With inflation driving prices up and leaders looking to reduce costs, employers are weighing whether and where to cut back while simultaneously trying to attract top talent. But instead of cutting staff, IT leaders should prioritize showing employees they are valued. Reassuring current employees in uncertain times will also serve to attract new talent.
Employees are your organization’s most important asset, so keeping them happy is critical. Budgets may be tight, but now is not the time to cut back on platforms, software, computers, and other tools that help your teams stay motivated and productive.
It’s also smart to keep resources focused on hiring because companies that strategically hire and acquire top-level talent can push far beyond the impact of inflation. Ensuring that your HR processes are efficient and effective and your teams are well-staffed will pay out in the long run. A recruitment consultant may be able to help with this.
No enterprise can afford to make a bad hire, especially when budgets are tight. Be thoughtful about how you plan to attract and retain top talent – hiring someone who is not a good fit for your organization wastes a great deal of time and resources.
Where to cut back?
If your organization is thinking about where you can cut back, your employees are not the answer. Cutting back on employees may be a short-term fix, but it will lead to problems later. It is more cost-beneficial to ride out a slow economic period than cut talent now and recruit when things pick up. It takes far more resources to find and acquire, train, and onboard new talent than to retain current employees who are performing well.
[ Also read 5 top workforce concerns for CIOs. ]
In fact, landing top talent in today’s climate takes more resources than ever. Compensation is key since there is heavy competition from industry players as well as different sectors. The top level of technical talent is in high demand by major technology companies as well as startups, small businesses, and even across different industries like finance and big pharma. Offering bonus packages that are paid out over time – for example, 50 percent at the start and the remaining 50 percent after one year – can be a great way to attract talent while keeping retention in mind.
According to a recent Glocomms survey, over 43 percent of tech workers are looking for a new role – an indication that hiring has not slowed down. Many of the recent high-profile industry layoffs are a result of correcting over-hiring during the pandemic and do not reflect the state of the job market at large.
In today’s world, workplace flexibility is quickly becoming a top priority for top talent. With that in mind, consider expanding your search outside conventional geographic locations and reevaluating what hybrid means. Technological infrastructure and processes must be the same for all employees so they can be successful regardless of where they are physically located.
Keep your work environment stimulating by creating opportunities for employees to learn new skills and advance their careers.
Make everyone feel seen
It’s vital to keep your teams continually motivated and reassured while making your company attractive to candidates. Strive to keep the work environment stimulating by creating opportunities for employees to learn new skills and advance their careers. Enable opportunities for employees to work for different parts of the business and on new projects for an interesting change of pace.
Also, be sure to create career progression plans for employees. Outline a clear path for upward mobility within the organization, including the steps to get there – this will help your employees see themselves there for the long term.
It’s also important to offer benefits such as mental health allowances, opportunities to gain new skills certifications, and relocation assistance.
Candidates today are still fielding multiple offers, so it’s essential to move quickly to attract top talent. Consider how you can increase the efficiency of your recruiting processes; for example, combining interview processes to reduce recruitment time.
Enterprise leaders, hiring managers, and HR staff must commit to making these strategies work and remaining transparent with candidates throughout the process. According to the Glocomms survey, the top priorities for candidates seeking new roles were higher compensation, more challenging projects, better training and learning opportunities, and factoring in the cost of living.
Keep employees at the forefront
Regardless of the economy, hiring trends, and other challenges, it is vital to stay the course. Continually think about how your workplace culture – which includes upward mobility, upskilling opportunities, compensation, flexibility, motivating work, and workplace tech – can keep your current employees satisfied and attract new candidates.
[ Learn the non-negotiable skills, technologies, and processes CIOs are leaning on to build resilience and agility in this HBR Analytic Services report: Pillars of resilient digital transformation: How CIOs are driving organizational agility. ]
