Picking Your Spot Is It a Good Idea to Be Hiring During the Holidays - Margaret Buj - Interview Coach

Picking Your Spot Is It a Good Idea to Be Hiring During the Holidays It is a common trend among companies to freeze their hiring processes during the holidays. Applicants and hiring departments alike have a lot on their plate. Everything is winding down for the year and proceeding with a job hunt or recruitment process is often the first task to fall by the wayside. But companies that suspend hiring during the holiday period are missing out on reaping valuable rewards. Places like Contingent Staffing Solutions offer great hiring opportunities around the holiday season for companies that don’t go into recruitment hibernation. These are just some of the reasons why your company should continue to find strong candidates during the holidays. There is Less Competition for Candidates Because many other firms have put their hiring processes on hold, there is often less competition on job boards. This means that your advertisement will attract more attention from potential candidates and should receive more applicants, giving you a wider talent pool to choose from. Get Ahead of the Rush When everyone comes back after the holidays, there is often a lot of work to be done. Staff are catching up on emails and tasks they missed while they were off work. Then the New Year uptick kicks in and business surges. Hiring your new team before the January rush will help you get ahead of the curve and leave you with less to tend to in the first weeks of the new year. More Motivated Candidates As many applicants take a break from the job hunt over the holiday break, those that continue to search during the holiday period are often some of the most dedicated and motivated candidates available. They continue their job search because they need to find work and resist the temptation to rest on their laurels and enjoy the holiday cheer. These are the people you want to work for your company. The dedication they bring to the job hunt will translate into their working life. There is No Shortage of Networking Events With so many holiday parties going on around the city, it is a great opportunity to network and put some feelers out for candidates who might be interested in a change of scenery. Let people know that you are hiring during these social events and the message will soon get around. This could prompt some strong candidates who are not actively seeking a new job but have an interest in working for your company to reach out. Your Employees are Spending Time with Family and Friends If you have an employee referral program, the holidays are a great time to remind them that you need new workers. Everyone spends a great deal of time with family and friends around the holiday season and employees who are eying up those referral incentives are in the prime position to encourage their loved ones to apply. Everyone is Available to Interview   The holiday season is one of the easiest times to get candidates in for an interview. Many have time off from their jobs and can come in on short notice if necessary. Even if they are not off work, they are much more likely to be able to request time off to come to an interview without raising any alarm bells with their current employer. A lot of people take time off around the holidays and it shouldn’t raise any suspicion.