5 Predictions for 2013: Top Trends in Hospitality Recruiting
By Angela Rose, Hcareers.com
Mahatma Gandhi once said, “You must be the change you wish to see in the world.” While hospitality hiring managers may be just as much at the mercy of the economy as any job seeker, they can change the way they approach recruitment in today’s environment. We believe that many of them will do so next year, adapting to our nation’s new realities and the needs of the modern job seeker. Here are five predictions for hospitality recruiting trends in 2013.
1. Quality Rather Than Quantity
A recent survey of hospitality industry hiring managers by WyckWyre, an applicant tracking system company, found that a whopping 94.9 percent would rather have fewer applicants who are more qualified versus more applicants who may be less qualified. We predict that even more hospitality employers will value quality over quantity in 2013 as they discover that focusing on the best candidates saves time and reduces turnover rates.
2. Online Candidate Assessment
In conjunction with the first trend, we predict that online candidate assessment will become more popular with hospitality hiring managers in 2013. In fact, options like skill assessment tests and screening questions are already being built into many online applicant tracking systems. Long-form questions will become available within these programs as well. This will enable managers and recruiters to conduct virtual interviews before they even contact the candidates in person.
3. Extensive Use of Social Media
Recruiters sourcing management and executive professionals already use sites like LinkedIn and Twitter. We predict that social media will become an even more valuable recruiting tool for non-active job candidates at all levels. Companies will use industry-related groups, feeds and networking pages to develop relationships with a pool of pre-qualified candidates for a variety of positions - reducing the time required to fill a vacancy before they're even ready to post a job.
4. Targeting Boomerangs
While the hospitality industry did better than many others during the economic downturn, some layoffs were not avoidable. According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, leisure and hospitality lost 466,000 jobs from December 2007 to June 2009. We can assume that some of those downsized professionals were top performers. We predict that hiring managers will renew their pursuit of previous employees as the economy improves in 2013. Doing so means filling new positions with boomerang hires that are already up to speed on the duties of their roles.
5. Improved Candidate Experience
Finding or attracting the right job candidate is only the beginning, and we predict that more hospitality recruiters and hiring managers are going to realize this in 2013. The application, interview and negotiation process needs to be a positive experience. This may mean making more of the information that interests both passive and active jobseekers available upfront (like salary range, benefits package, advancement potential, and company culture) as well as providing additional opportunities for candidates to interact with hiring reps (perhaps through instant messaging and video chat).
“Change brings opportunity,” or so said author and businessman Nido Qubein. And it is our opinion that these emerging trends will provide an opportunity for job seekers, managers and recruiters alike to optimize the hospitality hiring process.
Read more hospitality career tips. Find more hospitality jobs by visiting the career center.
About the Author
Angela Rose researches and writes about job search strategy, career management, hiring trends and workplace issues for Hcareers.com.
Related Tags:
