ICT recruitment firm Greythorn says those in hiring positions can use the holiday ‘slowdown period’ to their advantage and snap up top talent while their competitors are still recovering.
“Speed to hire is a significant competitive advantage and those businesses whose key decision makers are absent will risk missing out on in-demand candidates,” says Richard Fischer, Managing Director Greythorn APAC.
Fischer cites new research by Greythorn of over 600 IT hiring managers showing that the majority of businesses (51%) take a minimum of two weeks to recover from the holiday period, while 14% take over a month to recover.
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Fischer said market intelligence showed job seekers typically begin their search from the start of the New Year, with the Seek Employment Index in January jumping by 7.4% when compared to three months earlier.
According to Fischer, hiring managers who wait until February to begin the recruitment process risk missing out on fast-moving, high calibre candidates.
Fischer said research showed that the Education and Training sector is the most effected by the holiday slowdown, with 22% of managers saying it takes over four weeks for the holiday period to stop impacting their business. A further 11% said that their business is not back at full capacity until February! The government, defence and public sector is also heavily affected by the Christmas slowdown, with 20% of those surveyed saying the impact of the holiday period lasts for four or more weeks.
Fischer lists Greythorn’s recommendations for securing top talent over the holiday period:
• Start planning hiring in December
• Ensure sign-off occurs before key decision makers go on holidays
• Streamline the recruitment process to ensure candidates stay engaged
• Ensure key decision makers are available for interviews in the New Year
