Strategic Hiring in Uncertain Times: Building Teams That Last
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Hiring is only superficially about filling the seats. Actually, it’s about creating teams that will have the strength, flexibility, and stamina to endure. A well thought out hiring plan during the rocky times of today is a step towards getting immediate as well as sustainable success.
1. Connect hiring to business priorities
Decide on your human capital like you would decide on your company objectives; don’t just go out hiring because that’s what happens! What kind of skills will you be requiring to fuel your future expansion? By matching your people strategy with your business goals, you can make sure that every single hire will really add value to the company. Go to the core areas and functions and figure out where talents are the most vital. Then hold your hiring in those areas.
2. Give a chance to potential and adaptability
Can you actually find the perfect candidate? A person who has been communicating through his/her work that he/she is adaptable, has a growth mindset and can also handle work across functions, might even be more precious to the company than a candidate who had all the qualities you expected from a year ago. Talent experts argue that building flexible teams is a very good way of dealing with uncertainty.
3. Back your decisions with facts and a structure to lower the risk
Sometimes haste in hiring can be due to pressure and, as a result, your decisions end up being rushed and hires end up being bad. A combination of structured interview processes, scoring, and KPIs would enable you to fairly evaluate candidates. Hiring through the use of data has been a very effective strategy for businesses to make informed and scalable decisions even when operating in unpredictable situations.
4. Develop talent pipelines and stay agile
The truth is no one knows exactly when the right talent may walk right through the door. So just think, instead of gating when you find the right candidate, how about you develop the talent pipeline, and have an agile workforce plan as your backup? It is agility that makes a resilient recruitment strategy, according to best practices for workforce planning.
5. Give priority to the culture-fit and team grit
A brilliant team doesn't just have cross-functional talents, but also they are very cohesive and have a high degree of trust. Besides, culture and connection have become the most important component. Studies have shown that teams which have a common purpose and a high level of belonging are the ones that can overcome challenges and recover the fastest. In your search for employees, you are looking for individuals not only possessing the necessary skills, but those who also are in line with your vision, understand the importance of teamwork, and can contribute to the creation of a thriving company culture.
6. Change and progress as you hire
Hiring strategy isn’t a fixed formula but a process that has to be altered as the business environment changes. Monitor your main indicators, get the input from the recruiting managers, and be ready to make changes to your sourcing, roles or compensation, etc. In these unstable times, constant enhancement of hiring methods can be a strong competitive advantage.
Conclusion
When the market situation looks volatile, people mostly think of stopping hiring altogether or finding an easy way out. However, a deliberate move to hire during uncertain times means that a company is being proactive and not reactive. If companies align roles with business strategy, are open to flexibility, make processes uniform and keep on developing talent pools, they can have employees who will stay for a long time, not only survive but even excel during the uncertain times. Your top hires could turn out to be your most powerful strategic differentiators even when the future is highly unpredictable.
