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Suppose you have been building up a candidate pool searching for the perfect person to fill an open role in your organization. You’ve spent several weeks at it so far, pulling in resumes and applications from a variety of different platforms. The people in your pool are actively looking for work, and you can filter them down into the most valuable, best matched, highest-skilled candidates for your shortlist. You pick one, and you hire them. What do you do with the rest of the people on the list? A good applicant tracking system will keep those candidate profiles on file in case you want to refer to them later. Maybe your chosen candidate rejects your job offer. Perhaps they accept your offer, work for a few months, and decide to leave. Perhaps they will get a better offer in six months. Regardless of why, suddenly, you’re left looking to fill the same position once again. If you’ve kept your old candidate pool information around, you should be able to reach out and hire your next-best candidate, right? After all, those people were interested at one point; they should still be interested. The Trouble of Data Degradation Perhaps you reach out to the second-in-line candidate. They say no; they’ve already found a job at a different company and they aren’t interested in leaving so soon. You reach out to the next in line. They say no; they’ve moved out of state and aren’t interested in coming back. You reach out to the next, and they refuse as well. How far do you have to dig to find a candidate still willing to work for you? Of course, the answer varies, but it can be very time-consuming to filter through your candidate list again. Situations change. Everyone in your candidate pool is active, building their skills, seeking other employment, earning certificates, and more. Some leave the job market, and others leave the industry completely. The longer you go in between building a candidate pool and actively using it, the less valuable that pool will be. It’s just like marketing lists, email newsletter lists, and any other list of data that changes over time. New people are interested, old candidates drop out, and the people still on the list have changing interests and situations. “The hiring process doesn’t start when there is a vacancy in the organization—it starts long before the vacancy opens. It is the mark of an able HR professional to arrange the structure of a human resources department so that there is ongoing talent acquisition—and for this, keeping a candidate database is crucial.” –  Association for Talent Development . Your job as an HR manager or hiring director is to implement practices to keep this candidate pool warm so that when you need to fill an open role, you have the data ready to go. There are many ways to do this, so we’ve developed five primary methods you can use. 1: Monitor LinkedIn Data In many industries, the best platform to use for keeping on top of candidate data is LinkedIn. Billed as the professional network for businesses, brands, and job-seekers, LinkedIn is a vast resource, even if you don’t actively use it for recruiting. LinkedIn data can be harvested by a modern ATS with integration ability, or you can choose specific pieces of data you want to watch, take notes, and check for changes when you need to refresh your information. The former is better, of course; automatically doing it saves work hours and money. How can you use LinkedIn data to your advantage? Watch for changes in skills that might make a middling candidate into a more attractive proposition . Candidates who develop their skills actively are already a better choice, and those who pursue certifications or training in their careers are more attractive still. Look for employment changes . A great passive candidate might not be available for hire, but they may seek new opportunities if their employment status changes. This is a great time to approach them with a new offer. Watch for candidates who have viewed your business profile . LinkedIn offers business tools to companies willing to pay for them, and one of those tools allows you to see candidates who are viewing your profile. It can indicate that they’ll be more receptive to your outreach. LinkedIn alone won’t keep your candidate pool warm or prevent data degradation. It will, however, provide you with convenient access to information as it changes and can give you indications of when outreach can be most effective. 2: Don’t Write Off Hired Candidates Just because a candidate has changed their status from “seeking a job” to “employed” doesn’t mean they’re out of reach. Passive candidates can be some of the best people to recruit if you can reach out to them in the right way and give them the right offer. “Keep in mind that passive job seekers are generally happy with their current job and will not be willing to leap into another job without serious consideration. This makes relationship-building a must when trying to engage passive job seekers.” –  SHRM . When you’re harvesting information to keep your candidate pool up to date, you might encounter top candidates who are no longer actively seeking work. Some of them may have decided to leave the job market and subsist on unemployment or a spouse’s income, but most have likely obtained employment in another way and are simply no longer looking. These candidates may still be receptive to the right offer. You just need to determine how to reach them and what to offer them that their current position doesn’t. Some ideas include: A higher salary . Many candidates have money on the mind and will be willing to make significant changes to their careers to have a larger paycheck. If you can offer more than whoever they’re currently working for, you’ll do well to hook them. Better benefits . Whether you’re offering flexible hours, more time off, work from home or remote work benefits, better insurance coverage, or something else, benefits can make or break an offer and convince a passive candidate to jump ship. Better internal upwards mobility . An unfortunate fact is that modern businesses are limited in their mobility, which means candidates often need to change companies if they want to progress their careers. Candidates don’t like doing this – there’s a lot of uncertainty and change involved – so offering upward mobility can help foster loyalty and be a more attractive career option. No one likes working in a dead-end job. A closer fit to the candidate’s skills . Sometimes, desperation drives a candidate to accept a sub-par opportunity just to put food on the table. Even if they’re no longer actively seeking work, they may be more than happy to leave their current position in favor of one that better suits their skills and experience. A more challenging role . Some individuals like a challenge. They tend to work in a given role long enough to “solve” it, such that the unique challenges they encounter are no longer challenging. If you can present more unique and interesting work for these people, it can be very attractive for them. A company with a better reputation . Some candidates are concerned not just with the tangible benefits of a job; but with the company as a whole. They might not want to work with companies that have had poor reputations, and they may have discovered something about their current company they don’t like but don’t have the luxury of leaving without something else lined up. If you’re dedicated to the idea of convincing a candidate to jump ship on their current employer and come to you, you also need to be aware of the loyalty challenge. These candidates are already demonstrating that they’re willing to leave their current role for a better offer. How can you keep them around? In simple terms, you need to continue to be the best offer available. This may or may not be possible for your company, particularly above a certain point, where pay, benefits, and mobility are capped by the nature of your business. 3: Develop an Outreach Strategy Reconnecting with stale referrals or a cold candidate pool is extremely important, so you need to do it the right way. Developing an outreach strategy is critical. Remember to introduce yourself . Candidates might not remember who you are or what your company does, especially if they’ve been applying to dozens or hundreds of opportunities. Have a prospective offer in hand . You don’t need to be ready to hire on the spot, but at least have an idea of what open role you might be recruiting them for and why you think they’ll be a good fit. Provide a clear call to action . If this candidate is interested, what should they do? An obvious link and directive to click and apply is the standard. Double-check information before reaching out . A candidate might not be as perfect a fit as you think, especially if they haven’t kept their information up-to-date. Do a double-check before reaching out to verify what you can first. Provide an opt-out . While it’s important to keep old candidates warm as prospects, you should ensure you’re not wasting your time. If an individual knows they’re no longer interested in what you have to offer, letting them remove themselves from your list saves you the time you would otherwise waste on targeting them. Learning how to reach out to candidates properly is a crucial aspect of recruiting them. You can’t rely on form letters and general attempts at refreshing their interest; you need to be personalized. Let them know you’re reaching out to them, not just anyone with the right keyword in their social profile. 4: Stay in Active Communication It always helps if you can stay in active communication with your best leads. Building an email list that keeps candidates appraised of open roles is usually a great idea. This list should be distinct from other mailing lists you may have (for marketing, for example) and should be actively culled to keep it as on-target as possible. Bear in mind that the best candidates may only be on the market for a short time. “The most qualified candidates are usually off the market in 10 days. An executive candidate, who’s more likely to be sourced or receive multiple offers, may be on the market for even fewer than 10 days.” –  Workable . An active candidate pool can turn into a pool of passive and disinterested candidates in less than two weeks. Often, your only way to reach these candidates is through regular communications, keeping the idea of your business warm for them. 5: Take Extensive Notes in Your ATS How do you keep track of everything we’ve listed above? Notes. A modern applicant tracking system will have features to help keep data up to date, but there’s only so much that these systems can track on their own. They can monitor data feeds like LinkedIn, and they can respond to requests to remove a user from a list, but there will always be a need for the human element to keep some data up to date. Taking notes is generally the best way to keep information refined and updated. These notes can include anything from general information your hiring manager deems worth noting down to specific notes and comments from an interview. The key is to keep the notes on hand and keep them as updated as possible. Make no mistake; keeping your candidate pools alive for more than a few months can be a significant challenge, and keeping them alive for a year or more is extremely difficult. It requires a lot of active data refining, list culling, and communications. When done properly, you can significantly reduce the time to hire a new individual to fill a role, so it’s well worth the time and effort. Have any questions regarding reconnecting with candidates, managing stale data, or anything similar? Feel free to reach out at any time, and we’ll be glad to get a conversation going!

