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Stop me if this sounds familiar; you’re putting up ads, paying for them to stand out out on jobs sites, and you’re still not getting qualified candidates for your jobs. It should come as no shock when I say the talent market is tight. Perhaps the tightest I’ve seen it in my 18 year career. 

Thanks to Covid, we’ve had 18 months of hardly any skilled migrants entering Australia. In pre-pandemic times, Australia had a skilled worker influx of 15,000 - 16,000 a month, on average. Losing those highly skilled workers has had a huge impact on the availability of candidates. At the same time, in spite of the pandemic, companies want to grow. They’re still trying to hit their budgets and stick to their plans. Add to that, the general sense of fatigue and burn out that Covid has brought about and you’ve got the perfect conditions for a very tight talent market.

For those that do want or need to move jobs, Covid has them thinking twice. In a typical non-pandemic environment candidates are asking:

1. Can I get a better job?
2. Can I make more money elsewhere? 

The pandemic has made us all far too aware of the lack of certainty and control in our lives. Suddenly, certainty of any kind is much more highly valued. Job changes are more closely considered and examined. Opportunities that might have been jumped at are examined. Decisions slow and energy wanes. Couple that with the increase in demand as companies seek to grow and we have a perfect storm.



That’s the bad news. The good news? It’s changing. Slowly, but surely the job market will bounce back. With the phasing out of government disaster payments and lockdowns ending, people are becoming more confident in their choices. 

Hiring in a tight market

The market bouncing back in a few months, while great news, isn’t really going to help with your outstanding positions right now.

So, how do you stand out? My number one tip is to stop and work on your Employer Value Proposition (EVP). Is your EVP compelling enough? What do you really have to offer someone? Because, free fruit once a week isn’t going to cut it. Your EVP needs to address what candidates are really looking for and help you stand out from competitors.

What are people looking for?

Surprisingly, it’s not often salary. Most people are looking for:

• The chance to further their own skills and development
• Flexibility including work from home, flexible hours etc
• The opportunity to work with ‘their people’, those who they respect and enjoy the company of
• The promise of being in better position in three to five years time
• 
  

Your EVP needs to address these areas and help you from the other companies that your target candidate is looking at. Start by asking these questions:

1. What's in it for the candidate? 
2. Why is joining your company going to see this candidate better off over the next three years than either joining one of your competitors or staying where they are? 
3. How will joining your company improve their skills and working life?

Anyone who is good at what they do will only move for something better - make sure your EVP and ad campaign shows that your company is that something better. 



Getting the word out

Once you’ve nailed that down it’s about getting that message across to the candidate. My favourite method is to showcase real life examples. There’s no better ad for your company than the successful journey of one of your team. 

Take for example, a recent Supply Chain Manager role we filled. In a few years the person in this role should be ready to move into a National Director role. We showed them what that could look like with two real life examples of people with the same company who had moved from a Supply Chain Manager role into a National Director role. We were able to show how our client helped get them to that point. Seeing is believing. You can’t just say it. You’ve got to find a way to show what your business can offer that others can’t.

I’ll leave you with this - if you’ve done all that and you’re still struggling to find the right person, get in touch. We know how to pitch a business, to ask the right questions and help you stand out from the crowd. 



Read more Blogs                 Date published:   25/11/2021            Author: Paul Swanwick