By Julie Jansen
There are emerging trends that are significantly impacting the hiring process for both individuals who are looking for work and companies who want to hire new employees.
Job seekers are running up against more barriers than ever to getting interviews and securing job offers. First, most employers rely on the use of Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) to source and screen candidates. This means that job seekers need to tailor their skills and achievements on their resume for each job they are applying for, ensure that their LinkedIn profile captures all of the necessary keywords, and fill out long applications before they ever talk to a human being at the company. Unfortunately, many job seekers don’t realize how many on-line applications companies do receive, with a large portion of the candidates unqualified for the job.
Additionally, most companies have open jobs yet they are slow to hire for two reasons – they believe that the “perfect candidate” exists, and they are fearful of making a poor hire. As a result, companies are asking job applicants to go through numerous interviews, take psychological and personality tests, go through background checks, and solve business cases or give formal presentations on the spot.
Finally, most companies will “Google” job candidates to see how they communicate their value proposition or brand on social media, whether it be LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. If a candidate posts inappropriate or overly opinionated information or, he barely has a presence at all, this will negatively impact his chance of being considered as a candidate. Therefore, it is important to create the right impressions on-line as it is nearly impossible to eliminate what is coined “digital dirt.” At the same time, employers are even more interested than ever in hiring employees who possess interpersonal business competencies such as oral communication, conflict resolution, management, and leadership skills.
Millennials, born between 1980 – 1995, are the largest generation in the workforce today according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, and this number will increase rapidly in the next decade. Millennials value user experience, personalization, contributing to meaningful causes, and are impatiently opportunistic. If they don’t see their values being met from the very beginning of their experience as a job candidate, they will happily move on to the next company. Technology is dominating work and life in every way and if a company doesn’t appear to be keeping up in this arena, Millennials will discount them as a viable employer.
Whether an employer or a job seeker, one thing that hasn’t changed is the need to build and nurture a network throughout one’s life. Despite the widespread use of ATS software, companies who are trying to hire employees are more successful when they rely on referrals to source candidates. In LinkedIn’s 2015 U.S. Recruiting Trends Survey of company decision makers who have hired people, referrals were the primary source of hires over the last three years. As for job seekers, while applying for jobs on-line is usually necessary, it is much more effective to connect with people who can help facilitate introductions to decision makers within organizations.
In short, the expectations that employers have of job candidates and those that job seekers have of employers are high, and the landscape is competitive for attracting talent and for getting interviews and job offers.