Should You Hire New Employees in a Slow Economy?

Unemployment figures are at an all time high and companies continue on the course of downsizing. So should your company actual be hiring when most organizations are scaling back? If your organization wants to be one of the key players when the economy turns around, then the time to prepare for the turnaround is right now. Three important things to consider are:

• Do you have employees that are not meeting performance expectations?
• Can you capitalize on the abundance of top performers that are currently available?
• Have you considered utilizing interim hires?

Take a good look at the performance of your existing employees? During good times if an employee is not meeting expectations, there's a tendency to look the other way. Can you afford to carry weak employees? It's critical to take a hard look to see if you have under-performers in your organization. If you have employees that are not meeting performance expectations you must take action. Replace weak performers with people that will do what the job calls for.

Next capitalize on the top talent that is currently available. Just like it is a buyers' market in real estate, it is currently a "hiring market" for employers. Company restructuring and downsizing has created an abundance of quality talent available. Short-sighted organizations are looking at survival. Companies that look beyond survival are looking towards the future to see if their current talent pool supports their long term strategy. These companies are hiring top talent now and building a strong, solid organization.

One note of caution; be careful using the same approach that you might use in a real estate transaction, when you are making an offer to a new hire. You may throw out a below market offer on house. And if you are lucky, you may get it. If you do the same thing with a new hire, the new hire may accept the offer; however this strategy could backfire. The new hire may not be happy in the long run. Their dissatisfaction may be reflected in their performance, and ultimately they may leave your company as soon as the market turns around.

Hiring interim employees is the third consideration that often gets overlooked. This is a perfect time to engage top talent for interim employment. Interim employees work for you on a temporary basis, typically for a period of one month and up to one year. Interim employees do not receive benefits, which is huge savings to your organization. With interim employees, you can have top talent work on projects and initiatives that everyone has been too busy to do. The main purpose of the interim hire is to fill a gap and work on a specific project. The organization benefits because they get to address a much needed initiative. The interim hire benefits too. They gain meaningful work that helps them to bridge the employment gap until they can obtain a permanent full time position.

You may be concerned that an interim employee may leave before the project is completed. To minimize the possibility of an interim hire leaving prior to project completion, you can offer a bonus for the successful completion of the project. This approach not only encourages an interim hire to complete the project, it ties their performance to the success of the project as well. Interim employment is a terrific win-win for the company and for the interim hire.

Should you be hiring in a slow economy? First, take a hard look to make certain that 100% of your employees are meeting expectations. Replace under performers with people that will do the job. Look at your talent pool and determine if you have the talent that will be able to achieve your long term strategy. And, can you utilize interim hires on projects that you have been too busy to start. Considering the advantages that this market brings, the question no longer is should I be hiring in a slow economy, the question becomes, how many people should I be hiring right now?

Shari Roth is a managing partner of CAPITAL iDEA. An accomplished performance improvement consultant, Shari's ability to simplify complex problems into effective solutions has driven notable results in the transportation, insurance, financial, hospitality and telecommunications industries. Shari's focus is to create leadership cultures where employees are empowered, engaged, and aligned to achieve the organization's desired results.
With over twenty years of experience in Fortune 500 companies, her clients find Shari's unique blend of financial, marketing and sales expertise invaluable. Shari's in depth knowledge and certifications in Behavioral, Motivator and Hartman Assessments contribute to her clients' success in hiring and retaining top talent. Shari's clients have seen improvements in employee retention, increased profitability, and customer growth.

• http://www.capital-idea.net
• shari@capital-idea.net
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Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report - Released 4/9/09

SEASONALLY ADJUSTED DATA

In the week ending April 4, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 654,000, a decrease of 20,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 674,000. The 4-week moving average was 657,250, a decrease of 750 from the previous week's revised average of 658,000.

The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 4.4 percent for the week ending March 28, an increase of 0.1 percentage point from the prior week's unrevised rate of 4.3 percent.

The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending March 28 was 5,840,000, an increase of 95,000 from the preceding week's revised level of 5,745,000. The 4-week moving average was 5,647,500, an increase of 146,750 from the preceding week's revised average of 5,500,750.

The fiscal year-to-date average for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment for all programs is 4.753 million.

UNADJUSTED DATA

The advance number of actual initial claims under state programs, unadjusted, totaled 618,451 in the week ending April 4, an increase of 19,149 from the previous week. There were 357,206 initial claims in the comparable week in 2008.

The advance unadjusted insured unemployment rate was 4.8 percent during the week ending March 28, unchanged from the prior week. The advance unadjusted number for persons claiming UI benefits in state programs totaled 6,441,315, an increase of 52,545 from the preceding week. A year earlier, the rate was 2.4 percent and the volume was 3,200,533.

Extended benefits were available in Alaska, California, Connecticut, Idaho, Indiana, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Washington, and Wisconsin during the week ending March 21.

Initial claims for UI benefits by former Federal civilian employees totaled 1,078 in the week ending March 28, an increase of 25 from the prior week. There were 1,831 initial claims by newly discharged veterans, an increase of 167 from the preceding week.

There were 18,081 former Federal civilian employees claiming UI benefits for the week ending March 21, a decrease of 1,518 from the previous week. Newly discharged veterans claiming benefits totaled 28,448, a decrease of 258 from the prior week.

