After 447 client coffees and 455 candidate interviews in the past quarter, we are certainly living in interesting times!
Market sectors are running at a different cadence with hospitality, retail and the public sector doing it tough while general insurance and parts of financial services are striding ahead. Let’s hope the retail and hospitality sectors ramp-up ahead of and during our summer break – get out there and support them!
We’ve seen elongated recruitment processes that can throw up surprises causing candidate enthusiasm to fade. Time kills all deals and a slow process risks losing top talent - making a streamlined process is essential! I hear you say “wait, aren't there still many people looking”? Not so, we still have low unemployment.
Record immigration and the high cost of living has resulted in high application levels for those out of work while star candidates are adopting a passive approach. Top talent is cautious about finding the right role and are picky; many don't see the need to jump right now. Finding high quality candidates is still challenging for many and this makes investment in your employer branding important.
Candidates and employees take note of how companies treat their people. When you enter the hiring market, ensure the market position aligns with talent expectations. Equally, don’t forget your current staff will remember how they are treated during this period. As a reaction to market conditions many teams are lean, and I mean really lean. This approach can provide a short-term sugar hit of savings but steers organisations to longer term disaster. It’s only a matter of time before the cracks start to show.
Many of our clients have expressed hiring intentions in the latter part of February, more in March and some in the new tax year starting in April. This is backed up by data from SEEK NZ. Our advice is for employers to hire before entering a candidate short and competitive market. There is a lot of pent-up demand and not the supply of candidates to support it!
Smart hiring managers have shared with us where they have identified the talent gaps and are focusing on growth. It is time to stop focusing on just surviving and start striving towards the upswing of 2025.
Looking for more Market Insights? Check out our Q3 2024 State of the Market report right here.
Thanks for your interest in what we do here at FIND. We love meeting and helping amazing kiwis every day and will always do our best for our clients and candidates. We've been simplifying the recruitment game since 2008, so don't hesitate to get in touch if you need our help!