Very rarely do employees work on their own, in isolation. Instead, they work as part of an overall team. In a small business, that team might be the entire roster of employees, and for a larger company, the team may be their department or even a specific group within that department. Regardless of the size or scale of the team, for the team to be effective, as a whole, it needs to have specific characteristics. These are the characteristics you need to look for when hiring to round out an existing team or build a new one. There’s just one question: what are they? The Team Has Clear, Defined, SMART Goals For a team to be productive, it has to have goals. Those goals may begin with something nebulous like “grow the business” but must eventually be pared down into SMART goals. A SMART goal is: S – Specific – The goal needs to be a narrow, tangible, definable thing. “Grow the business” is not a specific goal. “Increase revenue by 10%” is. M – Measurable – The goal needs to be measured and monitored. Without measurement, your team can’t know how much progress they’ve made or if they’re spinning their wheels. Metrics also fuel data that can be used to make adjustments. A – Achievable – The goals need to be realistic. Most companies, for example, cannot set “double our customer base” as an achievable goal. R – Relevant – A goal needs to be meaningful to the company. Increasing revenue is relevant, decreasing ad spend is relevant. Increasing the number of customers might not be appropriate if the business is already struggling to fulfill existing orders. T – Timely – Goals should have times and deadlines attached. “Grow revenue by 10%” isn’t timely; “Grow revenue by 10% by the end of the year” is. Taken together as a framework, this allows the team to codify goals and attach metrics to them to be measured and tracked. Otherwise, the team cannot know how far they have progressed; or how close they are to their goal. Open-ended goals reduce motivation and morale since the feeling of accomplishment disappears. Goals can come from above or within. A team with guidance from above may be directed to solve specific problems or achieve specific goals, as defined by C-levels or other executives. Often, a high-performing team may be assigned a particular task to complete as an agile and effective problem-solving group. Other times, teams are given broad, overarching motivation and asked to develop specific goals to attain that motivation. The Team Can Build a Plan to Achieve Those Goals Goals are just the first step in any process. Once a team has a goal, the next thing they need to do is plan out tangible steps, in a process, to achieve those goals. That means that the team needs to have robust planning abilities. Some team members may think through the overarching problem and come up with key milestones to reach to achieve it. Others may approach it from the ground level to discuss the specific steps they will need to take to reach those milestones. Still, others may dedicate their time to identifying potential problems in the process and helping to navigate those problems. While problem-solving is a core capability for most employees, it needs to be heavily employed within high-performance teams and groups within a company. It’s not a luxury; these employees must be capable of planning the solution to a problem with minimum friction. Plans themselves must be just as tangible and SMART as the goals. The Team Has Strong, Clear Leadership Leadership is critical for a team. There are, however, two kinds of leadership that matter: internal and external. Internal leadership is the leadership of the team itself. How does the team organize, delegate, assign work, solve problems, or report data? Teams can have a single leader, or they can operate by committee or consensus. Both options have pros and cons, and neither is objectively “correct”; it generally depends on the team’s personalities and preferences. External leadership is leadership from outside of the team, typically above it in the company hierarchy. For example, a customer service team might answer to a general CS lead, or a development team might have an executive development strategist above them. External leadership typically assigns broad goals and asks for reports but does not participate in the team itself. Proper leadership is a critical part of maintaining an effective business. The external leader must be able to assign a goal and trust the team to see it through or to report to them if there are significant roadblocks that prevent achieving that goal. The team must trust their leadership not to assign unrealistic goals. The Team Maintains Open and Clear Communication Communication is essential for any team, whether for three people or thirty, entry-level or executive, or anywhere in between. Communication allows for problem-solving, data sharing, collaboration, and more. Without effective communication, you don’t have a team; you have individuals working on the same tasks. Communication is about more than just opening channels; it’s about active listening, response, and discussion. If a team member speaks up with an idea, and is shot down without nuance or consideration, that’s not communication. “In a successful team, members feel that their ideas and input matter, so they are not afraid to express their own thoughts and opinions, even if these conflict with what has been presented. In fact, diverse opinions are welcomed and seen as opportunities to stir creativity and generate fresh ideas. At the same time, members listen to what others have to say because they believe in the ability, character, and integrity of their teammates. This culture of trust allows members to share their knowledge, build on each other’s ideas, collaborate, and experiment.” –  Athens Micro . Communication is how teams function. Establishing lines of communication – whether it’s a discussion board, a Slack channel, in-person meetings, e-mail, or some combination of the above – is part of building a team. Ensure that everyone in the team equally uses the venues chosen for communication. The Team Resolves Conflicts Quickly Conflict is inevitable in any good team; because a good team includes a diversity of thoughts, views, opinions, and ideas. More on that momentarily. Conflict can arise for any number of reasons. Team members may feel like they are not being listened to, or their contributions are minimized or misattributed. A team member may struggle with their workload or think they’ve been assigned more than the rest of the team. Many issues are an issue of perception, but some may be due to inequitable divisions of labor or attention. An effective team works to resolve issues through a calm and practical discussion. Each team member must converse with respect and a calm attitude. They must listen and not interrupt, particularly if interruptions are part of the core complaint. They must focus on facts rather than opinions or perceptions. Mutual respect is critical. Remember, disagreement is ok and fosters more ideas. Conflict is destructive and suppresses potential ideas. The Team Has a Diverse Background and Composition Diversity is critical for a high-performance team. An effective team should consist of people from different backgrounds, demographics, skill sets, and knowledge bases. Drawing from a diverse teams’ thoughts, experiences, and histories leads to more varied discussion, more diversity of ideas, and better end results. That isn’t theory, either; diversity benefitting teams is a proven fact. “A 2015 McKinsey report on 366 public companies found that those in the top quartile for ethnic and racial diversity in management were 35% more likely to have financial returns above their industry mean, and those in the top quartile for gender diversity were 15% more likely to have returns above the industry mean.” – HBR . This is where good conflict resolution comes into play. Diversity makes teams less comfortable , which fosters creativity but can make some members feel out of place. A good, inclusive team helps resolve these problems to the benefit of the whole team. That said, sometimes a conflict is unresolvable. A diverse team cannot function with active bigotry in its makeup, for example. In these cases, a restructuring of the team may be necessary. The Team Avoids Blame and Emphasizes Solutions Every team will eventually encounter a roadblock, problem, or failure. How the team reacts to this failure is a critical sign of whether or not the team is functioning as one. Poor teams blame one another, try to find a scapegoat, and believe their process was perfect while their implementation was flawed. While this can make most of the team feel better about themselves, it does nothing to resolve the problem, hurts the team’s morale, and costs the team a valuable asset. Good teams take responsibility, whether as individuals or as a team, as a whole, and move on to solutions. The fact that they failed, is not important; how they mean to adjust and fix it is critical. “Teams accept responsibility as individuals and as a team. They don’t blame one another for team mistakes and failures. No one should spend any time, useless time, in personal justifications. They should celebrate their successes together and recognize special performances and contributions that each team member makes to the total work of the team.” – Mike Schoultz . It can be difficult for many people to learn to accept responsibility without blame. Finding candidates who can do so is a crucial aspect of building a team. Each Team Member Has a Defined Role When a team is being built, it must be built around the assignment of roles and the cohesiveness of skill sets. Overlapping skills can leave one team member feeling like they have nothing to do, particularly if there’s not enough work to justify two members doing it. Skill gaps, conversely, can leave a team struggling to achieve its goals. For example, a team dedicated to paid marketing might have one member who handles overall strategy, one who reads and analyzes metrics, one who is an expert in audience targeting, and one who creates ad copy and imagery. Together, they cover all of the bases and can implement a plan to achieve specific goals. If the team lacks someone who reads metrics and has two people who create copy, they become inefficient. Over the course of operation, the team may find that the skills they initially joined to contribute are not where their true skills lie, and their role may shift. That is fine, so long as the team can adjust to cover the bases appropriately. Each Team Member Contributes Their Share Everyone in a high-performing team pulls their weight because everyone is fulfilling a distinct role. “Each member of the team contributes their fair share of the workload and fully understands what their responsibilities are and where they fit in with the running of the business. They feel a sense of belonging to the team, are committed to their work, and really care about the success of the company.” –  Undercover Recruiter . Putting together a team that covers all bases while avoiding undue overlap or detrimental conflicts can be difficult. Often, teams need to go through several iterations before settling on an effective group, both in team size and skill sets. Additionally, when built by those in authority above the team, they might not see all of the conflicts or overlaps that occur. It’s up to the team leadership to approach external leadership about adjustments as necessary. Teams are the building blocks of effective companies, and as a whole, the company itself is a team of teams. Building and refining that team is crucial to business success. After reading today’s post, if you have any comments, questions, or concerns, please feel free to leave a comment down below or reach out and contact us! We would be more than happy to get a conversation started and assist with whatever team-building or recruiting needs you or your business may need. We’re standing by and ready to help at a moment’s notice. All it will take is a single message, so please reach out at any time.

Turnover is a fact of life for a business. Few employees will hold the same position forever; indeed, the idea of a life-long career has been somewhat of a rarity for decades. Even if you have particularly loyal employees, outside factors can lead to a resignation. It’s often outside of your control. However, there’s a world of difference between natural turnover and a mass exodus of employees. Sometimes, an entire team, department, or group of employees quits all at the same time. What causes this issue? Can you do anything about it? Let’s dig in. Understanding Why Employees Leave In Groups The first step to solving the problem of a mass exodus is understanding why your employees are leaving. Often, the writing is on the wall; you may not want to hear it, or you may have been insulated by a manager hiding the problem, but the signs are generally there. What common causes lead to a mass resignation? Contagious Dissatisfaction Humans are social creatures. We build social circles, make friends, and gather in groups. Unfortunately, this can backfire on a company. When an employee decides to leave, it can make others in their social circle – often people they interact with daily, such as their team – consider the same option. They might talk to their friends about why they’re leaving, and recognize “hey, I have those same issues. Why am I staying when they’re leaving?” Sometimes, this is the simple recognition of ongoing problems in the workplace. Employees simply see their peer leaving as a wake-up call, open their eyes to the toxic situation they’ve been toiling in, and decide that enough is enough. Other times, employees leaving convince others to come with them. They may get a better offer elsewhere and encourage their new employer to bring their team with them. The reasons and rationales vary, but the effect is the same. Often, all it takes is a single employee leaving to pull out a pillar of support and send the whole house of cards crumbling. Key Employees Leave Similar to contagious dissatisfaction is that there will always be “key” employees. Everyone has a story of a place they worked where the only thing making it tolerable was one good manager or one good team member. When these key “leaders” in the social circle leave, the anchor that kept an entire group around disappears. This holds true whether the key employee is leaving of their own volition, leaving because of other pressures, or being terminated. Sometimes that key employee is perfectly satisfied with working for you, but other pressures (like a family crisis, a spouse getting a job elsewhere and needing to move, a medical problem, or the like) force them to leave. When that happens, the employees anchored by that one key individual will reexamine whether or not they want to keep working for you. Lack of Respect Employees want to feel respected in their role. They want to be respected, thanked, and encouraged by their peers and bosses. They want to make use of their skills and talents. They want to face challenges suitable to their skill level. A lack of respect in the workplace, as often as not, leads to turnover. It can be anything from a toxic workplace culture to a single manager who treats their reports as expendable. For example, in this Reddit thread on the subject : “The boss went off on a tirade on me for something that wasn’t my fault, and I got him to scream, ‘people like you are expendable pieces in this company, and I can replace you tomorrow if I wanted to.’ 80% of the engineers quit the next day. Simply didn’t show up. Including me. From what I know, the entire project folded because my now ex-boss couldn’t find people to replace us because no one wanted to do the kind of work he was looking for at the salary he was paying.” One individual sent an entire team packing through their behavior and proved why a lack of respect is incredibly damaging. Problematic Managers, Policies, or Behaviors Employment is a balance. Very few people are employed in a position they genuinely enjoy or want to work. Most do what they can to make a living and live their lives to their best ability outside of work. When the pressures of work grow too toxic, it becomes better for the mental and physical health of the employee to leave. Toxic behaviors can stem from an employee’s peers, managers, or the company itself. A toxic workplace with constant petty sniping, bickering, and backstabbing works against the company as a whole. A bad manager or a toxic set of behaviors from a group of managers is hugely detrimental to everyone beneath them. Toxic and restrictive company policies make growth impossible, so employees have no choice but to leave to see themselves flourish. Low Pay and Benefits Sometimes it’s not about culture or respect. Sometimes it’s as simple as money. Everyone needs to make enough money to survive. Inflation goes up, the cost of living rises, yet pay rates are notoriously stagnant across the country in virtually every industry. Remember: every year that an employee doesn’t receive a raise that, at least, equals the increase in the local cost of living and inflation, is a year that employee is effectively making less than they were before. Sometimes this is a prolonged, low-level pressure that eventually drives employees to leave, so they can earn what they’re worth. Other times, immediate pressures (such as medical bills, property taxes, or other changes) force employees to seek better opportunities. The fact is, you need to compensate your employees adequately to keep them around. Remember, as well, that “benefits” include more than just salary and health insurance. It can also include things like flexible hours and work/life balance. Competitor Poaching While all these pressures can lead one or two employees to leave, many don’t feel comfortable making the jump. This is especially true if they don’t have a polished resume, a connection, or confidence in their skills. Sometimes, though, employees you thought were “safe” have joined others in leaving. In these cases, a competitor may be poaching your employees. They recognize a flaw in your business – like low pay and benefits, lack of respect, or lack of opportunity – and they promise precisely those things to get your employees to jump ship. It’s not illegal and is a common business practice , and the only thing you can do about it is make your company a better place to work. External Pressures Occasionally, other pressures drive employees to leave. They may see the writing on the wall and want to get out of the way of a crisis that would otherwise be devastating to the company. Such pressures might include: Pending legislation that can damage or destroy the industry with new regulations or laws. A new competitor poised to take over and drive the business to the ground. Talk of a merger or acquisition that is likely to result in mass layoffs. These and similar reasons are often responsible for a mass resignation event that leaves your company in an even worse position to weather the crisis they predicted. Unfortunately, it’s challenging to handle this kind of situation without aggressive change, which many companies aren’t prepared to do. Identifying the Cause of Mass Resignations Before you can fight back against a mass exodus, you first need to identify why it’s happening in the first place. Sometimes, it may be apparent. If many employees are jumping ship when you announce an acquisition, well, you know why they did it. On the other hand, if it’s relatively unexpected, you need to gather information. One of the best tools in your arsenal for this is the exit interview. Exit interviews can give you a great deal of insight into why employees are choosing to leave, assuming you ask the right questions . That, and your ex-employees need to answer the interview honestly, which isn’t always going to happen, depending on how much perceived power you have over them after they leave. Talking with your ex-employees can give you some ideas of why they’ve left in a less formal setting as well. Maybe in a casual setting, they’ll be more likely to discuss issues they have with a particular manager, policy, or direction the overall leadership is taking. Again, this can give you a hint at why they’re leaving but might not be as direct as a stated reason. Unfortunately, the reality is that you will rarely be able to stop a mass resignation. More often, you can attempt to make systemic changes and, occasionally, win back some of those employees. However, most of the time, you need to let those employees go, make your changes, and treat both your remaining employees and your new hires better. Combatting Mass Resignations Often, the most challenging part of combating a wave of resignations is admitting that something is wrong. All too often, leadership fails to recognize that there’s a problem until that problem is undeniable and hurting the bottom line. Admitting there’s a problem is the first step to solving that problem. Once you have some idea of why your employees are leaving, you have an opportunity to change and fix the problem. Solutions can be broad or narrow. For example, they may include: Firing a problematic manager or executive responsible for toxic behavior. Changing company policies that suppressed employee engagement and satisfaction. Offering bonuses, raises, more benefits, or a changed pay and benefit structure. Reversing course on specific choices or actions that led to a resignation event. Sometimes, you don’t have the option to change the cause of a mass exodus. For example, if your company is being acquired and employees are leaving (either due to the acquisition itself or due to which company is acquiring yours), you are very unlikely to be able to pull out of the deal. On the other hand, sometimes it’s an easy change to make. If firing one manager saves ten employees from leaving, that’s a mathematically simple choice to make. Likewise, when you consider the cost of replacing an employee , increasing pay and benefits can still be cheaper in the long run. Likewise, changing an oppressive company policy is trivially easy to do. One thing you don’t want to do is start up “retention efforts” with meetings, bonuses, and other temporary measures. Why? It tells employees that they’re more valuable than they think, further encouraging them to push for more and/or leave if they don’t get it. It tells employees that your efforts are not a genuine attempt to change and are, instead, a bare minimum effort to save the cost of hiring replacements. It tells employees that your efforts are temporary, and once the urge to leave has passed, things will go back to the way they were. Your goal should be to implement broad, overarching changes that have a lasting impact on the problems driving employees to leave. Additionally, avoid targeting your benefits and changes. If the only people who receive a retention or “loyalty” bonus are the ones thinking of leaving, suddenly everyone will be thinking of leaving; moreover, even if they aren’t really putting out serious applications, they could get a serious offer. Your reaction to an exodus can actually exacerbate the problem. Operate on the assumption that everyone is planning to leave, and you need to take action to keep them around. It’s generally difficult or impossible to truly stop a mass exodus. The best thing you can do is focus on changing the reasons why your employees are leaving. Then, when you hire their replacements, those replacements won’t face the same problems and pressures that lead to a revolving door of a position. If you have any questions or concerns regarding mass resignation or how to combat it, please feel free to drop a comment below, and we’ll get a conversation started! We would be more than happy to answer your or your company’s questions on the topic.

