengthens their reputation relative to competitors.

For employers today, understanding job seeker mindset and behavior is critical to connecting with them more effectively and staying competitive in a tight labor market. Based on the findings from Employ’s research, candidates are likely to fall into one of four quadrants in their job-seeking behavior.

See the full Job Seeker Quadrant and get other valuable insights on the job market in the Employ Q1 Quarterly Report. Examining Employer and Job Seeker Realities in the Current Job Market: How Employers Can Respond to Candidate Preferences, Perceptions, and Personas.

The post Candidate Expectations You Need to Know in 2023 first appeared on Jobvite.

Based on the latest job seeker data, Employ has identified four key personas that recruiters and hiring teams should look for when evaluating candidates to optimize their hiring process. By understanding these four categories of job seekers, talent acquisition teams can better understand their ideal candidates and, therefore, better engage with them.

The Job Seeker Quadrant: Establishing Four Candidate Personas

Based on Employ’s research, candidates fall into one of four quadrants in their job-seeking behavior. The four types of job seekers are:

• Diligent/High-Volume Job Seekers
• Sporadic/High-Volume Job Seekers
• Diligent/Selective Job Seekers
• Sporadic/Selective Job Seekers

Diligent/High-Volume Job Seekers

Candidates who make up this persona are likely to look internally in their organizations for new jobs and make up just one in 10 job seekers. They are motivated by job alerts they receive or by overall economic concerns in the current market. Frequently updating their resume, these candidates will apply even if they doubt the employer is hiring.

They can get frustrated with the job application process and abandon it if it takes too long. Most of these candidates are optimistic it will take them less than one month to find a new job and will apply for a job with a large salary range.

These candidates are racially diverse and seek new roles with strong company leadership. Concerned about the company’s financial position, these job seekers often use social media and subscribe to job advertisements. The way to make a big impact on these candidates is by offering an easy interview scheduling process.

Sporadic/High-Volume Job Seekers

Candidates characterized by this persona are the most satisfied in their current job and make up one-quarter of all job seekers. They are most likely to apply with no intention of taking a new job. These job seekers are also most likely to look internally for new roles within their current company and to frequently update their resumes.

While these candidates skew younger in age, they are also most likely to apply for a job with a large salary range. Candidates in this group have typically taken a new job in the past 12 months, and one of their primary motivations is looking for career advancement opportunities. These individuals are also highly in tune and concerned with the company’s financial position.

From a job search perspective, they regularly search via job boards, are impressed by easy scheduling, and abandon job applications if they require registration. Most are acceptable if they don’t hear back from employers for jobs they’ve applied to, but typically receive the greatest number of automated and impersonal rejection notes.

Diligent/Selective Job Seekers

Candidates who fall into this persona make up the largest number of job seekers currently. They are less likely to look internally within their current organization for new roles and less likely to apply for a new job if they believe an employer won’t hire them for the position. They are more likely to abandon a job application if it takes too long.

Half of these job seekers are unlikely to apply for a job with a large salary range. While these candidates expect to work with an outsourced recruiter, they have a low likelihood of ghosting recruiters in general.

This group of job seekers also typically attributes explaining a company’s mission and values as a good candidate experience. And from a job application perspective, they are more likely to look and use a company’s website in applying for roles than other personas.

Sporadic/Selective Job Seekers

Candidates characterized as this persona are the least likely of any candidate type to apply internally for open roles. They expect to submit the fewest applications to get a new job and are least likely of any group to use social media to update their resumes for an application or apply to a job with a very large salary range.

This group of job seekers has a greater proportion of older workers, including Baby Boomers and Generation X, and are least likely to apply for a role if they believe the employer won’t hire them. Candidates in this category are also unlikely to put significant amounts of time into an application or to have learned a new skill in the past 12 months.

While unlikely to be ghosted by a recruiter or to ghost a recruiter themselves, they are also least accepting of not hearing back from an employer. These candidates also believe the hiring process takes too long and want personal rejection notes, emails, or notices if not selected for a role.

Applying Personas in the Job Seeker Quadrant

The Job Seeker Quadrant and the persona descriptions provided here serve as a guide for companies and talent acquisition teams as they seek to get to know the motivations, triggers, characteristics, and behaviors of candidates looking for new roles in the current labor market.

By understanding the different motivations and needs of each persona type, employers have a better chance of matching their hiring process with those expectations.

Continue Exploring New Job Seeker Insights

As employers face unfamiliar territory in the current labor market, they need guidance and the latest insights to support their hiring efforts. The Q1 2023 Employ Quarterly Insights Report examines employer data across Employ’s 18,000 customers, while exploring the motivations, similarities, and differences of workers based on findings from a survey of more than 1,500 workers. Download your copy of the report here.

The post The Job Seeker Quadrant™: Four Candidate Personas Based on the Current Labor Market first appeared on Jobvite.

Let’s break down the state of jobs in manufacturing based on the latest data, look at the challenges of hiring that recruiters and HR decision makers face, and explore how the right solutions can support larger manufacturing enterprises in streamlining their talent acquisition activities.

The Current State of the Manufacturing Labor Market

The manufacturing sector has experienced significant growth over the last several years, and for the first time since 2021, shed jobs — just 4,000 — in February. In the prior six months, manufacturing had seen a monthly gain of more than 21,000 jobs, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and had increased by more than 150,000 jobs since its previous peak in January 2019.

