Just two months ago the nation was experiencing its lowest unemployment rate in history. Now in the midst of the Covid-19 the market has made a complete 180 degree turn as we experience the highest unemployment rate since the great depression. Positions that employers were desperate to fill vanished along with millions of other jobs. However, what many companies are failing to realize is that although various positions are gone, the need for the skills that position would have brought remain vacant. As the market begins to recover and we begin to emerge into our post-covid world, take this time to re-imagine your team and what hiring and management during a pandemic might look like.

1.      That Dream Candidate May be Available
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Just two months ago, with record low unemployment, trying to convince the perfect candidate to quit their job and join your team was difficult at best. However, due to the harsh reality brought on by Covid-19, many bright and intelligent professionals are now more open to hearing about different positions and different companies. It’s time to check-in with that perfect candidate you were eyeing earlier to inquire about their position and make the early investment of bringing them on-board if they are open to the opportunity. While it may be financially stressful in the short-term, this decision is an investment for the prosperity of your team in the long run.

2.      Team Upskilling is a Need not a Want

If nothing else, this pandemic has showed us that the current abilities of our teams are our greatest resource. That’s why it’s always essential to continue upskilling your teams to acquire new skills and develop their talents throughout their tenure on your team. While skills can be learned and developed on the job, investing in trainings, webinars, and classes for your team, will allow them to develop those skills and gain a diverse set of abilities that can expand the capabilities of your team and prevent unnecessary investment on outside resources.

3.      Office Settings Don’t Have to be a Requirement

There is a good chance that either you or someone you know has been working remotely for the past few weeks. Adapting to digital workspaces is a skill that the majority of companies have quickly developed during this time, and the digital workspace will not vanish after employees return to the office. Utilize this new digital infrastructure to expand your talent search outside of your local area and consider candidates who would prefer to work remotely. If this pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that physical office spaces are not required to do your job well. 

4.      Your Actions are Always Being Watched

With the rise of the ethical consumer and digital watchdogs, every company is being inspected with a fine tooth comb. EsteeLaundry is just one example of a consumer-built watchdog group watching and broadcasting corporate actions for consumers and employees to hold companies accountable. There is a record of which companies have engaged in unethical or questionable behavior, which has held mass layoffs, furloughed, or retained all their staff. Both candidates and consumers are taking notice and holding companies accountable. Moral of the story, do right by those you hire and they’ll do right by you.

5)   Develop a ‘Restart Manual’ on how you plan to restart your operations after the lock-down.

Returning businesses to operational health after a severe shutdown is extremely challenging as the shutdown has affected most industries including your clients and vendors and they, too, will need to reactivate their entire model. Global supply chains will be affected either by a slow down or complete shut-down of business. Keep all this in mind as you consider your post-lockdown plan and at all times keep your employees informed so they are in the loop. You want to keep those STAR employees in the know so you don’t lose them during any part of the lockdown. Communication with your employees is key during this lockdown. Instituting a “restart manual” will give your employees the peace of mind that your organization is in control of the situation. At the same time, keep your eyes open for those other STAR candidates you have been interested in getting on your team. By informing them that you are instituting a “restart manual”, they will be attracted to the control and organization that your organization is demonstrating.

6.     Find a Recruiter Knows Who’s in the Market

With so many individuals looking for a new opportunity it can be difficult not to experience analysis paralysis. However, your recruiter is trained to spot the diamond in the rough. Work with your DCAProSearch recruiter to start identifying the type of candidate you are looking for and let them begin the search to have talent in the pipeline for when you decide it’s the right time to begin hiring again. Once the market picks up, companies will begin rapidly re-hiring for positions they had to eliminate. Be ahead of the game to build a team that you can rely on long after this pandemic is over. 

