A further cause for optimism can be found in the same report in the form of a higher level of staff appointments for the 5th consecutive month and the growth of permanent placements at its sharpest since July 2007.

There is also some good news for employees too, with average salaries for people placed in permanent jobs increasing for the second month running in December. A small step in the right direction following months of negative figures. All good news then. Positive headlines, evidence of improvements across a range of key drivers and evidence of a ‘feel-better factor’ that has been conspicuous by its absence in recent times.
It may, however, not all be good news. The report also reveals evidence that the growth of candidate availability is slowing down largely, of course, as a direct result of the level of placement activity increasing. So the transition from ‘employer-led’ hiring to ‘candidate-led’ hiring seems to have begun.

The challenge now is for those organisations, and more accurately the managers responsible for hiring, to ensure they are achieving the right results as often as possible. In all hiring situations, creating the right impression, promoting the values of the business and giving the potential employee a positive set of feelings about the role have always been important. In this changing landscape, where the prospective employee has more of a say in which role they chose, the abilities of the hiring manager become essential.

So what will organisations do to ensure that hiring managers are equipped with the best possible skills and understanding of the interview and hiring process? Many managers receive little, if any, formal training in the hiring process. Many of these same managers will undoubtedly be good at their job but does that automatically mean they are good at hiring? An Operations Director or a Marketing Manager may be completely at ease with and capable in their role but what is there to guarantee their success at making a good hiring decision?

Engaging with employees is widely recognised as having a direct correlation with improvements in company performance and, with the hiring process being in reality the first step on the road to achieving success, in it the requirement is clear. Hiring managers must be trained, developed and equipped to provide sustainable and accurate hiring decisions on behalf of their company.
By having a detailed understanding of the principles and objectives of effective hiring decisions, the managers making appointments will be able to avoid ‘mis-hire’ decisions that cost the organisation considerably.

Without training or guidance managers can continue making hiring decisions both good and bad. The costs associated with hiring (and in particular ‘mis-hiring’) means it makes a lot of sense, particularly with candidate choice returning, to avoid the devil in the detail and ensure this vital aspect of an organisation’s composition functions as well as possible.

The level of confidence being expressed by organisations in some sectors and business groups is on the increase. Some of this confidence may, of course, be an involuntary response to the advent of a new decade. It is, however, also evident that certain sectors are starting to see the much sought after turn-around becoming more and more evident.

As growth and recovery become more obvious so too does the reality that employers may face a number of challenges as a direct result of a return of economic and employment confidence.

By way of an example, a recent survey commissioned by the Tate Group (specialists in office support recruitment) of over 200 job seekers revealed that a staggering 98.6% will attempt to change jobs immediately – as soon as the job market improves.

This data is not alone in making for bleak reading. Further corroboration is also available in the form of research by both CIPD and TUC/You Gov partnership. Research carried out by both organisations revealed a meagre 3 out of 10 UK employees are engaged with their work.

With the apparent readiness of individuals to consider leaving for a new role, and the employer’s potential for needing to hire more staff, the conditions would appear to be set for a ‘perfect storm’. At the precise time that employers need to rely upon and, potentially, expand their workforce, that very community of workers may have their own agenda; one that is focused outside of, or beyond, their present role.

What can be done to try to avoid such an outcome? Certainly a good place to start is with the development of sustainable and measurable employee engagement strategies.

Employers must accept the part they play in the level of engagement, attachment and affiliation that employees feel toward the company and their specific role. Managers and departmental heads, so often the “keyholders” that create linkages between employees and the company, need to understand and meet the needs of their staff and direct reports.

Employees need to be encouraged, empowered and engaged with their work, their colleagues and the company culture. This view is supported within the recently published “Engaging for Success” (BIS 2009- MacLeod and Clarke) report on employee engagement. The report concluded that an “an engaged employee experiences a blend of job satisfaction, organisational commitment, job involvement and feelings of empowerment”.

It is important to highlight too, as the report mentions, that ‘engagement is a two-way process; organisations must work to engage the employee who in turn has a choice about the level of engagement to offer the employer, each reinforcing the other’.

So in order to avoid, or at least withstand, the ‘perfect storm’ it would appear relevant that employers and employees begin to empower each other with empathy, understanding and mutual appreciation.

Anything that can be done to improve the success of an appointment and/or provide the hiring company with the best employee available will clearly be viewed as a genuine “value add” proposition by your client.

But how is such differentiation to be achieved? One possible answer lays within your Clients organisations. Provide assistance and guidance to hiring managers; for example working with them to understand and develop the skills and techniques they require to successfully perform their hiring duties.  Improving the basic understanding of a company’s hiring decisions, shaping best practice and introducing proven hiring techniques can help ensure they are able to make the right hiring decision more often. Achieving success in this area will most often be viewed as a key differentiator; but what if there was something else you could do that would “add value” – that would be worth looking at surely?

This is where employee engagement can help.  When making an appointment, the level of attachment and engagement a newly-hired employee experiences directly correlates with how successful the appointment is likely to be.  In the recent report “Engaging for Success” (MacLeod and Clarke 2009) the authors state “..if employee engagement and the principles that lie behind it were more widely understood, if good practice was more widely shared, if the potential that resides in the country’s workforce was more fully unleashed  we could see a step change in workplace performance and in employee well-being for the considerable benefit of UK PLC’s”.

The benefits referred to above are to be found in important business areas – not least of which are increased levels of discretionary effort (the effort that is given, not required), reduced time to full contribution and the longevity of employment (total period of employment) of fully engaged employees.  All these benefits clearly impact upon both top and bottom line financial performance for the hiring company and are also attributes that impact tangibly on the recruitment service provider. How much more secure will the placement and associated revenues be if you have helped improve the hiring process and developed the company’s ability to engage with their new hire? What impact will this have on any rebate or refund policy that has been agreed?

Clearly a choice is available. Developing an in-depth, knowledge-based relationship with your clients that goes beyond the conventional boundaries of the recruitment model may not appeal to all. There will be companies that “get it” and lead the way in providing class leading hiring decision and engagement services to their clients. There will be other organisations that identify with the ability to protect fee income and dramatically reduce the risk of staff turnover due to a “mis-hire”. There will, almost inevitably, be a number of businesses that take the approach of not needing such solutions not until, that is, they start losing business to those competitors that have adopted them.

Regardless of the motivations or outcomes sought, the truth is that doing nothing does not make very good business sense. The benefits of engagement and the understanding of its role in successful business is becoming visible to an ever-growing number of hiring organisations.

Developing a suitable means of incorporating hiring decision and employee engagement practice into your business is not complicated. Done correctly it will be measureable, affordable, targeted and success centric. With the many advantages offered it makes a good deal of sense to assess how it might impact upon your business and, critically, how it can differentiate you from your competitors.

The Condita Group provides a range of services and solutions within key business areas relating to hiring decisions, engagement practise and succession planning. Providing targeted and measurable services including evaluations, surveys and reports Condita empowers organisations to successful manage and maximise the contributions from their most important asset – their employees. www.conditagroup.co.uk info@condita.co.uk 0845 868 2064

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