The BLS JOLTS Report released in March 2023 also recorded that the number of open jobs in manufacturing increased to 791,000 in January versus 730,000 in December 2022. While these numbers are lower than historical highs in April 2022, the number of current job openings in manufacturing is still almost double what it was in 2019.

In February 2023, computer and electronic product manufacturing added 2,800 positions, followed by chemical manufacturing  with 2,500. Other job gains in manufacturing included:

• Navigational, measuring, electromedical, and control instruments: 1,500 jobs added
• Nonmetallic minerals manufacturing: 1,500 jobs added
• Transportation equipment: 1,300 jobs added
• Petroleum and coal products: 1,000 jobs added

Those areas that lost jobs within the manufacturing sector last month included:

• Plastics and rubber manufacturing: 4,700 jobs shed
• Furniture manufacturing: 2,800 jobs shed
• Textile mills: 1,700 jobs shed
• Paper mills: 1,100 jobs shed
• Fabricated metals: 1,100 jobs shed

Dealing with Hiring Complexity in the Manufacturing Sector

Nearly two in three recruiters (64%) in the manufacturing industry say their job is more stressful today than it was just one year ago, according to Employ data. Between the high number of open roles and increased candidate expectations, recruiters are feeling more pressured than ever to find and hire quality talent. Some of the stress comes from recruiting teams not having the resources or support they need to hire in today’s complex market. An incredible 42% of hiring teams shared that they don’t have the resources they need to be successful.

On top of this, 67% of recruiting professionals in manufacturing said their current hiring volume is higher than last year, with 60% indicating their top priority is improving quality of hire.

There’s also an increasing disconnect between what company leadership assumes recruiters need and what they actually need to find and hire top talent. In fact, 58% of recruiters believe that leadership doesn’t understand their role in the organization, making it more difficult to do their jobs.

With the significant growth in manufacturing over the past several years, there is more hiring activity going on than ever before. And it means that qualified candidates are getting harder to find and are even harder to impress. This is reflected in the latest Employ data:

Recruiters in the manufacturing industry are trying to overcome the challenges of keeping pace with hiring demands and increased candidate expectations — not to mention tapped out talent pools. Hiring teams within manufacturing have had to adapt to the changing labor market to find and attract quality talent before they’re snagged by competitors.

Recruiting teams have had to source candidates from different places and even revisit some old standbys like posting on job boards. Using professional groups to source talent for highly technical roles that are hard to fill, like engineers, has provided more success for recruiters in looking for new sources of talent. These and other sourcing strategies are helping recruiters grow talent networks with qualified candidates for their manufacturing roles.

Hiring teams have shifted focus to increasing salaries, efficiencies, and offering more flexibility to open roles. Because job seekers considering roles in the manufacturing industry do not have significant amounts of time to engage with recruiters during the day, they need an intuitive hiring process that they can complete quickly on their own schedule. Recruiting teams in this industry must prioritize new technology and enhance the candidate experience to help find and hire qualified manufacturing talent.

What Manufacturing Job Seekers Want

The Great Reshuffle led to employees searching for better opportunities at companies that offer a better value proposition. It has put — and kept — candidates in the driver’s seat for job offer negotiations.

Job seekers in the manufacturing industry are looking for better all-around experiences and seeking employers that can provide them. Beyond compensation, active job seekers are looking for career advancement opportunities (52%), greater work flexibility (45%), better company leadership (31%), and a better company culture (28%), based on the Q1 2023 Employ Quarterly Insights Report. They’re also focused on finding:

• More paid time off (PTO)
• Better health insurance
• Better DE&I across an organization
• Employee bonus programs

How to Hire the Best Manufacturing Talent at Scale

Hiring in the manufacturing industry is challenging and requires a purpose-built, comprehensive, all-in-one solution that streamlines the hiring process for skilled talent and recruiting workflows. Jobvite’s Evolve Talent Acquisition Suite empowers manufacturing companies to amplify their recruiting capacity and deliver better hiring results to drive business performance.

With purpose-built TA solutions from the Evolve Suite, you can hire skilled workers, and streamline how your manufacturing company attracts, hires, onboards, and retains talent. Using the Evolve Talent Acquisition Suite, manufacturing companies can:

#1: Reduce Talent Acquisition Costs and Time-to-Hire

Ensure hiring compliance and expedite the recruiting process. Jobvite’s suite of tools for manufacturers streamlines recruiting, speeds hiring, eliminates unnecessary costs, and gets skilled talent up and running faster.

#2: Connect with Skilled Workers in Real Time

Built specifically for the complex needs of manufacturing companies, Jobvite offers tools like Intelligent Messaging to connect with skilled talent where they are. Leverage mobile capabilities and deliver a modern, streamlined candidate experience to engage and convert candidates faster.

#3: Remove Recruiting Roadblocks & Streamline Efficiencies

Pinpoint where roadblocks exist in hiring manufacturing workers. Streamline recruiting, onboarding, and retention efforts by leveraging automation and AI to eliminate bottlenecks, increase recruiter capacity, and keep talent engaged.

With powerful recruiting capabilities, strong integration with your existing tech stack, streamlined onboarding, and more efficient processes that can help manufacturers quickly identify and secure talent for their businesses, you can stay ahead of competitors for the short-and long-term.

