Many hiring authorities tend to think that hiring should slow or stop around the holidays. That’s simply not true, and I have a few reasons why.
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Today I’d like to talk about common mistakes that businesses make with regards to hiring during the holiday season.
As a recruiting firm, we’ve noticed that hiring managers, HR leadership, and other company leaders out in the marketplace tend to think that hiring needs to slow down or stop altogether due to the holidays.
But that’s just not true. Some of our best months at our recruiting firm have been November and December. There are a couple reasons why I think that is.
First, Christmas and New Year’s are times of reflection. People are always looking at New Year’s resolutions, and one of the most popular resolutions people make is to find a new job or career, especially if they’re unhappy with their current one.
November and December can be great times to continue hiring, depending on a company’s fiscal year. If you want to get a head count filled in the calendar year, sometimes it’s better to get that position filled in the latter months of the year, on the slight possibility that the leadership within your company may cancel the role altogether.
Some of our best months at our recruiting firm have been November and December.
For another reason, companies don’t always think ahead about their calendars in terms of start dates for new hires. If you want someone to start in December, the time to start that recruiting process is now because the recruiting and interviewing cycles can take up to two weeks each.
On top of that, navigating that process while also juggling the busy schedules companies and candidates alike have surrounding the holidays can become really difficult. For many, those two weeks are shot.
Further still, while the recruiting cycle can take up to two weeks, the interviewing process to get to the offer stage can take up to two weeks, you also have the two-week notice that most people will have to give at their current job before they can start their new role at your company.
It’s very easy to see why, even if you think you want to hire someone in January, the time to get started on recruiting new talent starts right now in November. Don’t wait until late December or January, or you'll risk pushing that starting date all the way back into February or March.
Hiring authorities may just not have considered some of these things in their process, but these absolutely will impact start dates and hiring all the way into January and February. Again, don’t wait until it’s too late.
On that note, I want to wish everyone a great holiday season for 2017. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.
