If you’re planning to make new hires, what hiring trends do you need to consider going into 2023? There’s a shortage of quality candidates to fill many technical jobs, so in 2023 it’s even more important than ever to make your opportunities stand out from the crowd and keep candidates engaged.

Here are 5 trends to consider when looking at your recruitment needs when moving into 2023

1. Your employer brand is more important than ever

Marketers use a company’s brand identity to attract prospects and convert them into customers, you can do the same with your employer brand to build a talent pipeline of potential candidates to fill your roles. Tweaking your company customer brand plan to reflect the difference in your target market will help you get the results you need.

Just like any other brand document it should articulate the company’s personality, values, culture and ethos and reflect the people within your business. Identify the factors that help you differentiate from other companies, and the things that are most attractive to your employees and potential recruits. Then, using this document, ensure all communications about your careers opportunities and recruitment reflect the employer brand and use it to its advantage.

For more on developing your employer brand, click here.

2. Recruitment Solutions will be key

There are a number of solutions you can use to find candidates. However limiting yourself is not going to cut it in 2023. You will need to use a number of tactics.

Specialist recruitment consultants will be key. Your probably thinking I would say that but hear me out. With a shortage of candidates, more opportunities and no longer a job for life, recruiters have relationships with candidates that you simply won’t have. Candidates will often use the same recruiter during their career moves if the recruiter has done their job properly. We are being required to headhunt for qualified candidates more and more – especially at a senior level – and this is only set to continue into 2023. Working with a specialist recruiter that understands your business and culture can really reap benefits in the long term for some initial ground work on your part.

The inbound approach to recruitment has also gained traction over the last couple of years in many sectors. Inbound recruiting is similar to inbound marketing and is about producing content that engages candidates with your company. It showcases your employer brand and gives potential recruits the information they need to see if they’re a good fit for your company, and keep them engaged with the recruitment process.

3. Flexible, Hybrid and remote working is here to stay

Pre-pandemic we were very used to being in the office 5 days a week – this now seems almost archaic and we wonder why this new kind of working was not the norm. However there seems to be a divide between the more traditional executives of companies and jobseekers. A number of recent surveys suggest that:

• Company executives believe you can’t promote culture if your not in the office
• The number of remote job postings are declining steadily
• By contrast, the number of applications to those postings are high
• A third of employees in a recent survey said they would change employers if they did not offer remote options

Be honest about your expectations for employees. If this is something your company is reluctant to offer then you need to make this clear up front. This will save both time and energy for clients and candidates in the process. However you could be missing out on exceptional candidates by being inflexible on your policies. If the pandemic has shown us anything, its that we can be just as productive from home as in the office, whether fully or hybrid.

LinkedIn’s October 2022 UK Talent Trends Survey showed the top 3 properties are: 1) Compensation i.e. their pay and benefits; 2) Balance: Organisational support for work/life balance; 3) Flexibility with work arrangements. All things that have surfaced from the Pandemic as people re-evaluated their priorities.

4. Candidate experience is key

It’s all about giving candidates the best experience to engage them with your company from the start and keep them interested right up until the moment your new hire starts.

Recruiters sometimes forget that the candidate’s first impression of a potential employer is through your communications, interactions and hiring process. If you’re slow to respond, offhand or the candidate doesn’t hear back from you, the candidate experience is poor and that can reflect negatively on your employer brand. A good candidate experience respects the candidate’s time and makes the recruitment process as pain free as possible. This is also true for candidates that are perhaps not suitable for a particular role. By receiving a good experience, despite the rejection, can produce positive branding when the candidate talks about your company with friends, family and colleagues. Work of mouth marketing is priceless.

5. Don’t just rely on digital technology to find candidates

Digital tech has transformed recruitment (and most other business functions) making it easier to find and connect with candidates worldwide. LinkedIn and other social media, online job boards and your own careers webpage, are all important tools for attracting and engaging candidates.

However, offline methods of sourcing candidates are not dead. In fact, they can help you cut through the online noise, filter out unsuitable candidates and engage the talent you want – often more effectively than trying to do it all online.

Good old fashioned networking at industry events or meet ups is still an excellent way of sourcing candidates and finding out who’s hot in your field. Whether it’s a chance to get recommendations or a face-to-face with a prospective candidate, these events can give you an opportunity to build relationships and engagement, and assess cultural fit, much faster than you would online.

Of course, we love all the online tools we have at our disposal! But don’t forget that a chat over a drink with an old colleague can be just as productive as direct messaging 50 odd passive candidates on LinkedIn.

If you have any questions about attracting and engaging technical candidates, please Contact us here, we’d be happy to help.

Further Reading:

• Candidate and Skills Short Market Blog
• Energi People have had experience with placing fully remote candidates with companies for Clients that were sceptical. These have proven to be highly beneficial to both client and candidates. Read our blog on Fully Remote Contract Staff.