Learn More About Jobvite Solutions for the Manufacturing Sector

There is a better way to tackle the challenges of finding skilled talent for open manufacturing positions. By streamlining complex talent acquisition activities with the Evolve Talent Acquisition Suite, companies in the manufacturing sector can ensure they get the best possible employees who will help drive their business forward. Learn more about Jobvite’s purpose-built solution for the manufacturing sector.

The post Using Purpose-Built Solutions to Tackle TA Challenges in the Manufacturing Sector first appeared on Jobvite.

The start of 2023 reflects the tale of two hiring speeds, depending on organizational size. There is also a deceleration in the market, as evidenced by a pullback in the number of job postings, based on Employ data. It is likely that over time, deceleration in new job postings will begin to impact overall job openings in the wider labor market.

So, where do candidates fit into this? What are their current preferences, perceptions, and sentiments when it comes to looking for jobs? What are their motivations for seeking new roles and how do they go about looking for them? And how can employers respond in providing experiences that support job seekers and build a pipeline of talent for the future?

The Reality of the Job Market for Employers

Employ data reveals that organizations representing all segments, from SMB to large enterprise, saw an increase of 8.7% in average open jobs between Q1 and  Q4 2022. However, there has been a deceleration in the number of new job openings companies added last year and into January 2023. If this trend in new job openings continues, it is likely total open jobs will fall as new job openings are a leading indicator for all open jobs.

From an industry perspective, Employ data also indicates several sectors saw gains in total jobs open, while others saw notable losses. Construction and education both saw increases between January 2022 and January 2023, while total jobs open in healthcare were fairly flat.

Internet software and services saw job openings drop by nearly half from January 2022 to January 2023. Professional services also saw a decrease after significant growth in spring 2022. These data are similar to losses reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and indicate that software and services has likely seen a tremendous slowdown compared to other sectors.

Large enterprises have experienced a more significant drop in new job openings relative to small and medium-sized businesses in 2022, but stabilized earlier in Q4. SMBs continued to experience a deceleration in new job openings through the end of the year; however, in January 2023, job openings among SMBs sharply rebounded to eclipse 2022 levels, while large enterprises resumed the drop in new job openings.

The Reality of Job Seekers Right Now

Perceptions of the Job Market

U.S. workers are overwhelmingly satisfied with their current jobs: Nearly three-quarters are at least somewhat satisfied. Despite this, more than 8 in 10 are at least somewhat open to other job opportunities.

Half all job seekers believe that the current job market favors candidates and that finding a job in the labor market is easy. And while more than four in 10 workers are actively looking for a new job, the good news for employers is that a majority of them have looked for a new position at their current company. In addition to compensation, active job seekers are primarily motivated by career advancement and greater work flexibility or remote work opportunities.

Perceptions on Work Flexibility

Worker preferences for remote work over in-office work have remained steady over the past year. Approximately one-quarter of all candidates would decline a job if they were required to work full time on location, and two-thirds of workers consider the ability to work remotely important when considering whether to reject or accept a job.

However, one-fifth of active job seekers listed the ability to go into the office as a top reason for their job search. This is more than twice as likely as non-active job seekers. Full-time remote work is also on the decline. Preferences on work flexibility show a hybrid approach is preferred by a majority of workers.

Get More Insights Into Employers and Job Seekers

No matter what your company or industry is facing right now, one thing is certain. Job seekers believe they still have the upper hand when it comes to hiring. Whether this is true, or will remain true for the future, is unknown. But for now it’s critical to recognize what candidates are thinking and to leverage insights that will help your company better attract them and convert them into applicants for your open roles. 

By examining job seeker realities in the current labor market, you can better respond to and tackle the hiring challenges your organization faces. Remember to always keep candidates and job seekers central to your talent acquisition and recruiting strategies, so you can overcome short-term challenges and embrace long-term success in your business.

Get the full Q1 2023 Employ Quarterly Insights Report to learn more about employer and job seeker realities in the current job market.

The post Exploring the Changing Landscape of Employer and Job Seeker Realities in 2023 first appeared on Jobvite.

#1: Scalability Is a Strategic Advantage

No matter their size or recruiting complexity, companies are still navigating rocky terrain when it comes to hiring. Those that are actively hiring for new positions have challenges finding enough quality candidates. That’s why it remains the top priority for HR leaders in 2023. In fact, nearly two-thirds (61%) of HR decision makers indicate their first priority in recruiting this year is improving the overall quality of candidate.

However, based on Employ data, the number of new job listings across organizations decreased last year between the second and third quarters by 10.4%, representing a pullback from historic highs seen in early Q2 2022.  With new open jobs trending downward, companies will likely experience a continued increase in the total number of applications in 2023.

So while the labor market remains tight, it is also possible that companies are pulling back on hiring during this time. In response, business leaders should empower their TA and HR leaders to adopt more agile recruiting strategies that enable them to scale up or down, depending on their own business needs.

Scalability has become a key strategy for successful recruiting. It allows teams to evaluate their hiring process at all steps of the talent lifecycle to find areas of improvement and keeps teams ready to adjust to changes in the market.

Agile recruiting helps TA teams to:

• Analyze and optimize recruiting processes
• Evaluate and improve on key recruiting metrics like quality of hire and time-to-hire
• Shorten the hiring process to fill roles quicker with qualified talent
• Easily adjust to the changing job market to meet candidates where they are

#2: Technology & Process Prioritization Is Essential

Following multiple years of job market uncertainty, employers are still looking for ways to speed time to hire and focus on automating parts of the hiring process. This is often done by identifying technology and processes that can take repetitive, mundane tasks away from recruiters and hiring managers, and automate those activities for faster hiring.

