An unexpected opportunity to recruit talent

An unexpected opportunity to recruit talent

We are going through a moment where the adaptability we were talking about is putting to the test. The opposite of “being weak” is no longer “being strong”, but having the ability to adapt and change effectively. Being able to adapt to new scenarios abruptly and suddenly means, collectively, thinking about new ways of living in the community and other methods of sustaining the economy, and even an opportunity to think about work in a decentralized way.

Crisis teaches us that having a job that isolates us from the world is not the same as one that allows us to understand ourselves in it and as part of a globalized world. To be able to mutate in a way that our work tools can move with us wherever we go, and we can work without having to go to an office, but rather acknowledge that we are the office.

So the context is forcing candidates and employers to rethink their ways of working. Many of them have discovered what it means to work remotely, with its advantages and disadvantages. Thanks to this crisis, many begin to see that remote work is possible to manage and, what is better, they are choosing it consciously. Some propose to their current employers to switch to this modality at 100%; others are directly looking for a new job that allows them to work under this modality. The only sure thing is this: all of them, in the last days, had the opportunity to rethink whether their current job is the job they want to stay in when the confinement is over.

For that matter, the most significant opportunity today is for companies that already have their operations prepared to work with decentralized teams. These companies are in a position to offer, with one foot in the future, an experienced, manageable, and possible response.

These companies will no longer have to “convince” people that remote work is an option. They have today the opportunity to choose their collaborators in a context that provides a more prominent number of people willing to accept remote jobs. On that basis, recruitment processes won’t have to struggle with a lack of candidates on the pipeline. If anything, they have a unique opportunity to select those they consider that can optimally contribute to the organization and, mostly, those aligned with the company vision and goals.

In this scenario, then, is the labor market moving? Sure. And a lot. Although the technology industry is characterized by its enormous dynamism in all contexts, given the high demand from companies and the limited supply of candidates available, what we have seen in recent days is a significant increase in applications, especially in remote positions. Furthermore, given the uncertainty of the socio-economic scenario, these candidates come much better willing to negotiate. Things are turning around, and we are also seeing salary expectations dropping.

Some of the indicators we take at Schmitman HR — at least 22 job search portals — point out that, if we compare the last week of February with the last week of March, the number of submissions multiplied between 2 and 4 times. Both the increase in the supply of candidates and the decrease in their salary are indicators that the technology industry has not seen at least in the last ten years.

The HR role

For all that, the Human Resources areas are in a scenario in which they must rethink their strategy. Underpinning database management, fine-tuning digital recruitment and onboarding processes, fortifying the company’s culture and values ​​and, of course, working much harder on the online employer brand are some of the possible tactics to convert a scenario crisis in an opportunity for strengthening.

In parallel, companies must rethink benefits and opt for online facilities so that employees can make use of it from their homes. Also,

develop specific training aiming to promote the needed soft skills to live and work in a decentralized and digital world. Just to name a few: remote team leadership management, effective time management, effective communication, exercising frustration tolerance, and increase the ability to respond quickly and solve problems.

Confinement is putting our creativity to the test. The Human Resources areas have a unique opportunity at this time to shine and rethink their role, transcend the Excel spreadsheets, and find ways to move towards decentralization.