Times are tough. There’s no doubt about it. And, particularly,  the world of Talent Acquisition is in flux. We’re all scrambling to “make it work” overwhelmed by new and unexpected challenges. 

Budget cuts? You got it. All employees suddenly working from home? Yup. Hiring freezes? Brrr it’s cold in here. Oh wait. Hiring is up? Good luck sifting through that pile of 1,000 random resumes. New tools which you needed yesterday? We got ‘em... but, wait how do we use ‘em? Cancelled events? It happened. Onboarding hiccups? Gulp. And on. And on. And on. Is it Wednesday? Is it Monday? Am I working on a Saturday? Who knows anymore?!

Welcome to the “new normal.” 

You’re overworked, bombarded with shifting goals, likely balancing additional home responsibilities (or perhaps bored and suffering from complete isolation), and trying to find a footing in this new environment. Perhaps you pride yourself on being agile, learning fast and delivering above expectations when it comes to your job. You aren’t just a show-up-for-work kind of person. You like to be a superhero! Your goal is to amaze your executives at every turn. Thinking ahead and wowing with results!  A superhero, that’s for sure!

But COVID-19 has really thrown you for a loop. How do you keep your processes operating while also preparing for what’s next? How can you determine what is urgent and needs attention now, and what is background noise and can be left for later?

Well, (spoiler alert) we don’t have all the answers. Because, frankly, no one does. However, we have some suggestions to support you through this shift. We’ve tried to keep it simple, but high value. Check ‘em out.

Embrace technology, rethink everything.

You’re probably already here. By now you’ve implemented or improved processes around video interview software. Duh. Maybe you’ve even created a checklist for your team with tips for success. But have you gone beyond the first step? 

Did you know that there’s software for gathering interviewer feedback? It sends out a digital survey to your interviewers and consolidates their responses into neat, easy-to-read reports. You don’t have to worry about setting up individual meetings and taking notes to hear feedback about candidates.Not to mention, sifting through those notes to make sense of your findings. Save time, save your team’s time, and use Interview Insights to send out feedback requests in minutes. Slam dunk.

TA Hero Challenge: We challenge you to think beyond what everyone else is doing and be creative.

Take time to outline your current processes. Think about it both from the candidate’s perspective, but also your team’s perspective. What is taking a lot of time? What is confusing or unnecessary? What have you been doing just because it’s “always been done that way?”, but doesn’t really serve a purpose? Now’s the time for radical change to bring your department up a level, and get you that gold medal for success.

Think ahead

Well, the unthinkable happened. Suddenly we’re in a movie in which there’s a world pandemic and everyone has to hunker down at home. Who knew?! But this is just the wake up call which businesses needed -- we never know what’s going to happen next. No crystal ball in this movie! The way to be a successful business is to have a contingency plan for just that: the unknown. And particularly with the state of the world today, the future is still quite uncertain. Don’t take anything for granted. Continue to consider your contingency plan. 

TA Hero Challenge: Asking yourself “what if” is still a good use of time.

What if we re-open the world and we’re faced with an onslaught of hiring needs? What if half of our workforce suddenly gets sick? What if we hire new employees to onboard and work from home and we find out, months too late, that they’ve not been trained correctly? We have to be ahead of the game and create a task force or a brainstorm team to do just that - brainstorm the “what ifs” and make sure you’re well prepared for all hypothetical scenarios. 

Maybe new hires need mentors that check in daily? Maybe your teams need a 5 minute daily standup call to stay connected and focused on goals? Maybe there’s some way to throw an amazingly fun, company-wide connected party?  Maybe every employee should fill out a survey to tell you what’s going right and what’s going wrong? 

Hey! There’s an easy tool for that. (Yes, good guess. It’s Checkster again.) New Hire Insights can be used for new hires or employees to consistently check in and give feedback about  how they’re doing. Our customized surveys not only help get employees off to a great start, but also alert you about what needs your immediate attention.

Keep your eye on quality

Whether it’s too many resumes coming in or not enough time to check candidates closely, your biggest enemy may be lack of visibility into your quality of hire. That will most certainly come back to bite you later. The facts and figures are irrefutable: bad hires are extremely expensive and very time consuming. For certain, they won’t make you look good.

TA Hero Challenge: Make sure you’re not allowing any changes in your hiring practices affect the quality of candidates who are ultimately brought on board. 

Has your company decided to skip reference checks? Or maybe you continue to conduct them merely as a last minute cursory check, just looking for blatant lies or glaring red flags? 

Reference Checks are much more powerful than most people think. Not only do they make it easy for you to avoid the really “bad fit” hire, but they also provide a full-colored picture of your candidates. Getting collective input, the good and the bad, is the first step to success. Because you know who won’t tell you the ‘not so glamorous truth?’ Your candidate. Obtaining this collective intelligence doesn’t have to be difficult.  You can automate all your reference checks in minutes and gather more feedback in detailed reports. These reports are sure to make you a TA hero in any executive meeting. Not sure about it? You can try it here for free. Send a reference check digitally to see exactly how easy it really is. 

Keeping working that pipeline

Whether or not you’re currently hiring, it’s likely that at some point you’ll be hiring a lot more, a lot faster. One of your biggest challenges during this “down time” will be keeping an up-to-date pipeline of passive or sourced candidates. Or warm. Or at least lukewarm. 

TA Hero Challenge: As a part of your contingency plan, keep a pulse on activities around sourcing.

Is there a reachout plan or branding campaign to keep potential candidates thinking about your organization?

As a side note: TA heroes will recognize that our reference check tool also helps you source automatically for every candidate you check, you can gather an average of 5 passive candidates opting in to keep in touch with your company. Who couldn’t use an additional source for quality candidates? 

Aim for a personal goal to be resilient and flexible. And meditate.

Your current workday looks really different these days than it used to. Maybe you’re faced with zoom homeschool calls? Or an eight year old’s cabin fever at the very same time as intense meetings or work deadlines. Maybe you’re just stressed about friends or colleagues going through layoffs. Maybe you’re focused on showing your own value to management. It’s not easy, and if you have to read one more blog about how you can balance it all… you will lose it.

TA Hero Challenge: Deep breath. Literally, take a deep breath.

We’re all in this together. Positive thoughts will bring positive results. Resiliency can be learned. Here are a few tips on becoming more resilient. OK, we see the irony of linking you to yet another blog to help you balance it all. But we promise, it’s a good one! It’s alright if it’s too much. It’s alright to acknowledge this is all quite overwhelming. Be sure to reach out to colleagues and friends for advice and even a shoulder to cry on. Superheroes unite. Your strength as a superhero is in knowing your vulnerabilities and getting support where, and when, you need it. By staying calm, picking your battles and meditating to find your center, you’ll save your strength for what really needs your attention. 

TA Hero Challenge: Get recognized.

Don’t forget to sing from the rooftops about all your heroic activity. Hard work can go unnoticed more easily in an all-remote environment. Find ways to provide managers with proof of your success, with visibility into your impactful work. If you team up with Checkster we can connect you with an Account Manager who will walk with you every step of the way. Our reports are customized to highlight all your successes, by making them easy to understand and bring to the executive team. You’re doing a great job so don’t forget to raise your hand and get recognized for it. You deserve it.  

Sign up for a Checkster customized demo here. Or get started yourself in two minutes and try  our Reference Insights tool for free here! We believe in you, TA Hero!