It’s one thing for us to tell you that diversity (in people and thought) in the workplace is essential to a modern business. No matter how much you trust us, though, it’s necessary to back up claims with facts. Here are 25 statistics worth knowing about diversity and inclusion in the workplace with that in mind. If you have any statistics to add to this list, or you’ve found new reports that add context or can add more information to an existing point, feel free to leave them in the comments, with an authoritative source attached. 1: Millennials are a diverse group of people in the workplace. According to CNN Money , 72% of the Baby Boomer workforce is white, while only 56% of the Millennial workforce is white. The growing awareness and push for diversity from minority groups have led to greater levels of representation in the workforce, and this push will only increase as more and more older white workers retire. Preliminary data indicates that Gen Z workers will continue this trend as well. 2: Job seekers are looking for diversity in their workplaces. Studies and surveys by Glassdoor show that a majority (67%) of job seekers today feel that workplace diversity is one of the most important factors to consider when deciding whether or not to apply to or work with a given company. As many as half of all workers believe their workplaces should be increasing their focus on diversity, as well. 3: Just under half of all workers have experienced some form of workplace harassment. Gallup polls show that, despite diversity and inclusion policies, harassment happens anyway. This systemic problem affects businesses from the smallest local shop to the largest megacorporation. As recent scandals with companies like Riot, Activision, and Amazon indicate, this problem digs deep and will take sustained effort to solve. However, companies that actively promote and enforce D&I policies have an advantage in hiring forward-thinking employees. 4: Diversity in thought (cognitive diversity) leads to innovation. Diversity is about more than race and nationality; it’s about genders, abilities, orientations, and more. Diversity in all aspects, and inclusion in the workplace, breeds innovation. As measured by Quantum Workplace , companies that promote broad thought diversity see as much as a 20% increase in innovation. 5: Diverse teams out-perform their less diverse competitors. Racial diversity, specifically, is an apparent and critical indicator of diversity in the workplace. Studies performed by Sage found that companies with racially diverse staff, including employees at managerial and executive levels, performed better and grew faster than their less diverse competitors. 6: The benefit of diversity is growing. “Our 2019 analysis finds that companies in the top quartile for gender diversity on executive teams were 25 percent more likely to have above-average profitability than companies in the fourth quartile—up from 21 percent in 2017 and 15 percent in 2014” – McKinsey , in their 2020 report on diversity. The benefit of diversity is not just visible; it’s growing. Each year, the benefits of a diverse team become more pronounced, and the companies that resist diversity further stagnate. 7: Every kind of diversity matters. Again from the McKinsey study , every form of diversity they looked at – including racial and ethnic, gender, and others – proved beneficial when considered in isolation and in context. Companies can promote one kind of diversity, such as gender diversity, and see a benefit, but a company that capitalizes on gender, ethnic, and racial diversity will further out-perform them, on average. 8: Diversity isn’t enough without inclusive policies. Per McKinsey , again: “While overall sentiment on diversity was 52 percent positive and 31 percent negative, sentiment on inclusion was markedly worse, at only 29 percent positive and 61 percent negative. This encapsulates the challenge that even the more diverse companies still face in tackling inclusion. Hiring diverse talent isn’t enough—it’s the workplace experience that shapes whether people remain and thrive.” In other words, having diverse employees doesn’t do much for you if you aren’t including them in your operations, preventing casual discrimination, and creating a safe workplace. 9: Diversity is lagging behind in the USA. “In the US, companies that increase racial and ethnic diversity on senior boards enjoy a 0.8% increase in earnings before interest and tax (EBIT), while their counterparts in the UK see a 3.5% increase.” – BuiltIn . The benefits of increasing diversity in the USA are substantial, but they are more robust in the UK and other areas abroad. A more significant cultural shift is coming but lagging behind in America. The influence of diversity is growing with each year, however. 10: Customers are also concerned about diversity. There’s a growing awareness of the source of products we consume. Consumers are increasingly concerned about the ethics of the companies producing the items they buy. If a company is less diverse or notorious for discrimination, it will struggle to obtain an audience. Conversely, per HBR , diverse companies are 70% more likely to capture a new audience or market. 11: Diversity in executive leadership is lagging. Diversity at the ground level is critical for performance throughout an organization. However, diversity needs to be reflected in leadership as well. Among the Fortune 500, according to Pew , a meager 25/500 companies have female CEOs. The lack of diversity at the top levels is holding back many companies. To put this into context, there are more CEOs named John in the fortune 500 than female CEOs. 12: Discrimination has a cost. Diversity has benefits, and a lack of diversity means your company doesn’t get those benefits. Moreover, though, discrimination and a lack of inclusion lead to turnover. Turnover includes not just the employees targeted by discrimination, but by others who quit out of solidarity or protest. Costs to a company include those from turnover, as well as discrimination lawsuits, and total to $16 billion each year, according to TechRepublic . 13: Wage equality is lagging. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics , wages for women lag behind wages for men, at around 82%. Similar gaps can be observed between white and non-white employees in similar roles. The continued culture of suppressing discussions about pay has facilitated this wage gap to continue, despite strides made in the last decades to rectify the situation. 14: The more diversity characteristics, the worse the pay. In general, statistics indicate that diversity indicators also reflect worse pay in many cases. Women make less than their male counterparts; black and Hispanic women earn less than white women. Oddly, Asian women made more than white women on average, though still less than white men in their positions. – Per BLS . Often, individuals with more than one ethnicity or race (or who are both a minority race and a minority religion, orientation, or another characteristic) also have lower pay than those with just one of their characteristics. 15: Diversity requires visibility. Many potential employees are evaluating the stances companies take on diversity and inclusion throughout their organizations. Moreover, both actions and words are essential. Companies that are quietly diverse may suffer from not advertising that fact. According to LinkedIn , companies that post on social media about the importance of diversity and their efforts towards inclusiveness tended to receive 26% more applications. 16: Top-level indifference and lack of commitment are huge roadblocks. A survey of global companies conducted by SHRM indicated that the two biggest reasons why diversity initiatives are not effective in some companies are a lack of commitment and indifference. A lack of commitment means top-level executives pay lip service to the idea but fail to commit. Indifference tends to indicate that leadership expresses attitudes like “not seeing color.” 17: Discrimination starts early in the hiring process. Decisions for filtering resumes are often riddled with bias. In particular, whether a human or a machine-learning algorithm filters resumes rarely matters; both will discriminate based solely on whether or not an applicant’s name is “white-sounding” or not. Thus, one of the best strategies for hiring diverse candidates is to strip identifying information and judge candidates solely on their skills and experience. This idea is backed up by data from the National Bureau of Economic Research . 18: Blind hiring works. The above act, stripping personal information from resumes, is called blind hiring. Blind hiring, blind interviews, and blind auditions have been studied and found to result in more women, and minority hires. The NY Times reports that blind hiring boosted female hires from 25% to 46%. Many modern ATS platforms now offer the ability to strip identifying information from resumes and applications, to make blind hiring easier. However, it’s crucial to ensure that there is no algorithmic judgment applied to resumes before removing that information due to how algorithms can have just as much bias trained into them. 19: The number of federal discrimination lawsuits filed is decreasing. Data from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is compiled every year, breaking down the number of discrimination suits each year, by category. Overall, the number of lawsuits filed at a federal level has decreased year over year since roughly 2011. In 2011 the peak was around 99,000 lawsuits that year, while 2018 had 76,000, 2019 had 72,000, and 2020 had 67,000. However, this data does not include state-level lawsuits or the reason behind the decrease. 20: Disability is a less visible but equally important form of diversity. Disabled individuals have many challenges to contend with. Among them is benefits; many disabled individuals do not seek work because their benefits are all-or-nothing, and if they make too much, they lose and have to repay their benefits, which can be more than they’re making. However, McKinsey estimates that an increase of just 1% in hiring disabled individuals could result in an increase of $25 billion in GDP. 21: Lack of diverse leadership suppresses ideas from diverse employees. As mentioned above, diverse leadership is the most significant factor holding back many companies. HBR reports that the endorsement of ideas from diverse sources is reduced without diverse leadership. Women see 20% lower acceptance, people of color see 24% less, and LGBT individuals see 21% lower acceptance of their ideas. Again, these problems need to get addressed from the bottom of a company to the very top. 22: Gender diversity is extremely important for performance. A report from Fast Company found data showing that companies with above-average gender diversity in their staff and leadership had much higher employee engagement. In fact, they tended to out-perform other companies by 46-58% in terms of engagement. This primarily returns to inclusivity and how a diverse workforce helps encourage those with differences to feel welcome and included. Hence, they contribute more to the overall direction of the company. 23: Two-dimensional diversity is better than diversity on a single dimension. Two-dimensional diversity considers diversity across two axes; inherent diversity, composed of inborn identity markers like race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation; and acquired diversity, composed of learned and lived experiences, such as poverty, discrimination, and other past experiences. HBR found that organizations using two-dimensional diversity had a 45% wider market capture and a 70% chance to enter a new market. 24: Excuses are thin. Among managers who do not capitalize on diversity or encourage inclusion in the workplace, 41% claimed they were “too busy” to do so, according to BuiltIn . When considering all of the benefits to a company left on the table, it’s hard to imagine what these managers are doing to be so busy while achieving less for the company than they could be by focusing on diversity and inclusion initiatives. 25: The greater the diversity, the greater the returns. Amongst businesses reporting higher levels of diversity, the most diverse workforces reported the highest degree of benefits. Science Daily reported that businesses with the highest level of racial diversity saw 15x – that’s 1,500% — higher revenue than non-diverse companies. If you’ve ever needed proof that diversity is essential to the growth and success of a modern business, now you have it. Will your business join these successful metrics? As mentioned previously, if you have additional statistics to add to this list, please leave those in the comments section below, along with an authoritative source. If you have any questions regarding any of these statistics or additional questions regarding what diversity can do for your company, please feel free to ask away at any time, and we’ll get a conversation started. We’d be more than happy to assist in answering any potential questions that you or your company may have.

