With remote work taking precedence during the pandemic, hiring has shifted into a candidate’s market. What does this mean for your business? You need to know what potential candidates want and give your company a competitive edge when recruiting talent. If you think your previous hiring strategy will do the trick, think again. Here are a few essential things to consider when hiring in a post-Covid world.

Candidate Experience

For starters, new hires are now accustomed to being interviewed and even hired without ever stepping foot in an office. Whether the role is remote, hybrid, or in-person, it’s now expected and normal to have most of the recruitment and interview experience take place virtually. For many, this is a good thing. It cuts interviewing costs for your business, and an expedited hiring process helps improve the overall candidate experience. Sixty percent of applicants drop out of the recruiting process if it takes too long. Why does this matter? Even if a potential candidate doesn’t receive a job offer, they’re more likely to apply for other roles or even recommend your business if they’ve had a positive experience. On the flip side, a bad candidate experience could lead to the person boycotting your company and urging others to do the same.

Workplace Expectations

Although a large number of roles moved from the office to home during the pandemic, not everyone is staying remote. In fact, only 13% of executives in the US plan to let go of the office entirely. Of course, there’s now a third option — the hybrid office/home schedule — that numerous companies are considering. No matter what your business chooses for its MO, make sure it is clearly stated in your Employer Value Proposition (or EVP) for hiring. Not only will potential candidates appreciate the transparency, but it'll also save you time and money on turnover if you bring on people who are already in line with your office expectations.

Career Pathing

Along the same vein of transparency, new candidates want to know how they can contribute to — and what exactly they can gain from — your company. Help build a vision for moving up within the organization and exactly what they can expect from their roles. More and more, the new generations of workers want to know they're making a difference and that their company wants to help build on their learning and development.

Reach Beyond Job Boards to Hire

Diversity and inclusivity are a huge conversation moving forward from 2020. For companies looking to hire, this means branching out in terms of where you’re posting your jobs to cast a wider net on potential talent. Not only can you effectively use social media to hire for certain positions, but you can also find qualified, talented candidates in places outside of traditional job boards and ads. If you already have a diverse and talented team, you can also consider hiring internally. Falling in alongside the career pathing conversation, 41% of employees stay longer in a company that hires internally. Now is the time to think outside the box when it comes to finding your perfect company candidates.

Update your Perks

With remote work came some much-needed work-life balance. The invasiveness of Covid-19 also placed a premium on health and wellness. To reflect these new expectations, HR teams and hiring businesses are expected to update their perks and benefits programs to stay competitive. Having a traditional benefits package for your business is an excellent place to start. You can also consider less conventional ways to offer your team exactly what they want by using systems like PerkUp. Make sure everyone gets what they want, whether it's money towards a gym membership or cash to put towards some well-deserved R&R. Check out everything we can offer to help your employees perk up and get the conversation started.