Companies that plan to increase recruiting spend will most often do so by increasing their budgets for new recruitment technology processes (59%), job advertising (57%), new recruiting team role hires (45%), and by expanding their existing recruitment technology stack (43%).

Additional technology investments will likely go toward:

• Applicant tracking systems (59%)
• DEI initiatives (51%)
• Candidate relationship management (50%)
• Sourcing, including RPO (47%)
• Career sites (41%)
• Offers and onboarding (41%)

> PRO TIP: Leverage purpose-built recruitment technology

Adopt recruitment software and talent acquisition technology that is tailor-made for the complexity, size, and hiring needs of your business. By investing in purpose-built technology, companies can ensure they are more competitive to connect with the right talent and streamline their processes.

#3: Recruiting Outcomes Are Paramount

Understanding where HR decision makers face the biggest challenges right now, and actively seeking to address those difficulties, can make a difference for companies looking to improve the quality of candidates and improve the speed of hiring.

Here are two strategies that can help organizations improve their overall quality of hire, increase efficiencies through automation and workload reduction, and support compliance across companies of all sizes:

• Deliver positive experiences: Take care to invest in the needs of hiring managers, recruiters, and candidates, and deliver positive experiences for these audiences. Work to shorten feedback loops, improve communication and collaboration, and engage each stakeholder more deeply within the hiring process. If applicable, focus on engaging with gig workers and nurturing relationships with individuals who are in revenue-generating roles. Ensure the hiring process delivers positive experiences that enhance the company’s employer brand.

• Identify where to optimize processes: Leverage data-driven insights and analytics that inform where bottlenecks exist in the recruiting process and uncover opportunities to speed up time-to-hire and boost the quality of candidates. By keeping a clear pulse on applicant flow and the talent pipeline, companies can uncover insights into where the recruiting process can be improved.

Final Thoughts

Interested in deeper insights to start the new year? Download the Employ Quarterly Insights Report here or discover other relevant content in our resource library.

The post What Talent Acquisition Priorities Should Business Leaders Focus On In 2023? first appeared on Jobvite.

The number of job openings stayed above 10 million in the latest JOLTS report, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and several sectors saw key gains in total jobs open. Employ data reveals the total number of open positions in the healthcare industry grew by 5.2% between Q2 and Q3 2022, and professional services also saw an increase of 5.6% during the same period.

Companies that recognize the challenges of the current hiring environment proactively monitor key recruiting metrics to improve their recruiting programs and to stay competitive in finding top talent.

The Recruiting Metrics You’ll Need to Succeed This Year

The most strategic employers use recruiting analytics software to measure their hiring programs from job requisition to onboarding and beyond. And they gain valuable insights into the candidate, recruiter, and hiring manager experiences to optimize their processes. Take a look at the top 10 key recruiting metrics that can help you drive improved hiring outcomes in 2023 and beyond.

#1: Source of Hire

Many recruiting teams are tracking the source of their hires to understand where their best candidates come from and to further focus on more strategic recruiting initiatives, like DE&I, in the new year. This metric identifies where new hires come from and helps recruiters to expand the diversity of talent pools by looking for different sources for candidates.

#2: Source of Application

Applicants can come from a variety of channels, so it’s essential that recruiters know where their most common sources of applicants come from to improve their recruiting ROI. This allows talent teams to prioritize time and ad spending for different job requisitions to target more applicants like those who have applied and best met their job requirements.

#3: Applications Per Requisition

Measuring the number of applicants per requisition is a valuable way to see which roles are the most difficult to fill and which are most popular among candidates. Every company and industry have positions that always take longer and more effort to fill than others, so measuring number of applications for each open role can help to remedy this. It’s also a valuable metric for improving recruiting strategies like seasonal hiring.

#4: Candidate Conversion Rate

The candidate conversion rate is the number of candidates that view a job posting, fill out, and apply for a role versus the number that started to apply and left. This metric is useful for talent teams to analyze the candidate experience through communication channels like job boards, social media, and even email.

#5: Candidate Engagement Score

Use metrics like the candidate engagement score to identify candidates that are highly engaged with the employer brand during the job-seeking and hiring process. Candidates with high engagement scores respond quickly to messages, apply for multiple roles in the company, and even engage with the brand on social media.

#6: Onboarding Program Completion

With high turnover in companies today, up to one-third of all new hires in the first 90 days, according to Employ data, employers are focusing on retaining their talent from the very start of the hiring process. Companies that recognize the strategic role that onboarding plays understand how to better retain new hires. Onboarding analytics that determine areas of success and improvement in the current onboarding program should be considered an important part of your hiring process.

#7: Quality of Hire

This metric has been a hot topic for recruiters in recent years, and the definition has changed since talent teams started measuring it. Quality of hire is the value that a new hire brings to the organization, and it can be determined in several ways. From hiring manager satisfaction to meeting the requirements of the job to retention in the organization, overall quality of hire and can be very useful to improving the types of candidates you recruit.

#8: Employee Turnover Rate

High turnover and low unemployment in the market has put a strain on organizations that are looking to grow this year. Strategic recruiting teams are closely monitoring metrics like employee turnover to see where they’re losing valuable talent.

