Recruitment Challenge #3: The Emergency

Recruitment Strategies to Address Hiring Emergencies

Not all hiring needs can be anticipated well in advance. Below are a few options to consider when you find yourself with a time-sensitive and critical hiring need:

1. Temporary hires.

Let's say it's late February and your in-house accountant has to take an immediate and unexpected leave. One option is to see if your external CPA firm can take on some additional duties temporarily, but at $200 per hour it may not be the best course of action. A better option may be to hire a professional in-house on a temporary basis. There is a temporary staffing service or consultancy for just about every specialty. Typically you can interview and select talent the same way you would a regular hire, just with a minimal time commitment and access to a wider range of skills. Depending on the specialty and region, expect to pay an all-inclusive hourly rate that is 50% to 120% above the base pay rate.  

2. Active Search Services.

If your hiring need is not a temporary one, but rather a key member of your team that will always be critical, but you don't have the time or staff to dedicate to a full-life cycle recruitment, active search may be your best option. With active search, you contract with an external recruiter or a firm to source, qualify, interview, and present top candidates to you for interviewing. There are many different arrangements for this type of a search, and you can engage with either generalist recruiters or those who have an industry specialty. Depending on the role, type of recruiter, and industry talent pool, you may pay anywhere from 20% of base salary to 1/3 of total cash compensation. 

3. The gig economy and specialty subscriptions.

For a lot of small and medium sized businesses, the urgent service needed doesn't really fill a 40-hour workweek. In those cases, it may make more sense to buy just the product or time you need. For example, there is a company that provides unlimited graphic design services for a flat monthly fee. Many online platforms allow access to freelancers in all specialties across the globe. There is a growing trend towards these types of arrangements so it may be the right solution for your business.

4. Event-based recruiting

This can be especially helpful for companies that need to hire a large number of people in a short time. Scheduling and marketing a recruitment event can draw large numbers of candidates to a single location on a short notice. Pre-registration and tailored questionnaires can help as initial screening tools. On-premises job fairs are a great way to let candidates see your work environment, and talk to a variety of talent. A cocktail hour with sales talent, or a game night for local IT talent are also some creative ways to get to know people beyond a 1-1 formal interview.