The United States form I-9 is an essential document for anyone seeking employment. It’s the “Employment Eligibility Verification” form, and it verifies that the individual being hired is who they claim to be and is eligible to work in the United States. It’s required for both citizens and non-citizens of the United States and needs to be filled out by both employers and employees. In most cases, this is fine. You meet with the new hire as part of the hiring process. You ask them to bring their documentation with them to the meeting – things like government ID, passport card, or green card, items from the acceptable documents list – and examine them while they’re present. They sign the paperwork, you sign the paperwork, and they’re good to go. Things get a little more complicated for remote employees. What happens if the employee you’re hiring is hundreds or thousands of miles away? The Problem with Remote Hires The biggest problem with hiring someone remotely is properly filling out the I-9 form. Two restrictions get in the way. The employee must have a signed and verified I-9 before they can begin work. This restriction requires that the employee have their paperwork processed and verified by the government of the United States before they can begin working for your company. This requirement doesn’t sound like a tall order, but what happens if you need to rush to hire new people for your company, but they live remotely? They can’t start working legally until the paperwork is processed, and that takes time when you factor in mailing forms and documentation back and forth. Though, with enough preparation, this shouldn’t be a problem. The problem comes when you combine it with the second restriction. The documentation provided by the employee must be originals, examined in person. The key sticking point here is that the documents must be examined in person and be the originals. That means that you cannot have the prospective employee show you their documents via a Zoom call or webcam chat because it’s not an in-person examination. It also means that they cannot photocopy and send you the copies in the mail to examine because they aren’t originals. Any way you can think of to get around this is likely something the government explicitly forbids. This restriction means you have a few limited options. The prospective employee can mail you their documentation to examine . This option is terrible; mail can get lost, and sensitive documents are extremely important. Plus, the time delay of the mail still adds at minimum several days before the employee can get processed. The prospective employee can make a trip to your office with their documentation to be processed . This option is costly, time-consuming, and may be impossible if the employee would need to enter the country when they don’t have the authorization to do so. Luckily, the government offers one way around this: authorized representatives. Using an Authorized Agent to Verify Documentation According to the USCIS, an authorized agent can complete I-9 paperwork for a remote hire. Specifically : “Employers may designate an authorized representative to fill out Forms I-9 on behalf of their company, including personnel officers, foremen, agents, or notary public. The Department of Homeland Security does not require the authorized representative to have specific agreements or other documentation for Form I-9 purposes. If an authorized representative fills out Form I-9 on behalf on the employer, the employer is still liable for any violations in connection with the form or the verification process. When completing Form I-9, the employer or authorized representative must physically examine, with the employee being physically present, each document presented to determine if it reasonably appears to be genuine and relates to the employee presenting it. Reviewing or examining documents via webcam is not permissible. If the authorized representative refuses to complete Form I-9 (including a signature), another authorized representative may get selected. If the employer hires a notary public, the notary public is acting as an authorized representative of the employer, not as a notary. The notary public must perform the same required actions as an authorized representative. When acting as an authorized representative, the notary public should not provide a notary seal on Form I-9.” Thus, the primary solution to the remote work problem is to contact a representative in the same location as the prospective employee, most typically a notary public. This authorized agent is responsible for the employment verification and signing of the I-9 form, and, as such, is in a trusted position. Should the designated agent verify fraudulent documents, the employer is still liable, but there may also be repercussions for the agent. However, there are occasional troubles with using a notary public; many notaries don’t know what to do when presented with an I-9 and may refuse service. John Fay, via SHRM , recommends building a list of potential agents a prospective employee can contact for the service. “‘The employer can list the best possible choices based on prior experience and include any additional instructions or guidance which might be helpful,’ Fay said. He recommends clients consider HR professionals at nearby organizations, local librarians, attorneys or accountants, state workforce agency staff, or notaries. A nationwide listing of notaries can be found here. ‘It’s best to choose an individual who is already familiar with the Form I-9 process to ensure a smooth and quick verification process,’ Fay said. It’s also important to know which states may prohibit notaries from completing the Form I-9 or have different requirements. ‘California, for example, has indicated that the completion of an I-9 form requires you to be bonded as an immigration consultant.'” As the employer, it is not necessarily your responsibility to pick a specific agent in the location of the prospective employee. If you do the legwork to identify and contact such an agent ahead of time, and recommend that particular agent to your employee, it can streamline the process. However, they are also free to find anyone willing that meets the requirements of being an authorized agent. As Fay says, some states like California may have specific, additional requirements for verification of the form I-9. Luckily, the actual requirements for an authorized agent are generally minimal. The agent needs to inspect the documentation and certify that, to the best of their knowledge, the documents are legitimate and in order. They do not need to notarize the form, nor do they need to go to exceptional lengths to verify the documentation. The Impact of COVID-19 on Form I-9 Completion The global Coronavirus pandemic has, for a good reason, put a damper on a lot of different governmental and social processes. In particular, the requirement that documents get inspected in person has become dangerous, both to the authorized agent and the prospective employee. Many sources of authorized agents, such as libraries, also may not be open or available during quarantines or lockdowns. This problem throws an additional wrench into the plan to verify remote employees. This is made even worse because many businesses are transitioning to either temporary or permanent remote work for some or all of their employees, and many more are starting to hire remote employees when they never had to do so before. How do you navigate the Form I-9 problem if you’re in this situation? The answer is temporary waiving of requirements from the government. Agencies including Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Homeland Security have implemented temporary policies to waive the physical inspection of documentation. Here’s what they now require: You are not required to inspect the documentation in person. You are still required to inspect the documentation but can do so over a digital means such as email, video call, or fax. You have to acquire copies of the relevant documentation within three days for the purposes of section 2 of the I-9. Additionally, this is a deferment, not a waiver. When these restrictions are lifted and normal operations resume, you will be required to submit an amended form with an appropriate physical examination of the documents and “Covid-19” listed as the reason for the delay. It’s worth mentioning that there’s some uncertainty and flexibility in these rules. Though the rules were initially meant for companies offering temporary remote work for employees who will eventually work in person, it seems to be commonly used for fully remote employees and companies that have no intent to return to an office, with no repercussions as of yet. This provision has already nearly run out several times; ICE and DHS decided to extend it when it became clear that the pandemic is not yet over (indeed, it is worse than ever) and is, as of this writing currently, extended through April 30, 2022. Check this page , or this page for the most up-to-date information on the new policies and deadlines. Your company is not required to complete remote, deferred verification of documentation. If you and your prospective employee are willing to do so and can find an authorized agent willing to do so, verification can be performed as normal. This can be taken on a case-by-case basis for each remote employee. It’s also possible that the remote verification rules may be made permanent. As of the end of 2021, DHS was seeking comments on whether or not the new rules should be made permanent to ease the burden on hiring remote workers. After all, global, modern communications methods have made it easier than ever to hire fully remote workers from around the globe. Requiring steep barriers to verification of documentation puts an unnecessary damper on that ability. Comments were accepted until December 27, 2021. Currently, the agencies are reviewing the comments and will be making their decision at some future point. You can read more about it here . Is it likely to succeed? That remains to be seen. This experiment may have shown DHS and ICE that there is very little to be gained through in-person verification and that the inspection does little to combat fraud while placing an undue burden on businesses to arrange it. On the other hand, we all know that government agencies are slow to change, so it’s possible that reverting to the old rules is in the cards. “Leading technology companies have made recent advancements in document capture that paves the way for an automated review of an I-9 document with a higher level of confidence relating to its authenticity and validity.” –  John Fay . Perhaps the most likely result will be the establishment of specific rules and technologies, as well as a dedicated system for verifying documentation remotely. What form this will take, however, remains to be seen. What Should Your Company Do? If your company is looking to hire a remote employee, the first thing to do is check the links to DHS and ICE to see if the current rules have changed since the time of this writing. If remote validation is still allowed, do that. You should make sure that you have notes taken and are prepared if such a time comes that you will be required to submit manual verification of the documents and an amended I-9. That may or may not be necessary, depending on the decisions made by the government in the coming months and years. Should you consider not hiring remote employees? No. The benefits of hiring remote employees far outweigh the drawbacks of navigating a tricky situation for their employment documentation. The broader talent pool, the flexibility of a remote team, and the quality of work done while keeping employees safe during a pandemic are all too important to lose simply to avoid working with a complicated form process. Have you had issues filing or verifying the form I-9 in the past, or since the pandemic started and the rules were relaxed? If so, please discuss them in the comments below. Additionally, if you have any further questions regarding filling out the Form I-9 properly or require any assistance, please feel free to leave a comment down below, and we’ll get a conversation started! Streamline Onboarding with Emerge Talent Cloud Emerge Talent Cloud can help streamline your entire recruitment and onboarding process, including I-9s. Our expert team takes the burden off your shoulders, ensuring a seamless and efficient recruitment process from start to finish. Get in touch with us today! Fast Track Your Hiring Process with Emerge Talent Cloud Services

One of the most frequently asked questions involved in the job hunt is whether or not a verbal offer – and acceptance of that offer – forms a legally binding contract. Imagine, if you will, this situation. You’re a hiring manager, and you’ve gone through the filtering and interview process to fill a role. You’ve identified a promising candidate. At the end of their final interview, you say that you would like to offer them the job and that you’ll send them the paperwork later. They agree, you shake hands, and the candidate leaves happy. At this point, the candidate has not signed any paperwork. All they’ve done is acknowledged and accepted that you’ve extended the offer. Are they now officially employed? Are they obligated to sign the paperwork when it arrives? This comes up a lot when candidates are applying to multiple jobs. They may be interviewing with several companies simultaneously, and they may even have more than one offer on the table to compare before deciding which one to accept. Are they required to work for you now that you’ve extended this verbal offer and they’ve accepted it? Let’s examine the situation. Learn About On Demand Recruiting Services Did the Candidate Accept? The first question you have to ask is whether or not the candidate accepted the offer. Common advice from career and job-hunting sites regarding verbal offers is to “Show your appreciation, think it over, negotiate pay, request a written offer, and continue the job search.” You’ll note that “accept the offer” is not one of the steps. Just because you extended the offer does not mean you are in a contract with the candidate. If the candidate did not verbally accept the offer – and it has to be an explicit acceptance, not an implicit one – you have no contract. The candidate is free to do whatever they want with the offer, including ghosting you completely . On the other hand, you have a verbal contract if the candidate explicitly accepts the offer (pending paperwork). Are Verbal Contracts Binding? The second question to ask is whether or not a verbal contract means anything. In this case, the answer is relatively simple, but the devil is in the details. Short version: yes, a verbal contract is legally binding. You must extend the written offer and the job when you make a verbal offer. When the candidate accepts that verbal offer, they must accept the job. There are, however, a lot of little details that can change this equation. Was the job offer conditional? This question is a big one that many employers might overlook. If you offer the candidate the job, but the offer is conditional based upon the results of some other verification, such as a drug test, a medical examination, a reference check, a credit check, or another set of conditions, then it’s not an actual job offer. “The job offer must be unconditional. If the offer is made subject to certain conditions, like medical checkups or references, a final agreement is not formed until the set conditions are fulfilled. Mere acceptance of a conditional offer does not constitute a valid contract.” – UpCounsel . In these cases, even if you offer a contract and the candidate accepts, there’s no actual contract in place because of the conditions. You will need to produce and provide a real contract once those conditions are fulfilled. Was the verbal contract witnessed or recorded? A verbal contract may be considered legally binding, but what happens if you have to take it to court? It becomes a matter of your word versus the word of the candidate. Maybe you claim they accepted, but they claim they never did, and they just thanked you for offering it. Without a record, neither side can be proven. That can make it very difficult to prove one way or the other, and in these cases, the chances are pretty good that you won’t get anything out of the court proceedings. That’s why more complex deals are usually offered in writing, including employment agreements. There are too many factors to keep track of with a verbal contract, and it’s too easy for some of them to slip through the cracks. Does either party live in an at-will employment jurisdiction? The biggest wrench in a verbal employment offer is that most people live and work in at-will employment jurisdictions. “At will” means that either party, the employer or the employee, can sever the contract at any time. You can fire an employee for any reason, and the employee can also quit for any reason. There are exceptions, of course. Public sector workers are generally not at-will. Unions can negotiate contracts that void at-will clauses. Employees are protected from being fired for particular actions, like refusing to violate the law in the course of their duties. Montana. Montana hasn’t passed at-will laws like virtually every other state. Additionally, the employer cannot rescind the job offer if their reason for doing so ties into a protected class or protected information, such as learning at the last minute that the candidate belongs to a particular nationality or religion. Why does this matter? Well, in an at-will jurisdiction, even if the candidate accepts your verbal offer, they are free at any time to then sever the contract. That includes before a written offer is even signed. At-will employment was broadly considered favorable to the employer when it was passed across the country, but that only held true while the employers held the power and employees were struggling to compete for jobs that often weren’t widely available. However, the labor market has shifted, and the pandemic has pushed the balance of power in favor of the employees, and now the leverage of at-will contracts swings in favor of the candidate. Many companies are discovering this first-hand, much to their chagrin. “Employees are considered at-will unless the employer issues a contract of employment. An employment contract is a legally binding document that defines how long the employee is contracted at the business, and the employee’s compensation, responsibilities, and other job-related information. Employment contracts typically also include specific actions that would dissolve the contract.” – Top Echelon. You can circumvent at-will employment by offering a solid, unconditional contract with stipulated terms, but that typically should be done in writing. While a verbal contract and a written contract ostensibly carry the same weight, a verbal contract is much harder to enforce without evidence. In some states, it can’t be enforced, no matter how much the law is on your side, due to the lack of records or evidence. Did the offer change between the verbal offer and the written offer? Let’s say that you present the candidate with a verbal offer, with attached compensation of $70k per year and a standard benefits package. They accept. Later, you realize that you can’t pay them that much. You send them the formal offer letter, and the compensation lists $60k per year instead. Where does the verbal contract come into play? Often, an employer may think that the candidate is obligated to work for the newly given offer because they already agreed to work for the company. However, this isn’t true; the candidate agreed to the offer presented, including the offered compensation, so changing the terms of the agreement is a breach of contract. The candidate is free to accept the new offer, walk away, or even take you to court over the difference. What If the Candidate Ghosts? What happens if you extend a verbal offer, the candidate accepts, and then ghosts you? You send the paperwork, but it’s never returned. You call them, and they don’t pick up. Can you take them to court over the verbal agreement? The answer is a tentative yes. The question is, do you want to? Yes, you’ve invested significant resources in the hiring process. You’ve spent time, and possibly money, on the specific candidate. That can include travel compensation, the salaries paid to hiring managers during the interviews, and even registration for training courses and other fees contingent on the candidate becoming an employee. This is all financial investment that you would then lose if the candidate ghosts you. At the same time, none of this is the candidate’s responsibility. Your HR managers earn their salary regardless of whether or not they’re conducting that specific interview. You’d be paying for the training regardless of who signs the employment contract. Travel compensation and other specific-to-the-candidate expenses are just about the only unique costs that can be assigned to that individual and lost in the breach of a verbal contract. You have the candidate’s information. You can, if you wish, take them to court over the breach of a verbal contract. If you do, though, what do you want to get out of it? If you’re seeking reimbursement for the expenses invested in the candidate, you will need to have records of those expenses. A low bar, but not every company keeps those records. You’re likely out of luck if you’re seeking the individual’s employment. At best, if they end up working for you, they will be resentful and unproductive. At worst, they’ll quit within days, leveraging the at-will nature of employment in the U.S. to their advantage. While a court might be able to order a mandatory duration for employment, you can bet that they’ll do the bare minimum and quit the moment they’re able to. Moreover, all of this positions you as a company that is very dangerous to apply to, and that reputation won’t disappear. Why would others want to apply to you if they risk legal action? It’s a minefield they won’t want to walk through. On top of all of this, you have to win in court, which means you have to convince the court that the candidate accepted the verbal contract. As mentioned above, without proof via a recording, there’s no way to do that. Chances are pretty good that you’ll spend more on the legal proceedings than you would recoup from the breach of contract resolution anyway. Sure, it sucks for a promising candidate to change their mind that late in the process. But, employees have suffered under this situation for decades, getting to the final interview stages and never getting offered a job. Moreover, they have fewer resources, in general, to spend to insulate themselves from the consequences. You can’t blame an individual for wanting the best outcome of their job search, whether or not that outcome is with you. Putting It Simply To sum up everything above in a simple answer: Yes, a verbal offer is legally binding, but only if the candidate expressly accepts it. However, due to at-will employment legislation, the employee can terminate the contract at any time, for any reason. Thus, barring a specific employment contract that is typically written rather than verbal, the candidate can still decline employment and seek work elsewhere. If a candidate accepts a verbal offer and later breaches that contract (such as in the period between accepting the offer and starting work), you are within your rights to pursue damages. However, verbal contracts typically have no records associated with them, so it can be difficult or impossible to win in court. If you choose to pursue the case and win, you will still need to seek another employment candidate. Most of the time, your damages will be financial, and you won’t be able to force the candidate to work for you. Even if you could, it’s not a good idea to do so unless you hate having good morale, hate productivity, and want to risk sabotage. As an employer, your best bet is to have an employment contract drawn up and ready to go when you extend your offer or have one sent to your candidate within 24 hours of extending an offer verbally. While that doesn’t necessarily work around at-will employment regulations, it at least provides evidence in the case of a dispute. Conclusion Do you have any questions about the legality of a job offer, whether written or verbal? If so, please feel free to leave a comment down below, and we’ll get a conversation started! It can be a tricky topic to tackle for many, so we’d be more than happy to help you out however we can! Learn About On Demand Recruiting Services

The global pandemic has led to a massive shift in how the employer-employee relationship works. For decades, the balance of power has tilted in favor of employers, and when an employee leaves, they take their fate into their own hands. Rarely would an employee be valuable or irreplaceable enough to warrant a counter-offer, and when they were, they largely didn’t accept . Today, the balance of power has shifted. The so-called Great Resignation has seen hundreds of thousands of people resign, either for better jobs, career changes, or just to get out of the workforce after a lengthy career. Combined with an ongoing worker shortage, many businesses are now desperate to find and retain employees. When faced with an employee who has decided to resign, you are given a choice. Do you let them go or try to keep them around? If you want to keep them around, the way to try is with a counter-offer. What Is a Counter-Offer? When an employee decides to resign, a counter-offer is an offer of an increase in their pay and benefits package to try to get them to stick around. In today’s environment, it’s not uncommon for a counter-offer to include as much as a 25% bump in pay and additional benefits, the most common of which is a shift to fully remote work. The idea is that it’s cheaper to offer a higher salary and keep the institutional knowledge, existing relationships, and skills of your current employee over having to hire, train, and integrate a replacement. This is exceptionally difficult if the resigning employee has a great deal of institutional knowledge and no time or inclination to develop training materials, train a replacement, or otherwise ensure continuity when they leave. Many businesses, used to employees sticking around despite unfavorable conditions, are now finding that their sway no longer holds and that shortcuts they have taken over the years (like not investing in redundancy or a company knowledge base) are imminent disasters waiting to happen. Generally, if an employee is resigning, it’s because other avenues available to them have failed. They may recognize that they can earn a much higher salary or better benefits elsewhere and may have even tried to get those same benefits out of you before resorting to a resignation. After all, resigning and changing companies is a considerable risk for an employee. Any number of things can go wrong, leaving them without either job. In some cases, an employee is using the threat of resigning to fish for more pay and better benefits. In these cases, a counter-offer can work to keep them around. However, most of the time, a counter-offer won’t be compelling enough for the long term. Statistics About Counter-Offers The unfortunate truth is counter-offers largely do not work. Statistics back this up: “70-80% of people who accept [a counter-offer] either leave or are let go within a year. Why is this the case? Usually for one of two reasons: employer distrust and continued employee dissatisfaction.” – Phaidon International . “9 out of 10 candidates who accept a counter-offer leave their current employer within the twelve-month mark.” – RecruiterBox . “50% of candidates that accept counter-offers from their current employer are active again within 60 days.” – UK Recruiter. In most situations, a counter-offer does not actually address the problems that led to an employee deciding to leave. If the problem is a too-low salary or a lack of a particular benefit, then sure, it can work. However, if the problem lies with management, workload, company culture, or another issue, a counter-offer cannot solve the problem. The Pros and Cons of Counter-Offers First, the benefits of a counter-offer.  You can retain your talent, institutional knowledge, and relationships with existing employees. The loss your business takes when an employee leaves can be immense, depending on how pivotal they were to their team, department, or the company as a whole. While some employees are interchangeable, others are indispensable. Keeping those critical employees around is exceptionally important, especially if their impending resignation draws into stark focus how unprepared your company is to survive their departure.  You save the money you would be spending to recruit someone to fill the position. Recent statistics put the cost of hiring a new employee at around $4,500, though the variance in pay, benefits, and other influences can change this number quite a bit. Add to this the fact that hiring a replacement for the departing employee is likely to require a significantly higher salary, and your retention offer might be cheaper in the long run.  You prevent a competitor from poaching your existing talent. Spite is a powerful motivator. Sometimes, you may consider offering a counter-offer to prevent your competitors from poaching your talent. Your loss being their gain can put them in a better position to compete with you, and that’s not a good thing. If the counter-offer can prevent the employee from jumping ship to a competitor, it’s beneficial to you and detrimental to the company that spent time courting them, only to fail at the last moment.  You may be able to realign employee fit to something better. Consider this anecdote from SHRM : “Less than a year after becoming office manager of a small testing firm in Chicago, Linda Sullivan was ready to quit. She believed her marketing skills were being wasted in an administrative position, and she felt underpaid to boot. Linda’s next step was one duplicated by thousands of other unhappy employees each day: She revised her resume and started job hunting. After a few weeks, Linda received an attractive offer from another Chicago firm, which she quickly accepted. Then she made an appointment to tell her boss the bad news. To Linda’s surprise, her boss was quite sympathetic. “I didn’t know you were unhappy,” he told her. “Why didn’t you come to me sooner?” The boss then explained how highly he valued her skills, and to prove it, he offered a change of responsibilities, a new title—director of marketing—and a $5,000 a year raise. Linda (not her real name) readily accepted the counter-offer. There’s no ill will, she said, because both sides now understand that her old position was a bad match.” This anecdote shows the best-case scenario for a counter-offer: a realignment to place the employee in a better position more suited to their skills. These are the best kinds of counter-offers because they don’t just rely on money to solve problems but rather address the core reason why the employee was departing in the first place.  You may be able to make the employee feel more valued. If an employee plans to leave and you make a compelling offer to keep them around, it can showcase to them that you value them as a contributor to the business’s success. However, this is a double-edged sword. The realization that they’re indispensable can lead to the employee slacking off, acting arrogant, or otherwise lording it over the place, which significantly decreases their value to the company. At the same time, there are plenty of other cons to counter-offers.  The rise in pay and benefits is often more expensive than the hiring process to replace the employee. The math will vary depending on the employee, the position, and the nature of the offers, but often it works out in favor of the retained employee. Letting them go while replacing them with a skilled candidate can often be cheaper. This is especially true when you recognize that retention offers only work for a short time, and the majority of people who accept them still end up leaving within a year.  The success of the counter-offer can spur more employees to threaten to leave as well. Any time an employee decides to leave, there’s a risk they will take others with them. After all, they will have made friends with their co-workers and likely share grievances with them. Another company will be more than happy to hire a fully-functional team rather than just an individual if the opportunity arises. A successful counter-offer brings with it another risk, which is that other employees will decide to use their own resignation as a means to increase their own pay and benefits. The knock-on effect of a single counter-offer can result in requiring higher salaries and benefits for your entire workforce or face massive turnover.  The employee may choose to leave anyway, 6-12 months later. The worst part about counter-offers is simply that, most of the time, they don’t work. They can buy you some time to pump the employee for knowledge and train up a replacement, but it’s nearly inevitable that they will leave regardless, and not all that long after accepting the offer. What Makes a Good Counter-Offer? If you’re determined to retain your critical employees, a counter-offer is largely your only available tool once they’ve already reached the point of putting in their resignation. A good counter-offer begins with one thing: understanding why the employee is leaving. Why have they made this decision? Is their workload too high, and the stress is too much? Do they want a benefit like remote work that you aren’t offering? Are they being dramatically underpaid for their position and skills? Is their current role poorly aligned based on their skills and experience? Do they feel undervalued and underappreciated? Do they not feel comfortable with company culture as it stands? Is their work/life balance tipping too far in favor of work? Is the company failing to invest in technology and infrastructure, leading to employees working with out-of-date technology? Has the company been merged or bought, and restructuring has made them dissatisfied with the new normal? Has their job stagnated, leaving them with no clear opportunities for growth or promotion? It’s also possible that the employee is resigning for reasons other than job-related reasons, such as a health issue or a family issue. In these cases, it can be difficult or impossible to retain them, even with an extremely good counter-offer. Once you know precisely why the employee is leaving, you can determine whether or not you can address their issues. For example, if they’re leaving because they have no clear route to advancement, you can establish ongoing training and promotions for them. If they’re leaving because they feel unappreciated, you could develop a system of employee recognition . If they’re leaving because of restructuring, you may need to realign their role in the organization to one that is more satisfactory to them. Of course, if the reason an employee is leaving is systemic or deeply ingrained in your company – part of company culture, part of management, or part of a problem that requires extensive budget and years to upgrade – it can be impossible to offer “fixing the problem” as part of your counter-offer. Should You Offer a Counter-Offer? The truth is, it’s a little risky to offer a counter-offer to a departing employee for two reasons. It can lead to more employees taking the same actions to get counter-offers of their own. It might only work for a short period before the employee reaffirms their desire to leave. With those in mind, it’s entirely your decision to make. A counter-offer isn’t worthwhile most of the time, and the risk might not be worth it. However, in some scenarios, particularly when a highly valued or critical employee is involved, you may need to do anything you can to keep them around. If you’re willing to take on the risk, and you’re capable of addressing the employee’s actual problems driving them to leave, then a counter-offer might be a great option. However, this will often require additional investment in culture, improvements, upgrades, and communication. If you aren’t sure you can make those investments, a counter-offer isn’t in the cards. Do you or your company have any questions about counter-offering or if you are in a situation to counter-offer a resigning employee? If so, please feel free to leave a comment down below, and we’ll get a conversation started. As we mentioned, a counter-offer may only work in specific scenarios and may not even be guaranteed to be effective. We’d be more than happy to assist you and your company with understanding the counter-offer a little more, if need be.

