Rethinking Your Approach to a Candidate's Work History

As we begin the second quarter of the year, companies eager to hire new employees remain challenged by the continuing candidates' market.  Since there is a wealth of available positions in the current job market, potential candidates are being more selective than ever before.

Believing they have the upper hand, many candidates are negotiating with hiring managers over extra incentives such as more paid time off, remote work options, more flexible work schedules, tuition reimbursement opportunities, and higher salaries.  If the negotiations break down, then the candidate applies to the next available position in their respective industry.

While this trend has left many positions open for several months, many companies may be able to quickly fill these positions with quality candidates, if you are willing to reassess a major component of their hiring strategy: candidate work history.

In the following article, we will demonstrate how companies can rethink their approach to employee work history and identify three overlooked candidate categories that could potentially fill their open positions.

Reassessing Your Hiring Strategy Opens New Opportunities

One of the main catalysts for the challenges companies are currently facing is the use of traditional hiring strategies in an untraditional job market.  Companies are primarily targeting experienced professionals - and not considering other candidates.  The reasoning is that companies want established professionals to step into these open positions, hit the ground running, and take action to get the company up to speed immediately.

Unfortunately, experienced professionals know how eager companies are to fill these vacant positions - and they’re holding out for the best opportunities they can find.  Unlike previous years when there were more candidates than available positions, the current job seekers have the advantage this time.  And they are using it to their advantage.

While this job market trend will not last forever – it is expected to last for the next few years.  And that fact is not helping hiring managers now.  However, by only targeting specific professionals, many companies are unnecessarily prolonging their hiring process.

To solve this issue, organizations may want to re-evaluate their hiring practices.  Instead of focusing on specific target audiences, you may want to look for quality candidates in the following overlooked categories:

Candidates Who Are Changing Industries

On the surface, it’s easy to understand why a hiring manager would not consider a candidate who falls into this category.  If a company is seeking an Administrative Assistant, why would you select a candidate with years of experience working in a restaurant or in retail?

While this scenario would seem strange or unlikely three years ago, it's common in our current job market.  When the pandemic caused massive layoffs and job loss in spring 2020, many professionals in the most affected industries used their available resources to learn new skills.  By enrolling in online courses, many jobless professionals gained the necessary knowledge to pursue new industries.

Although these candidates may not have years of experience in this new industry, they have years of experience.  If they excelled in their original industry for years, they are likely to excel in a new industry as well.  By recognizing the need to change industries during an unprecedented global event, these candidates used their time wisely.  They gained new skills to solve their unemployment issue - and they’re eager to put those skills into practice.

By considering these candidates, companies not only have the opportunity to potentially fill their open positions - they may also lay the foundation for their next generation of leadership. 

Candidates With Employment History Gaps

A large gap in employment history was once perceived as a red flag for hiring managers.  If a candidate has a five-year gap between jobs, many believed it was likely due to poor job performance or lack of qualifications.  Unfortunately, those misconceptions may be interfering with the hiring process.

Many candidates have valid reasons for their employment history gaps.  Perhaps they had the finances to take four years off and pursue a new degree?  Or maybe they took time off from work to care for an ill family member?  Maybe they dealt with a health condition of their own?  Companies will never know the answers to these questions unless they ask.

Companies that outright dismiss candidates with gaps in their employment history from consideration not only hamper their hiring process - they could also deprive their organization of a valuable team member. 

Candidates Perceived to Be Overqualified

When companies limit their search to experienced candidates, they may receive applications from candidates that are considered “overqualified”.  These candidates are often eliminated from the consideration list.  Since the candidates have more qualifications than those required by the open position, the perception is that they will demand a higher salary or become easily bored and leave the organization for other opportunities.

While these two scenarios are possible, they do not apply to every candidate in this category.  Instead of focusing on perceived negatives of these candidates, hiring managers should concentrate on the many benefits they offer.

Candidates with more experience and qualifications typically take less time to train.  This alone can significantly reduce the onboarding process and help lower costs.  These candidates can also use their skills and knowledge to help train less experienced new hires in the future.  Plus, candidates who possess more skills and qualifications than the position requires to provide the company with greater coverage opportunities throughout multiple departments.  

Conclusion

Although the current job market trends have been less than optimal for companies, these challenges can be overcome by rethinking hiring practices to focus on candidates not typically considered for these open positions.

If you’re ready to take advantage of these opportunities, Elite Personnel is ready to introduce you to your next new hires.

Contact our team today to learn more about our recruiting services!