States reported 1,536,256 persons claiming EUC (Emergency Unemployment Compensation) benefits for the week ending March 21, an increase of 21,162 from the prior week.

The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending March 21 were in Michigan (7.7 percent), Oregon (7.6), Rhode Island (7.5), Puerto Rico (7.2), Idaho (7.0), Wisconsin (6.9), Pennsylvania (6.5), Montana (6.0), Nevada (6.0), and Vermont (6.0).

The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending March 28 were in Kentucky (+5,029), Michigan (+4,428), Illinois (+3,498), Ohio (+3,000), and Tennessee (+2,718), while the largest decreases were in California (-7,057), Pennsylvania (-3,302), Missouri (-2,193), Kansas (-1,726), and Minnesota (-1,559).

Full article available at http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/eta/ui/eta20090360.htm

10 Steps to Landing a Job During the Recession

Ten ways to find a job in ten days.

This article was written to help job seekers find a job in this recession. It is geared towards job seekers that work with headhunters, third party search firms, and recriuters. It can help you find jobs on the market in your industry whether you are looking for a sales job or technology job, this article can help you find a recruiter, has interview tips, and will help you negotiate your job offer letter. With the recession there are a lot of job seekers, and this article includes how to find a job during the recession.

1. Prepare yourself. This involves rewriting your resume and buying the right interview outfit. Practice your interview in the mirror and prepare for tough questions, such as an interviewer asking you to describe a time you helped your company when you didn't have to, or what your weakest trait is. Make sure you have your resume on hand when you do finally attend the job interview, along with any presentation papers that you feel will help you land the job.

2. Find a recruiter. Go to a recruiter directory to find a list of recruiters in your area. Once you are at the recruiter directory you should be able to do a search by industry or location. It is important not to narrow your industry too much, as you want to keep an open job search so you don't limit your results. Let the recruiter know if you are willing to relocate, that way they can search for jobs for you in other areas, with will expand your options dramatically. Go on a reputable directory to find a recruiter in your area. One good recruitement directory and staffing resource is http://www.therecruiterdirectory.com

3. Get all the job details. Be sure to ask the recruiter you are working with for specific details when they have an interview scheduled for you. Good questions to ask are if there are if this is a replacement position or a newly created job title. If it is a replacement position be sure to inquire as to why the previous employee did not work out. You can also ask if there are other candidates in the pipeline for this position and if there are other candidates who are no longer being considered. If there are, why didn't they make the cut? What does the recruiter recommend you do to avoid that problem? Keep in mind the recruiter is on your side, and while they want to be sure they hire the right person for the job, it makes their job easier if you get hired.

4. Presentation is everything. Many people don't realize how important presentation is when going to a job interview. Not tucking in your shirt could literally cost you the job. Your resume should be carried in a briefcase, folder, or something similar. Shoving your resume in your pocket does not look good when applying for a job. Even if you are applying for a casual job, you are gong to want to dress professional for the interview.

5. Arrive on Time. Make sure you have the right company directions. Arrive early, not on time. If you plan on arriving on time there is a good chance that there will be something unexpected, such as traffic that will make you late. Plan as much as you can ahead of time, and even find alternate routes 'just in case'.

6. Don't put all your eggs in one basket. Make sure that you have are applying to several different jobs. Not only will you get hired sooner, but you may even find yourself in a position where you have multiple offers. That is always the best case scenario, as then you can pick your favorite company and/or compensation package.

7. Concentrate on what the company wants first. The last thing you want to do in an interview is ask about the compensation package and benefits first. Remember, the company probably has several people interviewing and will choose the person they think is the best, not the candidate who likes the comp package the most. Remember, you are trying to sell your resume, experience and services to the company. While asking questions about how the company works shows interest, asking about the salary is not something that should be brought up until the offer letter is presented. Feel free, however, to ask the recruiter. They are a third party and want to make sure they have a good match between employer and employee and that includes what the company is paying and your salary expectations.

8. Do Your Research. Be sure to research the company and what they do. If you have questions about the company that show you have done your research, chances are the hiring manager will be impressed. If you ask a bunch of questions that show you have no idea as to how the company works, that will come off less than impressive.

9. Follow Up. Be sure to get the interviewers e-mail address so that you can send them a thank you e-mail to follow up. Let them know that you enjoyed the interview and look forward to working with them, even if you haven't been hired yet. Tell them you were impressed with the interview and their organization and be sure to include why. Inquire as to what the next steps will be. Follow up with the recruiter and find out if they received feedback. If you did not get the position, ask the recruiter why so that you may use that advice for future interviews.

10. Don't Reject, Negotiate. If you like the organization you interviewed for, and could see yourself working there, don't outright reject an offer that doesn't seem realistic. They might be just giving you a lowball offer to test your waters. Let the job recruiter know what your minimum conditions are and ask for a counter offer. Be careful going too high, don't forget there is a chance your counter offer will just be rejected and that will be the end of it. Ask yourself if you can afford to take that chance in this economy. Keep in mind there aren't that many companies hiring right now and it is very hard to find a job. Another technique is to gently mention the other offers you have on the table to the recruiter.

About the Author

Jackie has been writing articles for years, and is an expert when it comes to human resources.