Efficiency is a critical component of successful recruitment. In today’s quick-moving business environment, finding and retaining top talent quickly and cost-effectively can be the difference between thriving and merely surviving. At Emerge Talent Cloud, we specialize in streamlining recruitment processes to save time and reduce costs, ensuring that your business remains competitive and agile. The Challenges of Traditional Recruitment Traditional recruitment methods often come with significant drawbacks, including time-consuming processes, high costs, and inconsistent results. Time-Consuming Processes Traditional recruitment involves lengthy job postings and time-consuming application reviews. HR teams often spend countless hours sorting through resumes and conducting multiple interview rounds, which can delay the hiring process and impact productivity. High Costs The financial burden of traditional recruitment can be substantial. Costs include recruitment agency fees , advertising expenses , and the  hidden cost of lost productivity  during the prolonged hiring process. These expenses add up quickly, straining your budget. Inconsistent Results Despite the investment of time and money, traditional recruitment methods can still result in hiring mismatches and high turnover rates. Ineffective screening and assessment processes can lead to poor hiring decisions, ultimately costing more in the long run. Emerge Talent Cloud’s Efficient Recruitment Solutions At Emerge Talent Cloud, we have developed a suite of efficient recruitment solutions designed to overcome these challenges. Our approach leverages advanced technology and streamlined processes to deliver high-quality hires quickly and cost-effectively. Streamlined Job Posting and Application Review We utilize AI and automation to optimize job postings and application reviews. Our system quickly filters and ranks candidates based on predefined criteria, ensuring that only the most suitable candidates are considered. Additionally, our platform enables efficient job posting across multiple channels simultaneously, broadening your reach and attracting a diverse talent pool. Effective Screening and Interviewing Our advanced screening tools are designed to identify the best candidates faster. We use a combination of automated assessments and structured interviews to ensure consistency and thorough evaluation. This approach not only speeds up the hiring process but also improves the quality of hires. Comprehensive Candidate Assessments We believe in a holistic approach to candidate evaluation. Our assessments include behavioral and skills-based tests to gauge candidate suitability accurately. Moreover, we conduct cultural fit evaluations to ensure that new hires align with your company values and work environment, promoting long-term satisfaction and retention. Cost-Saving Benefits of Our Approach Partnering with Emerge Talent Cloud can lead to significant cost savings and productivity gains. Reduced Recruitment Costs By leveraging our efficient recruitment solutions, businesses can lower their reliance on expensive external agencies and minimize advertising spend through targeted job postings. This approach results in immediate cost savings. Increased Productivity Our faster hiring process means less downtime and disruption, allowing your business to maintain momentum. Additionally, better quality hires lead to improved performance and lower turnover rates, further enhancing productivity. Long-Term Savings Higher retention rates mean less frequent rehiring, reducing long-term recruitment costs. Consistent and effective hiring practices contribute to a more stable and efficient workforce, delivering sustained value over time. Case Studies and Success Stories Example 1: Tech Company A mid-sized tech company partnered with Emerge Talent Cloud to address their recruitment inefficiencies. By implementing our advanced screening tools and automated processes, they reduced their recruitment costs by 30% and cut their hiring time in half. The result was a more efficient hiring process and a stronger, more productive team. Example 2: Retail Business A growing retail business faced challenges in hiring for key positions. With our comprehensive candidate assessments and streamlined application reviews, they not only filled positions faster but also improved their overall employee retention rate by 25%. This led to long-term cost savings and a more cohesive team. Partnering with Emerge Talent Cloud At Emerge Talent Cloud, we are dedicated to helping businesses save time and reduce costs through our efficient recruitment solutions. Our commitment to quality and innovation ensures that our clients receive the best possible outcomes. Client Testimonials “Emerge Talent Cloud transformed our recruitment process. Their efficient screening and assessment tools saved us time and money, and the quality of hires has been outstanding.” – HR Manager, Tech Company “Partnering with Emerge Talent Cloud was a game-changer for us. Their streamlined approach helped us fill key positions quickly and cost-effectively.” – CEO, Retail Business Conclusion Efficient recruitment is essential for business success. At Emerge Talent Cloud, we offer advanced solutions that save time, reduce costs, and improve hiring quality. If you’re ready to enhance your recruitment process and build a team that drives growth and success, contact us today. For more information, visit our website or get in touch with us at info@emergetalentcloud.com

When it comes to creating an effective employer brand, an Employee Value Proposition (EVP) is a crucial element. A compelling EVP is essential for attracting, engaging, and retaining top talent, and it’s also a powerful tool to help differentiate your company from the competition. But how do you create a compelling EVP that resonates with your audience? In this blog, we’ll reveal how employers can build a compelling employee value proposition for brand success. What is an Employee Value Proposition (EVP)? An employee value proposition (EVP) is a statement that communicates the unique benefits and experiences that your company provides to its employees. It’s a way to showcase your company culture and values, as well as the opportunities and rewards that you offer. EVPs are often used in recruiting and retention efforts , as they can help to attract and retain the best talent and set your company apart from the competition. An effective EVP should be based on an honest assessment of your company and tailored to your target audience. It should be written clearly and concisely, and it should express the core values and mission of your company. Your EVP should also be specific, focusing on the differentiating factors that make your company unique. How Employers Can Build a Compelling Employee Value Proposition Building a compelling EVP requires a lot of thought and effort. To get started, employers should focus on understanding their current employees and the attributes that make them successful. It’s also important to consider the needs and motivations of potential employees and determine how your company can meet those needs. The next step is to create a list of the unique benefits and experiences that your company offers. This can include things like a flexible work schedule, a generous vacation policy, a dynamic work environment, and a supportive team culture. It’s also important to consider the values and mission of your company, and how these can be communicated in your EVP. Once you have a list of benefits and experiences, it’s time to start crafting your EVP. This can be done by creating a statement that clearly communicates the unique value that your company offers its employees. Your EVP should be concise, clear, and engaging, and it should reflect the values and mission of your company. Examples of Effective Employee Value Propositions An effective EVP should be tailored to the target audience and reflect the company’s culture and values. Here are some examples of effective employee value propositions: At [Company Name], we believe in creating an environment of trust, respect, and collaboration. We provide our employees with the flexibility to work on their own terms, while still supporting them with the resources they need to succeed. Our team at [Company Name] is passionate about creating an enjoyable and rewarding work experience. We offer competitive salaries, flexible hours, and a supportive environment to help our employees reach their potential. At [Company Name], we are committed to providing our employees with a unique and rewarding experience. We strive to make our workplaces fun, engaging, and supportive while providing our teams with the tools and resources they need to be successful. How EVP Works with Employer Branding An effective EVP is an important element of employer branding. Employer branding is the process of creating a positive image of your company in the eyes of potential employees. This image is created through the use of various marketing techniques, such as social media, job postings, and events. The employer brand should reflect the values and mission of your company, and the EVP can be used to help communicate this message. The employer brand should also be tailored to the target audience and should focus on the unique benefits and experiences that your company offers. It’s also important to make sure that the employer brand is consistent across all channels and platforms. This will help ensure that potential employees get a clear and consistent message about your company. Employer Branding Strategies When it comes to employer branding, there are a few strategies that employers should consider. The first is to create a strong and consistent message about your company and its values. This message should be tailored to your target audience and should be communicated through all channels and platforms. It’s also important to focus on creating a positive employee experience. This includes providing competitive salaries and benefits, offering flexible hours, and creating a supportive and engaging work environment. Employers should also focus on recruiting top talent and retaining existing employees by providing them with the resources and support they need to succeed. Finally, employers should focus on building relationships with potential employees. This can include using social media to engage with potential employees, hosting events to showcase your employer brand, and creating content that highlights the unique benefits and experiences that your company offers. Benefits of Employer Branding Employer branding can have several benefits for your company. The most obvious benefit is that it can help you attract and retain top talent. A strong employer brand can also help differentiate your company from the competition and increase brand recognition. Employer branding can also help to increase employee engagement and morale. This can lead to increased productivity, improved customer service, and better overall performance. Finally, a strong employer brand can also help to attract investors and other partners, as it can show that your company is well-managed and has a strong culture. Challenges of Employer Branding Despite the many benefits of employer branding, there are also some challenges that employers should be aware of. One of the biggest challenges is staying consistent with the employer brand. This means making sure that the employer brand is communicated consistently across all channels and platforms. Another challenge is staying up to date with the latest trends and technologies. Employers should stay on top of the latest trends and technologies and make sure that their employer brand is up to date. This can include using social media to engage with potential employees, creating content that highlights the unique benefits and experiences that your company offers, and hosting events to showcase your employer brand. Finally, employers should also be aware of the potential costs associated with employer branding. This includes things like hiring marketing professionals, creating content, and hosting events. These costs can add up quickly, so it’s important to have a plan in place to ensure that the employer brand is successful. Tips for Making Employee Value Propositions Effective To make sure your EVP is effective, there are a few tips that employers should keep in mind. The first is to make sure that the EVP is tailored to the target audience. It should be clear, concise, and engaging, and it should reflect the values and mission of your company. It’s also important to make sure that the EVP is consistent across all channels and platforms. This will help ensure that potential employees get a clear and consistent message about your company. Finally, employers should also focus on creating a positive employee experience. This includes providing competitive salaries and benefits, offering flexible hours, and creating a supportive and engaging work environment. How to Measure the Success of Your EVP Measuring the success of your EVP is an important step in making sure that it is effective. There are a few metrics that employers can use to measure the success of their EVP. These include the number of applications received from potential employees, the percentage of applicants who accept job offers, the employee retention rate, and the employee engagement rate. By tracking these metrics over time, employers can get an understanding of how their EVP is performing. This can help them identify areas for improvement and make sure that their EVP is resonating with their target audience. Conclusion An effective EVP is an important element of employer branding, as it can help to communicate the unique benefits and experiences that your company offers its employees. To create a compelling EVP, employers should focus on understanding their current employees and the attributes that make them successful, as well as the needs and motivations of potential employees. They should also focus on creating a strong and consistent message about their company and its values and on creating a positive employee experience. Finally, employers should measure the success of their EVP by tracking key metrics over time. Take a deep dive into crafting an effective EVP for your company. Our team is ready to offer you consultancy and feedback so that the job gets done right! If this sounds like something of interest, let’s chat today and explore how we can help carve out the perfect EVP together.

