“Timing is everything” the old saying goes, and a true statement as we head into the end of 2015 and the beginning of 2016 for hiring. Sometimes, business success can be attributed to knowing and understanding these annual recruitment cycles and planning out accordingly. Each quarter should be detailed in your business plan, accounting for a heavy start, quiet summer, and strong close if you are recruiting in the United States.
“Hiring managers and bank CEOs will typically try to reduce their operating profits by incurring search fees towards the end of each year, to avoid paying taxes,” says Josiah Whitman, an executive recruiter with Financial Placements of Lake Oswego, Oregon in an interview with Monster. His firm’s job orders are distributed this way: first quarter, 23 percent; second quarter, 21 percent; third quarter, 20 percent; fourth quarter, 36 percent.
However this is not always true, especially in executive search. According to an article by Monster, major industries classified as information, financial services, and professional and business services, having hired heavily in the second quarter, see their lowest level of hiring in December. In these industries, the first quarter of the New Year will bring a wave of hiring, and if you are a professional looking, the best time to get in is right at the start of these peaks. You will not be alone though, as January brings the greatest influx of job applications as many are looking for that “new start” to the year.
What this means for independent recruiters is that during these surges, the demand may outweigh the availability talent and strong candidates, so many companies may look to hire firms to source the talent for them. As a recruiter, stay on top by ensuring you are mobile ready. In 2015, the company Eligo reported that 24% of the applications and resume/CV uploads were completed via mobile. If you do not currently have a mobile friendly site for your job searches now is the time to get that in place. At the very least, make 2016 the year your firms stays relevant with technology and trends. A recent study by LinkedIn stated that “72% of job seekers visited a company website from their device (whilst) 45% have even applied for a position from their device”.
All in all, it is most important to realize that 2015 is not quite over, and there is plenty of time to hit those business goals before setting them over again in 2016. Ignore holiday excuses and get searching!
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