#9: Internal Mobility

To keep talented employees within the business, your company should prioritize internal mobility programs over the next 6 to 12 months. It’s crucial to create career pathways for top talent in the organization; otherwise, you may risk losing them to competitors. Incentivize management to refer employees for promotions or help them with other lateral career moves within the company.

#10: Recruiting Channel Response

The most strategic employers deploy recruitment marketing campaigns to grow their employer brand and make it easier to convert top talent. Monitoring key communication metrics, like email performance, text message response rates, and career site engagement can give a detailed picture of the candidate experience.

Get Moving on Hiring in 2023 and Beyond

As your company finishes up recruitment planning for 2023, and prepares for more expected turbulence in the labor market, make sure your organization is ready to find, hire, and retain top talent. Download the 2023 Recruiting Effectiveness Planning Kit for actionable strategies and guided direction to recruit this year.

The post The 10 Key Recruiting Metrics You Need to Track in 2023 first appeared on Jobvite.

Employ data from more than 18,000 customers and a survey of more than 1,200 HR leaders and talent professionals reveals that one-third (33%) expect their recruitment spending to remain the same over the next 12 months. However, more than half (54%) expect to increase recruitment spend in their company this year. Spending increases are most expected in medium-sized businesses (66%), while 53% of large enterprises and 43% of small businesses anticipate increasing budgets for 2023.

So when it comes to focused investments, here are the top five recruiting trends we will likely see in 2023:

#5: Enhancing DE&I Programs

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) initiatives continue to have greater priority and focus for organizations of all sizes as companies realize their value for attracting higher quality candidates and contributing to workplace performance. In 2023, 33% of HR decision makers plan to increase their investments in DE&I programs. This is an increase of five points since June 2022 for spending on these initiatives, and reflects the importance of creating a workforce that values a diversity of perspectives. 

#4: Bolstering Employer Branding Initiatives

Investing in employer brand initiatives continues to be a priority this new year. In fact, more than one-third of employers (35%) plan to increase their budget in this area. Why? Candidates seek companies that align to their own values and want an idea of what it’s like to work in the company before applying. Staying competitive in a tight labor market means continuously investing in your employer brand, and remains a top priority for companies in 2023.

#3: Hiring New Recruiting Team Roles

Employ data reveals that 45% of talent teams plan to add new recruiting team roles in 2023. Investing in the recruiting function and the resources to help keep up with demand in finding high quality talent is widely seen as vital for companies of all sizes, especially during periods of growth. Even in the midst of economic uncertainty, large and small businesses continue to invest in their teams, knowing they need the right people to meet the hiring demands of their business and to combat the tight labor market.

#2: Expanding Job Advertising Presence

In 2023, companies can anticipate increases in job advertising. Employ data reveals 57% of companies expect to increase advertising budgets for open roles and to attract higher quality talent. Posting open positions on job boards is a solid approach for broadening your company’s talent pool. It also expands awareness of positions that passive or active candidates may not have previously had visibility to and enhances your employer brand online. Ensuring that you use targeted job advertising is imperative and can help find the right candidates who will best fit your open positions.

#1: Increasing Investments In Recruiting Technology

As the labor market continues to see a high volume of open positions and the potential for recession continues, companies both large and small need to increase their hiring efficiencies and reliance on automation to streamline hiring efforts. That’s why it’s the number one trend for 2023. In fact, 59% of HR decision makers, recruiters, and talent professionals expect to increase spending on new recruitment technologies. This includes an increase of more than 17 points since June 2022 for spending on applicant tracking systems, an increase of eight points for candidate texting solutions, and an increase of five points for candidate relationship management systems.

Remember, Scalability Is Key to 2023

Planning during times of uncertainty is one of the biggest challenges HR decision makers, recruiting experts, and talent acquisition professionals face when guiding their organization’s future. Now that your company has entered a new year of recruiting, pursuing a scalable hiring strategy will be essential to attracting, hiring, and onboarding quality talent to drive organizational performance and alleviate the pressures from market slowdowns. As you begin to put your hiring programs into practice, remember to keep scalability at the forefront of your strategy. Ask the following questions:

• What must-haves should we focus on in our recruiting process?
• How can we find the right people in a challenging labor market faster?
• Where can we do more with less or the same with less?
• How can we become more efficient while improving outcomes?

The insights available in this article are only a starting point. For more data, key takeaways, and actionable insights, download the full Employ Quarterly Insights Report here.

The post The Top 5 Recruiting Trends for 2023 first appeared on Jobvite.

As recruiters regularly interact with candidates, they experience first-hand what drives candidates to look for new roles and leave their current companies. Let’s dive into what HR decision makers and recruiters perceive as the top motivations for why candidates are seeking new jobs, why employees are leaving their current roles, and the types of positions most likely to encounter challenges along the way. 

The Top Motivations for Job Seekers Finding a New Job Today

Based on Employ’s survey of more than 1,200 HR decision makers and recruiters in November 2022, the top motivation for employees leaving a job is pursuing more money or seeking a more flexible work arrangement. This is followed by seeking career advancement, unemployment or fear of unemployment, and leaving a bad manager or culture. Seeking a new challenge, looking for a more diverse or inclusive work environment, and finding an office to work from regularly comprised just under 15% of all responses. 

