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Summer’s Over and the Hiring Season Is Upon Us

Summer’s Over and the Hiring Season Is Upon Us

 

The kids are back in school.  Summer vacations are largely over.  Football season is already underway.  And all across America, companies are heading into the Fall looking to maximize growth in the last four months of 2016 and, more importantly, making plans for 2017.

In particular, companies are making strategic decisions concerning senior-level talent acquisition to help guide their companies into 2017.  For most companies operating on a fiscal calendar year, budget decisions will be made over the next 30 days, so organizational leaders throughout the industry are currently considering how much to allocate toward new hires.  And as these decisions are being made, it is important to recognize that now is not only the time to make spending decisions, but it’s also the time to begin recruiting for those newly-budgeted positions.

If your organization is budgeting for senior-level hires in 2017, it’s ideal to have those individuals in place within the first quarter of the new year.  But what many companies fail to take into account is that the recruiting and hiring cycle for the most talented individuals often takes two to three months, so it is imperative that organizations start that process as early as possible.  In addition to kicking off the process now, companies should also look for opportunities to interview candidates, such as at upcoming regional trade shows throughout the Fall or even at NAHB’s International Builders’ Show (IBS) and NKBA’s Kitchen & Bath Industry Show (KBIS) in January.

Despite the budgeting-for-new-hires time of year that is now upon us, some reports seem to indicate that hiring is down and could remain sluggish during the Fall.  While that may be the case to some extent, this is certainly not an indication that companies aren’t willing to hire or that top talent for senior roles isn’t in incredibly high demand.  On the contrary, it’s a result of low unemployment and the uptick in the qualified labor shortage. As we’ve said before, there simply aren’t enough qualified, talented, and experienced individuals on the job market to avoid this kind of competitive recruiting economy and the consequent slow-down in hiring.  Many talented senior-level professionals are not willing to leave their current roles unless they receive a highly competitive offer, which has created a complex hiring environment for companies looking to grow this Fall through the first quarter of 2017, and beyond.

As companies build their budgets for 2017, they should not be hesitant to plan for senior-level personnel additions in the first quarter.  But they should also anticipate the challenge presented by the lack of skilled labor in the workforce.  In order to ensure that each new hire is not only a great fit for the company but that there is sufficient recruitment time for a first quarter start, companies should partner with an executive search firm that understands the workforce and the state of the industry.  Schaffer Associates specializes in helping organizations plan for, recruit, and hire the most qualified candidates available.  So as you move into the Fall and look toward 2017, keep us in mind:  we are here to help you get a head start on the next fiscal year.  Give us a call today.

Schaffer Associates

Schaffer Associates is an executive search firm specializing in talent acquisition for the hardware, home improvement, building materials, and consumer products industries. As premier executive recruiters with expert focus on your industry, we help you HIRE SMART. Contact us today for help with your officer-level or mid-management level search.

 Call us at ‪‪(704) 535-9939 or find us at www.SchafferAssociates.com.