Here at Emerge Talent Cloud, we have over the years developed and refined a successful and repeatable process for screening and interviewing corporate-side, contract recruiters that has served us well.  I thought I’d share it with my readers so that you too can think about adopting it for your own organization. Let’s start with the obvious problem, and what I’m sure drew you here, which is the unhappy reality that only a very small percentage of recruiters, whether contract recruiters or otherwise, are truly exceptional. And because most recruiters, especially cloud recruiters, know the tricks of the trade, they are adept at turning the tables and selling us on their prowess. Step 1:  Boolean Syntax We believe that recruiters and sourcers must be proficient with basic Boolean search syntax in order to create effective search strings.  We administer an online test to every Emerge Talent Cloud and sourcer so they can demonstrate their knowledge of basic Boolean syntax.  This is not an advanced Boolean web search, but rather a knowledge of the basic syntax used to populate a search bar in, for example, LinkedIn or Monster.  We need to know that candidates understand the three basic Boolean operations (AND, OR, NOT), and the proper placement of parentheses “  “ and brackets ( ). If you are unsure about how to construct questions to test knowledge of basic Boolean syntax, feel free to contact me and I will give you a hand creating questions (and of course answers!). Step 2:  Resume Review Skills We administer a resume review test that involves analyzing a group of supplied resumes against job descriptions.  We are looking for an understanding of subject matter content (IT, Sales, Finance, etc), as well as general screening skills in regard to things like job gaps, career progression, job hopping, etc. We have altered the resumes so that they have predictable land mines that any recruiter worth their salt should catch. For instance, a resume may have considerable job gaps; or have a college graduation date of 1915, or have job titles or descriptions that don’t fit the job description, etc. Step 3:  Req Intake / Recruiting Plan We ask the recruiter to walk us through a recent req that they worked on, starting at Req Intake.  What exactly did they do and ask at the req intake meeting?  Do they have a standard template that they use?  If so, did they create it themselves?  After sharing with us the template and/or questions that they ask at intake, we then have them share with us the recruiting plan that they subsequently put together.  What was their approach?  What tools, resources, and strategies did they plan to use?  What was their timeline?  What metrics did they address, such as time-to-fill and/or cost-per-hire? Step 4:  Sourcing Skills We assign a mock job description and ask contract recruiters to identify LinkedIn profiles that align with the job description.  We then ask them to create a write-up for that candidate.  Although they are creating the conversation and write-up fictitiously, it allows us to gauge their ability to ask the right questions, to comprehensively and meticulously gather and present information, and to demonstrate that they know how to stand out by writing highly personalized, creative, and engaging in emails. We also ask contract recruiters to tell us which sourcing tools they have used or have at least researched, other than LinkedIn, job boards, and the company ATS (applicant tracking software).  A cloud recruiter who is truly passionate about their craft will research and use other tools.  For instance, if you ask this question to any recruiter or source on my team, you will hear a litany of tools such as Recruitment Edge, SwoopTalent, Source Hub, PropelIQ, Slideshare, Google+, Twitter, GitHub, Stack Overflow, Meetup, Facebook, Lusha, Email Hunter, Connectifier Social, Prophet, Capture, Infogist, etc.  Yet, amazingly, when we ask candidates to tell us which tools they have used or have even just researched, other than LinkedIn and job boards, 90% of the time they have not a single answer. Step 5:  Candidate Management Skills While of course it’s critical that a Emerge Talent Cloud understands how to source candidates effectively, it is equally important that they know how to exercise best practices in candidate care. Do they understand the importance of a high-touch candidate experience?  Are they adept at using company messaging and branding to keep candidates interested and engaged?  We like to see that contract recruiters have a consultative, rather than a transactional, approach to recruiting and working with candidates. Step 6:  Working With Internal Hiring Managers The aforementioned consultative, rather than transactional, approach is also imperative in regard to working with internal hiring managers.  So, we ask questions to ensure that contract recruiters know how to establish and maintain healthy communication channels with internal hiring managers.  We want to know the size of the req slates that they have managed, and how they handle the pressure of every hiring manager claiming that all of their reqs are high priority. Step 7:  Soft Skills / Culture Fit Leadership IQ conducted a three-year study involving over 5,000 hiring managers from 2,400 companies during more than 20,000 hires and found that 81% of new hires fail.  Surprisingly, the reason for the high rate of failure was not due to a lack of job skills, but to the following: Coachability – 26 percent of new hires failed due to their inability to accept feedback from those they work with, including bosses, colleagues, and customers. Emotional Intelligence – A close second to lack of coachability is lack of emotional intelligence, with 23 percent of new hires failing due to their inability to understand emotions, their own and others. Motivation – 17 percent of new hires in Leadership IQ’s study failed because of a lack of motivation, defined as the insufficient drive to succeed and excel in the job. Temperament – 15 percent of new hires failed due to attitudes and personalities unsuited to the functions and tasks of the job and conditions of the work environment. We use the following behavioral style interview questions to assess what we feel are the important take-ways from the Leadership IQ survey: Coachability What could you have done differently to enhance your working relationship with your manager? What areas for improvement did your manager point out to you? Tell me about accomplishments or improvements that you made or achieved that were a result of feedback that was given to you What aspects of your job did you and your manager seem to be at odds with? If you could step outside of yourself and coach yourself, what suggestions or ideas would you recommend? Ability to Work Under Pressure Tell me about a time when you had to work under pressure Can you give some examples of situations in which you had problems working under pressure? Can you give me some examples of situations in which you decided to ask for assistance when under pressure? Ability to Recognize and Learn from Mistakes Tell me about a mistake you made at work. What happened? What did you do about it? What’s the most out-of-the-box meaningful or significant thing you’ve ever done to remedy a mistake? Being a Team Player Tell me about your favorite team that you have ever worked on Tell me about your least favorite team that you have ever worked on What types of personalities do you work best with? What types of personalities do you prefer not to work with? Tell me about a time at work when you disagreed with someone. What did you do about it? Tell me about a decision that you made that wasn’t popular and how you handled it Think about someone at work that you don’t or didn’t get along with and tell me about that person and the situation Passion Tell me about your hobbies and interests What are you passionate about? What motivates you to come to work every day? Tell me about something that you focused on that took great courage and hard work to overcome What’s a big question in your field you’d like to solve and why? Tell me about a problem or issue at work that you decided to tackle without being asked to do so What was the last career-related book that you read? What magazines or trade journals do you read to stay current in your career? Step 8:  Check Candidate References Lastly, don’t be lazy – check those references!  We always ask for references of managers to whom the recruiter directly reported, as opposed to peer references which are far too likely to be biased.  And if a cloud recruiter is unable to provide direct supervisor references, then we will typically put that into the same category as negative references.  Every top-notch recruiter should be able to provide at least one or two glowing references from a direct supervisor. Interviewing any type of candidate, recruiter or otherwise, is an ambitious endeavor.  Nothing, unfortunately, is fool-proof, but you can increase the likelihood of hiring a winner by applying a well-thought-out methodology.  We have honed our screening process for contract recruiters , but our approach is 100% relevant for any corporate-side recruiter and is also somewhat relevant for agency recruiters.  Here’s to hiring top talent! #hiring #agencyrecruiter #interview #talentacquisition #RPO #EmergeTalentCloud

Are you looking for ways to reach your recruitment goals? Whether you’re a hiring manager, a recruitment specialist, or an HR leader, understanding the right strategies to reach your recruitment goals is essential. In this blog post, we’ll provide you with a step-by-step guide to help you reach your recruitment goals. We’ll cover the nine key strategies you need to consider, including headcount planning, defining your ideal candidate profiles, crafting your employee value proposition, developing your recruitment marketing strategy, and more. Recruiting and hiring are essential components of any business. It’s the process of attracting, assessing, and hiring the most qualified candidates for a job. It’s also a crucial part of building a strong and successful team. But how do you ensure that you’re effectively reaching your recruitment goals? You need to have a strong understanding of the recruitment process, as well as the strategies you need to consider in order to achieve success. In this blog post, we’ll provide you with a step-by-step guide on how to reach your recruitment goals. We’ll cover the nine key strategies you need to consider, including headcount planning, defining your ideal candidate profiles, crafting your employee value proposition, developing your recruitment marketing strategy, defining your selection process, designing your onboarding process, choosing the right tools and technology, finalizing your recruitment budget, and more. By understanding and implementing these strategies, you’ll be able to successfully reach your recruitment goals. Let’s get started! 1. Set Your Recruitment Goals The first step in reaching your recruitment goals is to set them. You need to have a clear understanding of what you want to achieve and how you’re going to measure success. Your recruitment goals can be divided into two categories: short-term and long-term. Short-term goals are those that you want to achieve in the near future, such as filling a key position in the next month. Long-term goals are those that you want to achieve in the distant future, such as filling all positions in a department within the next year. Once you have set your goals, you can start to develop a plan to reach them. This plan should include the strategies you’ll use, the timeline, and the resources you’ll need. 2. Headcount Planning Headcount planning is an essential part of reaching your recruitment goals. It involves determining the number of people you need to hire and when you need to hire them. Headcount planning should be based on your current and future business needs. You need to consider the roles and skills you need, the size of your team, and the budget you have available. Once you have determined the number of people you need to hire, you can start to plan for how you’re going to reach your recruitment goals. 3. Define Your Ideal Candidate Profiles Once you’ve determined the roles and skills you need, the next step is to define your ideal candidate profiles. An ideal candidate profile is a description of the ideal candidate for a particular role. When defining your ideal candidate profiles, you need to consider the skills, qualifications, and experience they should have. You should also consider their personality traits and cultural fit. Once you’ve defined your ideal candidate profiles, you can start to develop your recruitment marketing strategy. 4. Craft Your Employee Value Proposition Your employee value proposition (EVP) is a statement that outlines the value you offer to potential employees. It’s an essential part of your recruitment strategy, as it helps you attract and retain the best talent. When crafting your EVP, you need to consider what makes your company different from its competitors. You should also consider the benefits you offer, such as career development opportunities, work-life balance, and competitive salaries. Your EVP should be unique, memorable, and engaging . It should also reflect the values and culture of your company. 5. Develop Your Recruitment Marketing Strategy Once you’ve crafted your EVP, you need to develop a recruitment marketing strategy. This strategy should outline how you’re going to market your company and roles to potential candidates. You should consider the channels you’re going to use to reach potential candidates, such as social media, job boards, and career sites. You should also consider how you’re going to promote your EVP, such as through content marketing, events, and webinars. Your recruitment marketing strategy should also consider the metrics you’ll use to measure success. This could include the number of applicants, the number of hires, and the cost-per-hire. 6. Define Your Selection Process The next step is to define your selection process. This is the process you’ll use to identify and select the best candidates for your roles. When defining your selection process, you need to consider the steps you’ll take, such as resume screening, interviews, assessments, and reference checks. You should also consider the criteria you’ll use to evaluate candidates, such as their qualifications, experience, and cultural fit. Your selection process should be consistent, fair, and effective. It should also be tailored to the specific roles you’re hiring for. 7. Design Your Onboarding Process Once you’ve identified and selected the best candidates for your roles, the next step is to design your onboarding process . This is the process you’ll use to introduce new employees to your company and to help them become successful. When designing your onboarding process, you need to consider the steps you’ll take, such as orientation, training, and team-building activities. You should also consider the tools and technology you’ll use, such as onboarding software and employee handbooks. Your onboarding process should be tailored to the specific roles you’re hiring for. It should also be consistent, efficient, and effective. 8. Choose the Right Tools and Technology The right tools and technology can help you streamline and automate your recruitment process. They can also help you save time, money, and resources. When choosing the right tools and technology, you need to consider your specific needs. This could include applicant tracking systems, recruitment software, and video interviewing tools. You should also consider the features and functionality you need, as well as the costs. You should also make sure that the tools and technology you choose are user-friendly and easy to use. 9. Finalize Your Recruitment Budget The final step in reaching your recruitment goals is to finalize your recruitment budget. This is the budget you’ll use to pay for recruitment activities, such as headcount planning, recruitment marketing, selection processes, and onboarding. When finalizing your recruitment budget, you need to consider the costs of each activity. You should also consider the resources you have available, such as your time, money, and staff. Your recruitment budget should be realistic, achievable, and aligned with your recruitment goals. Conclusion Reaching your recruitment goals can be challenging. But by understanding and implementing the strategies outlined in this blog post, you’ll be well on your way to success. The nine key strategies you need to consider are headcount planning, defining your ideal candidate profiles, crafting your employee value proposition, developing your recruitment marketing strategy, defining your selection process, designing your onboarding process, choosing the right tools and technology, finalizing your recruitment budget, and more. By understanding and implementing these strategies, you’ll be well on your way to achieving your recruitment goals. Are you ready to start reaching your recruitment goals? With the right strategies and the right tools, you’ll be well on your way to success.  Want to accelerate your way to success? Contact us and learn how we can help you do that.