• Getting more money: 34.4%
• Ability to work remotely: 21.3%
• Career advancement: 12.6%
• Unemployment or fear of becoming unemployed: 9.6%%
• Leaving a bad manager or bad company culture: 8.5%
• Time for a change or new challenge: 4.2%
• Find a more inclusive / diverse workplace: 4.9%
• Ability to work in an office: 4.7%

Interestingly, unemployment or fear of becoming unemployed was rated by 1 in 10 employees as a top motivator for moving jobs. As talks of recession continue to dominate the hiring landscape, it will remain to be seen whether more employees leave their positions in search of something more stable or stay put in their roles longer than they would have based on economic headwinds. 

The Primary Motivations for Employees Leaving Their Own Company 

When determining specifically why talent leaders and recruiters believe employees are exiting their current organization, the top three responses were similar to the motivations in general for finding a new role:

• Getting more money: 37.1% 
• Ability to work remotely: 18.6% 
• Career advancement: 13.4%

However, more than 1 in 10 HR decision makers believe that current employees are looking for a change or new challenge and just five percent are leaving because of a bad company culture or manager internally. 

• Time for a change or new challenge: 12.4% 
• Leaving bad manager or bad company culture: 5.2% 

Looking for a more inclusive workplace was higher when evaluating why employees were leaving their current company, but the fear of unemployment was almost half of those HR leaders who believe it was a top motivator for finding a new role overall. 

• Find a more inclusive / diverse workplace: 5.1%
• Unemployment or fear of becoming unemployed: 4.2% 
• Ability to work in an office: 4.0%

Candidate Challenges in the Current Hiring Climate

When it comes to challenges for job seekers, experienced professionals may find more difficulty than entry-level candidates in finding the right roles. Employ data shows that 49% of recruiters believe experienced workers have the biggest challenge in finding a job today. By comparison, only 15% of talent professionals said those individuals re-entering the workforce saw the biggest challenges. 

When broken down by industry, the gap becomes more drastic. In fact, 57% of recruiters in the construction industry said experienced workers saw more challenges in finding new roles, while 61% of recruiters filling healthcare roles believe this is true. 

Key Takeaways When It Comes to Understanding Job Seekers 

Connecting with job seekers and understanding their motivations will be more important than ever next year. Take care to invest in the needs of candidates and deliver positive experiences for them. Work to shorten feedback loops, improve communication and collaboration, and engage with applicants more deeply within the hiring process. 

If it is challenging to compete on salary in your company, compete on speed, benefits, and remote work. Ensure you are promoting a diverse workforce, flexible work arrangements, and overall benefits packages to highlight the total rewards package of working at your company. 

If applicable, focus on engaging with gig workers and nurturing relationships with individuals who are in revenue-generating roles. Ensure the hiring process delivers positive experiences that enhance your company’s employer brand. 

Overall, control what you can. Faster recruiting processes and more attractive, hybrid work environments will result in fewer good candidates withdrawing and fewer rejected offers for your talent acquisition function. Most of all, it will help meet your priorities for increasing the quality of candidates and improving overall time to hire in your business. 

Get More Insights on Responding to the Current Labor Market 

Planning during times of uncertainty is one of the biggest challenges companies face when it comes to guiding the future of their organization. As companies prepare for 2023, pursuing a scalable hiring strategy will be essential to attracting, hiring, and onboarding quality talent that will drive organizational performance.

The insights available in this article are only a starting point. For more data, key takeaways, and actionable insights, download the full Employ Quarterly Insights Report here.

The post What Job Seekers Want in 2023 first appeared on Jobvite.

Yet uncertainty with inflation, drastic interest rate increases, high-profile drops in company valuations, and massive rounds of layoffs dominating headlines have many companies looking to reduce operating costs and tighten spending as they move into 2023.

New Insights and Recruiting Data from Employ

The labor market is seeing a pullback relative to early 2022 historical highs. Employ data shows new job listings per month are decreasing across organizations of every size, while the number of average applications submitted per job is increasing. And while 77% of organizations have not reduced hiring plans or implemented hiring freezes in 2022, 51% of HR decision makers are worried that layoffs may hit their organization.

The unpredictability resulting from these conditions makes it difficult for employers to know how they should respond in this difficult talent landscape. From SMBs to large enterprises, companies of every size and recruiting complexity must stay the course and remain resilient as they plan for 2023 and beyond.

Navigating the paradox of both a softening hiring environment and a historically tight labor market makes it difficult for companies to prepare for the coming year. The Q4 Employ Quarterly Insights Report “Recruiting Resilience: Embracing a Scalable Recruiting Function for 2023 & Beyond” explores how employers can remain resilient as they prepare for 2023. This new report features the latest proprietary and market data, offering insights and actionable takeaways to increase adaptability and scalability in the difficult talent landscape.

View the entire collection of data and insights by downloading the Q4 Employ Quarterly Insights Report.

The Employ Quarterly Insights Report provides unique insights and in-depth analysis on hiring trends compiled from employer and job seeker activity across Employ’s 18,000 customers and findings from a survey of more than 1,200 HR decision makers conducted by Zogby Analytics in November 2022. The report offers a detailed look at the current state of recruiting and examines how companies should optimize recruiting efforts during one of the most difficult and demanding environments in history.

A Continued Demand for Hiring

Despite talks of a recession and worries about potential layoffs, most companies have not slowed their hiring efforts. According to Employ data, 88% of HR decision makers believe hiring in 2023 will be more or as difficult as 2022. Many organizations are actually planning on ramping up their hiring in the next year. An astounding 60% of surveyed HR decision makers say that their company is actively planning on making more hires in 2023, with only 8% of organizations saying they anticipate decreasing their hiring efforts in that time.

Recruiter Priorities for 2023

As the new year approaches, organizations are planning recruiting activities for the coming year. Data from the Q4 Employ Quarterly Insights Report shows that 61% of HR leaders are focusing their efforts on enhancing the quality of candidates and applicants they recruit. Organizations are not shying away from the tough fight in the labor market; instead, they’re doubling down to find the best talent.

Aside from the quality of candidates, HR leaders are also rethinking the tools they use to find and engage with candidates. In 2023, 59% of surveyed organizations plan to increase their spending on applicant tracking systems (ATS) to increase greater efficiencies in their hiring process. This is a significant 17-point increase since June 2022. Additionally, 50% of companies have active plans to increase their investment in candidate relationship management (CRM) systems. In 2023, recruiters will leverage these advanced tools to deliver an excellent candidate experience built to engage, hire, and retain the most skilled labor in the market.

Get the Full Q4 Employ Quarterly Insights Report

The insights available in this article are only a starting point. For more data, key takeaways, and actionable insights, download the full report here.

The post How to Embrace a Scalable Recruiting Function for 2023 & Beyond first appeared on Jobvite.

To recognize outstanding executives, we asked CEOs, founders, and leaders in HR this question for their recommendations. From being adaptable to balancing ambition with a touch of realism, there are several attributes to look for when sourcing quality executives for open senior roles.

Here are 15 characteristics these leaders suggest are key indicators for a successful executive:

• The Ability to Anticipate Change
• Thinking as “We” Instead of “Me”
• Self-Awareness Shows Emotional Intelligence
• Look for Someone With Grit
• A Cultural Fit with Mission and Value
• Being Detail-Oriented
• Taking Accountability for Failures
• The Ability to Delegate Effectively
• Self-Learning Is a Superpower
• Staying Positive
• Keeping the Big Picture in Focus
• Possessing a Curious Mind
• Masterful Communication Skills
• Knowing Everyone’s Name
• Balancing Realism With Ambition

The Ability to Anticipate Change

The ability to expect change is one trait I look for in executives as proxies for how likely they are to succeed. The world is changing rapidly, and so is business.

Those who can adapt and create new ideas quickly will be better able to survive and thrive. At the same time, those who are set in their ways and are unwilling to change will probably fall behind or get left behind. 

This ability often requires what the famed investor Howard Marks calls second-level thinking, the ability to look past the obvious and past the consensus to an array of outcomes. The thoughtful executive can assess how likely each outcome is and can plan for it accordingly.

Matthew Ramirez, CEO, Rephrasely

Thinking as “We” Instead of “Me”

When speaking with an executive, you will hear some talk about “we” and others talk about “me” when they discuss wins or projects. No executive is successful alone — they have team members contributing as well. 

If the executive doesn’t acknowledge that (or worse, even know it), then it’s unlikely they’ll be successful for long. Find leaders that recognize and appreciate the people that work for or with them.

Logan Mallory, Vice President of Marketing, Motivosity

Self-Awareness Shows Emotional Intelligence

Being self-aware is a clear sign you understand your strengths and areas where you may need improvement. It makes you more receptive to feedback and fosters a growth mindset, which is essential for any leader.

Beyond that, self-awareness tells me you might be empathetic. Empathy is crucial in the healthcare industry because we want to make clients feel valued and well-treated. A self-aware executive is more likely to propose steps that will benefit our clients and business without sacrificing one for the other. Overall, self-awareness adds another layer of trust to an executive position.

Stephan Baldwin, Founder, Assisted Living Center

Look for Someone With Grit

One of the best traits to look for in an executive is grit. We define grit as “perseverance and passion for long-term goals.” It’s the ability to maintain focus and motivation, even in the face of setbacks or difficulties. 

Individuals with grit are resilient and have a strong sense of determination. They don’t give up easily, and they are constantly striving to improve and reach their goals.

Grit is a critical trait for success in any field, but it’s especially important for leaders. Leaders need to inspire others, even when times are tough. They need to maintain their own motivation and focus, while also supporting and motivating those around them. 

Individuals with grit make influential leaders because they are always looking for ways to improve, and they never give up on their goals. If you’re looking for an executive who is likely to succeed within your organization, look for someone with grit.

Linda Shaffer, Chief People Operations Officer, Checkr

A Cultural Fit with Mission and Values

One trait you look for in an executive that shows they are likely to succeed within the organization is cultural fit. 

After the role requirements are satisfied, the most important thing to do is to make sure the candidate fits culturally with the company’s values and mission as well as with the current leadership.

Every business and every leader is unique. Even though there are parallels, pre-made solutions won’t be effective. Your coach should be open to developing an impressive growth strategy based on your business’ objectives and culture.

The executives heavily influence the culture; hence, this aspect must be emphasized significantly. A misalignment in this area will cost the business astronomical sums of money, time, resources, morale, retention, and execution.

Tiffany Homan, COO, Texas Divorce Laws

Being Detail-Oriented

As an executive in a company, you oversee a lot of the business’s operations. Paying attention to detail is such an important skill for success, especially at the executive level, but also in your personal life.

