As Brexit continues to raise more questions than answers, trying to predict recruitment trends in 2020 is very challenging.
As well as the pending political uncertainty, 2020 is also the start of a new decade ' which means a lot of businesses and agencies will be trying to create their three to five-year growth strategies.
To successfully do this, it's important to think about recruitment and attracting the best professionals.
That's where this guide on 2020 recruitment trends comes in handy.
Outbound hiring isn't a new concept. However, having the ability to go and proactively search for talent, instead of waiting for them to come to you, is a key principle to finding top performers in 2020.
It was first universally recognised back in 2015, when around 90% of recruiters agreed that the current employment market is being driven by prospective employees.
By implementing a first-class outbound hiring process, businesses and agencies will be able to beat their competition to the punch.
This can be achieved via utilising social media to showcase a company to potential candidates.
For instance, posting pictures of a team bonding night will make the company look like a fun place to work, or using LinkedIn private messages to headhunt professionals before posting a job ad.
Candidates no longer want to work for a company with a stuffy corporate image.
They want to improve their way of life in every shape or form.
It's super important to think about company branding and how it's perceived by potential candidates.
If a business or agency looks boring on social, doesn't have the perfect office design and fails to offer the right benefits package, why should a candidate bother?
Another method of outbound hiring is to use end-to-end talent acquisition software to build a quality talent pipeline.
Having the contacts of top professionals in their database will allow businesses to contact the best candidates (via email or social) without going through a lengthy recruitment process.
Encouraging employee referrals is also a great example of outbound hiring.
It's not only a cheaper way of recruiting, but it can boost employee engagement and satisfaction in the process too.
The opinion of candidates will be more important than ever in 2020.
It's no longer acceptable for a business or agency to act like they're the ones making all the decisions.
At every stage of the recruitment process, candidates are thinking about whether they like the company or not.
Is it a good fit for them? Do they like the benefits? Are the employees nice?
All of these questions are relevant when you consider the fact that 87% of candidates will change their mind about a company they once doubted if they receive a top candidate experience.'
So, addressing this recruitment trend for 2020 can benefit a company in the short and long-term.
To do this successfully, a business or agency must do three things:
1. Create a consumer-grade candidate experience and measure how well it worked.
2. Align their strategy with the company's culture, values and future goals.
3. Segment candidates and focus on personalising their journeys when they communicate.
Soft skills are set to be one of the biggest recruitment trends in 2020.
While technical skills and experience are still imperative, soft skills will become equally as important when making the hiring decision.
You see, having the ability to socialise and empathise in the workplace are priceless attributes nowadays ' especially with mental health issues becoming increasingly prominent.
Being able to help fellow colleagues with the stresses of work, while contributing to a fun work culture will push companies in a positive direction.
There's also a small matter of a skills shortage in the UK.
So, trying to attract candidates with all of the experience and technical skills required to fulfil a particular job isn't possible for some.
Soft skills will help fill these gaps and make sure the shortage gap in some industries doesn't continue to grow into 2021.
For the past couple of years, AI has heavily featured in our recruitment trend lists.
The truth is, it's still in its early stages of development.
In the early days, AI was considered a problem for the recruitment industry, with some recruiters believing it could make their jobs redundant.
However, times have changed and it's being used to streamline processes now.
It gives decision-makers more time to focus on improving the candidate experience and make the right hiring choices.
Nevertheless, there still seems to be a reluctance among some HR professionals, with 23% saying they were concerned that it perpetuated or increases biases in the hiring process.
This factor, plus the cost implications, have undoubtedly slowed down the inevitable revolution of AI in recruitment.
Regardless, AI will remain very relevant and continue to improve in 2020.
Eventually, costs will come down and innovators will silence any doubters.
It's not a matter of if, it's a simple case of when and how.
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