While every business faces unique challenges in their hiring process, none have quite the same array of difficulty as the non-profit sector. Hiring in non-profits is often restricted by tight budgets, meaning many of those working in the non-profit sector do so with low salaries. They stay in it “for the love of the game,” so to speak; many are even volunteers, not employees. Burnout has been rising amongst non-profit workers for decades. Recent crises in world health, politics, and judicial bias have made it more difficult than ever for many activists to maintain high spirits. There seems to be little or no reward for many of those working in the thankless realm of the non-profit sector. If you’re in charge of hiring for a non-profit operation, you want to gather the best candidates you can find. However, you’re likely working under tight restrictions. Likewise, the people seeking jobs in the non-profit sector have desires, interests, and goals of their own, which may make it difficult to find people with long-term prospects. The stark truth is that many non-profit employees only stay in any given role for 2-3 years. Luckily, with the proper perspective and a few tricks of the trade, you can kick your non-profit hiring to the next level and achieve greater alignment rates, longer careers, and better overall outcomes. Here are the 7 best practices for hiring non-profit organization employees.  #1: Strongly Emphasize Values and Mission Some people go through their lives and careers seeking nothing more than money. To them, work is a transaction; they sell their time and their energy for the money they need to live and thrive. Others go through life with a mission. They don’t want to “just” make a salary to survive; they want to tangibly change the world for the better. This second group of people tend to care a lot more about the culture, values, and mission of any organization they work for. Many of them will value working for a proactively beneficial organization over an organization that will pay them more but accomplish less. These people will also typically reject working for organizations and companies they feel are unethical. This is an opportunity. As a non-profit organization, you are most likely deeply involved in activism, whether it’s on a global scale or a scale focused solely on your local community. Whether you’re working towards prison abolition, reforestation, an end to factory farming, or support of the oppressed, there are people out there whose passion aligns with your organization’s mission. When recruiting for a non-profit and producing copy for that recruitment, you need to emphasize your values, mission, goals, and outlook. State your overall mission clearly and precisely. Promote the organization’s values as a whole, and of the individuals you already have on staff. Discuss the values, outlook, and drive you want your ideal candidates to have. Showcase examples of your successes, projects, and outreach your organization has accomplished. All of this is meant to do one thing: build a robust, tangible picture of the organization and the good it does. This helps to attract the people most interested in your area of activism. #2: Make Use of Non-Profit Hiring Websites Every industry and niche has its selection of job and career websites. As a non-profit, you have access to a range of specific sites and networks you can leverage for your recruiting . Here’s a list of both standard and niche sites to consider: LinkedIn. Networking via LinkedIn is very powerful, and the network tends to be an excellent resource for building both networking connections and referrals. More on that later. LinkedIn groups. LinkedIn has a system of group communities, which are often focused on a specific topic. You can create your own based on your area of focus or join those that align with your own and see if anyone is interested in joining your team. The Big Names. The largest job search portals, such as Indeed, Glassdoor, Monster, and CareerBuilder, are perfectly acceptable. They may not be focused on non-profit work, but they have such large audiences that you’re going to find some interested people regardless. Idealist. Idealist is probably the number one non-profit job portal online. They’re also multi-language and host career fairs regularly, further expanding your candidate pool . National Council of Nonprofits Career Center. As a national organization, this site has access to a broad pool of possible applicants. It also maintains many other resources that can be useful to a non-profit, so if you don’t already have a relationship with your local branch, this is an excellent opportunity to build one. Foundation List. Another sizable national resource for non-profit job seekers. You gain access to a broad candidate pool for various causes. Devex. This group is primarily focused on international NGOs, so while they maintain a presence in the U.S., they may be best for international organizations. Bridgespan. The Bridgespan Group is a great resource for non-profits. However, they tend to focus most on the coordinator, board-level, CEO, and other upper-level positions rather than ground-level roles. This list is just a selection of the sites available to a non-profit organization seeking new employees and volunteers. Whether you need to fill a board of directors or pick up a grant writer and fundraising expert, there are people out there of all levels using these sites and networks to find their next career. #3: Actively Encourage Word of Mouth Referrals People tend to build social circles centered around common interests and common ground. Sometimes, this means a shared hobby, the shared class for their children, or a shared community around a cultural interest. More often, though, people will build social circles around their passions and careers. That means that each employee you hire is, themselves, a resource. Chances are pretty good that they have friends, acquaintances, and connections to social groups focused on the same area of activism as your organization. After all, if they’re passionate about it, they’re probably doing more than just participating in your organization. They’re posting online, joining online groups, and socializing with others with shared interests. When you have an opening to fill, circulate it internally and ask anyone in your organization to refer anyone they know who might be interested in the role. You can then give any referred applicants a closer look; employees who have a built-in social connection when they are hired tend to last longer and work more productively, so it’s of net benefit to hire people with referred connections. #4: Look to Fill Higher-Level Roles Internally First The truth is, one of the strongest assets any non-profit has at its disposal is itself. Any time you have an opening to fill in the mid-level or higher range (from coordinators to directors to board to CEO ), consider looking internally. “‘All good organizations look to promote first before they look to hire; it’s smart business, it’s good for morale, and it’s cost-effective,’ said Friel. However, as organizations get bigger, promoting gets more difficult. ‘The bigger the organization gets, the more likely the talent will get hidden away,’ said Friel. Organizations can lose track of “young stars,” or department heads may not be willing to give up exceptional talent. ‘In a good organization, you look across the organization and move people around to their greatest need, and you give people opportunities to get promoted.’” – Tom Friel, via The Bridgespan Group . Promoting from within helps with retention and career satisfaction, maintains institutional knowledge and personal connections, and helps maintain continuity. It also shuffles a job opening downwards, and lower-level positions are often easier (and less expensive) to fill than upper-level positions. Plus, having worked with the individual for months or years before the promotion, you already have a solid grasp of their abilities, proclivities, and talents, so you can more accurately judge how well they will fit in a higher-level role. #5: Be Realistic and Up Front with Compensation Packages Appropriate compensation is one of the most significant challenges a non-profit organization faces. On the one hand, to maintain status as an effective organization, you want to put as high a percentage of your income as you can towards your activism to do the most good with the money you have available. All too often, charities, NGOs, and non-profits fall into the corporate trap of over-paying executives and under-paying ground-level workers who keep the organization running. It’s why sites like Charity Navigator exist to rank and grade organizations based on how much of their overall income and donations they spend on executive salaries. The truth is, a non-profit role will rarely be genuinely competitive in terms of salary. That’s why our #1 tip is to focus on the mission, values, and tangible benefit the organization brings to the world. To an extent, your employees will need to be invested due to their morals, ethics, and drive to better the world rather than their goal of making money. Set a firm upper limit on your salary and look for opportunities for benefits that can be compelling to potential hires. For example, remote work, sponsored childcare, education assistance, flexible hours, and even extra vacation time can all be notable benefits for your potential employees. #6: Keep in Touch with Candidates You Pass Over The people you don’t hire are nearly as important as those you do. “Say thank you to those who helped and to the candidates who weren’t chosen. “You may want to go back to both in the future,” said Friel. A well-conducted search should make the organization friends, not enemies.” – Tom Friel, the Bridgespan Group. When you hire for a position, you build a candidate pool of qualified individuals who are in the running for it. You can only hire one (or two, or however many open roles you have), but you have more people in the pipeline who could be perfectly qualified for the position as well. Keep this candidate pool warm. There’s always room for the situation to change. Maybe a higher-level role opens up, and you promote someone, opening up a position one of those candidates would be perfect to fill. Maybe the person you hire doesn’t work out or needs to leave for personal reasons unrelated to the role. Maybe someone else departs the organization, and you need to fill their shoes. Regardless of the reason, maintaining an active candidate pool allows you to fill those roles quickly. The two most important things to do are: Thank the candidates who don’t make the cut, inform them that the position is filled, but let them know that they’re first in line if another one opens up. Maintain contact with the candidates on an ongoing basis, even with something as simple as a monthly newsletter. This way, these people are primed and ready to go if you need a new employee and think they can fill the role. Of course, the longer it has been since they applied, the more likely they are to have found work elsewhere and may no longer be interested in your organization. Pool decay is a natural part of hiring, but it’s still better than abandoning the pool and starting over each time. #7: Keep the Motor Running Hiring ebbs and flows. Sometimes, you’ll only have the opportunity to hire a few new people throughout the year. Other times, you may have dozens of positions to fill in a matter of weeks. If you only rev up your hiring process when you have an active need for a candidate, your time-to-fill will skyrocket. Instead, keep your hiring channels open and your ear to the ground, even when you’re not actively hiring, to keep that candidate pool fresh and warm. That way, when you need to fill open positions, you can do so quickly and easily. Conclusion  Hiring for a non-profit organization is a unique challenge, but one that can be met with strategic thinking and a deep understanding of what drives individuals to commit to such meaningful work. By emphasizing your organization’s values and mission, making smart use of specialized hiring websites, encouraging word-of-mouth referrals, considering internal candidates for higher roles, being upfront about compensation, keeping in touch with past candidates, and maintaining an active hiring process, you can attract and retain the passionate, dedicated individuals who are the lifeblood of any successful non-profit. Remember, the individuals you are looking to hire are those driven by a sense of purpose and a desire to make a real difference. By focusing on these aspects, you create a magnetic pull for the right kind of talent. It’s about creating an environment where their passion for change is recognized and nurtured. Furthermore, always approach the hiring process with empathy and understanding. The people you are looking to hire are often those who are putting their ideals and values above personal gain. They are the ones who will carry your organization’s mission forward, who will fight tirelessly for the cause, and who will inspire others to join in the effort. Do you need help with hiring non-profit organization employees? Contact our team today and we will gladly help you.