Executives need to examine the information and decide on changes based on what they find. They can also notice problems quickly and look for solutions to improve the flow of the company. 

It can be overwhelming sometimes in large companies to focus on details, but it remains at the top of the list for the trait most desired when searching for a new executive.

Alex Mastin, CEO & Founder, Home Grounds

Taking Accountability for Failures

I look for leaders who blame themselves, not others, for their failures.

A private equity firm I was working with was interested in hiring a senior candidate. I asked the candidate why he wanted to leave his current role as President of a business only after two years of joining. He responded that while he was aligned with the founder, the rest of the company was not aligned to the growth plans. While this may have been true, the candidate blamed his failure to implement vision on the unwillingness of others to buy into his plan. 

A better response might have been that he failed to convince employees to support his vision. The PE firm passed up on the candidate following my recommendation. The candidate found another job, but I wasn’t surprised to see him looking for yet another role a few years later.

Atta Tarki, Founder & Author, ECA Partners

The Ability to Delegate Effectively

The ability to delegate effectively is an important trait to look for in an executive. Those who can delegate tasks and trust that someone will complete them efficiently are more likely to succeed than those who try to do everything themselves. 

Those who delegate also have a better understanding of their own strengths and weaknesses, which allows them to focus on their own strengths while leaving other tasks to those who are better equipped to handle them. 

Delegation is an important skill for anyone in a leadership position, and it is one that can show success in both the organization and in life.

Erik Pham, CEO, Health Canal

Self-Learning Is a Superpower

Being good with people and networking for business are crucial skills for any executive. 

In recent years, a person’s ability to actively assess their own knowledge gaps, set learning goals, seek out the necessary people and resources to learn from, and continuously apply what they learn is equally important. 

Besides reskilling, self-directed learning reveals highly valuable personal qualities. This mindset acknowledges that you don’t know everything, but are willing to learn in order to succeed. 

In addition, it reveals a person who is willing and able to change, adapting to the demands of their job. This person is less fearful of failure, for example, because, unlike someone who does less proactive self-learning, this person can learn from scratch or can start over whenever they need to.

Jon Torres, CEO, Jon Torres

Staying Positive 

It’s essential for leaders to have a positive attitude, both for their own well-being and for the sake of those they lead. 

A positive outlook can be contagious and inspire others to do their best work. Additionally, when things inevitably go wrong (as they always do), a positive attitude will help a leader stay calm and focused so they can find a solution.

Tzvi Heber, Founder, CEO, & HR Head, Ascendant Detox

Keeping the Big Picture in Focus

An executive who has a big-picture outlook is more likely to succeed within an organization. 

Someone who can see the big picture and how it relates to the organization as a whole will be more successful than someone who is only focused on the details. This is because they will be better able to see how their decisions will impact the organization as a whole rather than just one area of it.

A big-picture outlook also means that they can see the long-term implications of their decisions rather than just short-term ones. This can be important in areas such as marketing, where decisions made today can have long-term effects on the success of the company. 

Someone who can see the big picture will be better able to make decisions that will be best for the company in the long run.

Luciano Colos, Founder & CEO, PitchGrade

Possessing a Curious Mind

Executives with a curious mind are likely to succeed not just in their career, but also in life. 

It is so because people often link curiosity to creativity, which is exactly what’s needed when successfully leading an organization. Curious people are not afraid to try new things and are brave enough to break the norm, allowing them to discover ground-breaking things and make big achievements in life.

For curious executives, failure is not the end of their careers. With every mistake they make, they become more knowledgeable and wise in making decisions. Failure challenges them to become the best version of themselves and teaches them to be flexible amidst every obstacle they face.

Sam Tabak, Board Member, RMBH Charities

Masterful Communication Skills

Effective communication is one of the most important traits for any leader, particularly in today’s world. Great communicators inspire people. They create a connection with their followers that is real, emotional, and personal — even if they’re not physically present with them. 

Effective communication requires the ability to connect with others on a deep level. It requires being able to understand why they do what they do and why they think what they think. It means knowing how to use your voice effectively so that you can communicate clearly and powerfully with others. 

It also means knowing how to listen — really listen — so that you can hear what your audience wants from you and deliver it to make them feel heard, understood, and valued.

Sandeep Bhandari, Co-Founder, Askanydifference

Knowing Everyone’s Name

When an executive knows the name of everyone in the office, including the maintenance staff, that’s a signal that they will be successful in their role. 

It shows that they are invested, not only in the business but in the people as well. Someone like that is respected within an organization and people are more likely to push for an executive like this to succeed.

Jarir Mallah, HR Specialist, Ling App

Balancing Realism With Ambition

There are many traits that can indicate an executive is likely to be successful within an organization, but some of the most important ones are realism, ambition, and creativity.

Executives who can maintain a realistic perspective on their business and its challenges are more likely to be successful in the long run.

Ambition is also key, as executives who want to achieve great things for their company are more likely to put in the extra effort needed to succeed.

Finally, creativity is essential in any industry, and executives who are able to think outside the box and come up with new ideas will be more successful than those who stick to the status quo.

Jamie Irwin, Director, Straight Up Search

Terkel creates community-driven content featuring expert insights. Sign up at terkel.io to answer questions and get published.

The post HR Leaders Say Executives with These 15 Traits Are Most Likely to Succeed first appeared on Jobvite.