As companies continue to protect their employees against Covid-19 by instituting social distancing and work from home (WFH) policies, the reality is that it’s not easy to keep that distance and loneliness and depression can creep in. Companies have instituted video conferences via Zoom, Google Groups and other video sources. This is great to keep morale up and keep the communication going but in order to keep your happiness ratio steady, you must stay disciplined and have a positive outlook through this period. Below are some ways that will help you stay positive and deal with the WFH schedule that most of us are under.
1) Specific Office Space
It’s important to set aside a specific room that you can still feel is your particular work area during work hours. If you don’t have an extra room, then set aside a specific table or small corner. Design it to make it look like a workstation and set rules that when you are there, you are not to be interrupted.
2) Set a Regular Work Schedule
One of the advantages of WFH is that you have a more flexible schedule. However, this does not mean that you should deviate too much from your regular work hours. It’s still important to set work hours so you know that at such and such time, you should be at your desk, dressed and ready for work. Try to dress in a way that you still feel good about being seen in person, especially since you will be on video with your team quite a bit of the time. It is best to stay away from working in pajamas and keep your regular make-up routine so you feel like you are going to work.
3) Eat and Take Breaks
Continue your meals on a regular schedule and try not to over-snack. You might be tempted to take frequent breaks for snacks, instead consider taking a break to stretch or take a short walk outside or, if you have stairs in your house, do some stair-stepping. You want to move every 30 minutes and since you can’t go to the gym during this time, consider exercise videos once your work hours end. You can also enjoy a hike in the outdoors where and when allowed.
4) Stay in touch with Friends, Family and Colleagues.
Don’t isolate yourself during this time. Your Spirit needs some uplifting and friends, family and colleagues can provide that. Try to keep your conversations positive. You already get too much Covid-19 information from the news. You need some uplifting. Have virtual lunch time with colleagues, share a virtual happy hour with friends and family.
5) Take up a New Hobby
During WFH you have a more flexible schedule and are not losing time to travelling to and from work, you can now make time for that hobby you’ve been wanting to take up or to learn something new that you haven’t had the time for. Whenever we learn something new, it creates a sense of joy. Share your new hobby with others.
6) Play Music in the Background
Many studies have shown that music can calm the nerves and create joy as well as the opposite depending on the type of music you play. Different music styles affect people differently so choose wisely. Which type of music calms you? Which type creates a sense of joy? Which type makes you more productive during work hours? Music that calms you and makes you more productive are ideal while you work. Have that music playing in the background.
We are all working thru an unprecedented situation but we can make the best of this social distancing and working from home by putting a few of these tips to practice. Social distancing does not have to isolate you from the world and you can take advantage of the time by growing your skills and hobbies. At DCAProSearch, we have written many blogs with practical advice that you can start putting to practice while you have the time. As always, we invite you to give us a call to learn more about our Executive Search or Career Coaching Services. As we enter our 25th year of business, we have been here for you during good times and during trying times. History has shown that our nation will come back on top. 

The stark reality is that right now the Covid-19 has affected all our lives in more ways than we could have imagined. Although it may seem like the world around us has stopped turning, our businesses haven’t. Companies and agencies are still expected to turn profit, or at the very least prevent financial loss during this time of economic uncertainty. If we learned anything in the financial crisis of 2008 it’s that the best way to weather an uncertain market is to build a team that can be resourceful and proactive while withstanding any challenge the market may bring.
Ninety percent of business challenges stem from not having the right talent on your team. While we are still at the early stages of this pandemic, make preparations in the structures of your team to make sure you are ready to weather whatever conditions the market may bring.
1)     Identify Current Gaps By Taking Inventory of Skills
You know your business better than anyone else. Use your expertise of the business to create a list of all the projects, challenges, and assignments your team has worked on over the last 5 years and the actions you had to take to create a solution. Next, expand that list to include all the skills needed to fulfill those actions. This will give you a shopping list of skills that you can anticipate will be needed over the next few years.
Cross reference this list of needed skills with a list of skills your employees currently possess and assign who on your team can fulfill each skill. Any skill that remains un-assigned is a skill gap on your team, and that can create financial stress during a recession if that skill remains vacant. Congregate this list of un-met skills into one or two specially designed roles that will allow your team to fulfill any need regardless of market conditions.
2)     Expand Verified Vendors List to Include Potential Contractors, Freelancers, and Agencies
Even during times of economic growth, gaining approval to add new agencies, business partners, and contractors to existing “verified vendors” lists can be like pulling teeth. This process is even harder, if not impossible, during times of economic uncertainty. If you know there is even the remote possibility of wanting to work with an outside agency, freelancer, or contractor that is not on your approved vendor list, start the process of adding them now before your company puts restrictions on vendors.  
3)     Clearly Establish Everyone’s Roles and Responsibilities
There is nothing worse than being on a project that is stalled because one essential step is missing, but no one did it because no one knows whose role the responsibility falls under. Take steps early on to establish each team-member’s roles and responsibilities to make tasks flow much more efficiently. Do this by taking a day and running various scenarios of common projects your team works on and list each and every step that was involved in that project. Then define whose role that task lies under. If you took an inventory of your team’s skills, this will also help in this exercise to avoid any confusion.
4)     Secure Talent Earlier Rather than Later
When budgets get tighter during financial uncertainty the first thing to be enacted is typically a hiring freeze. Once a hiring freeze happens your team is pretty much set. There are no more chances to fill any skill gaps that you identified too late. Reach out to a DCAProSearch recruiter now to secure your talent and fill any skill gaps you may have on your team, whether for full time or contractors/freelancers.
Wondering which skills are essential to a team during a recession? We have identified the essential skills and people that you should have on your team to handle the vast majority of projects or challenges you may face. From all of us at DCAProSearch we wish you the best health during this pandemic and remind you to help flatten the curve by washing your hands, social distancing, and staying home from work if you are feeling sick

As recruiters and hiring managers, when we post an open position, we expect a certain decorum from the candidates we choose to engage with. What we often forget is that the candidates need that same level of respect and decorum even more than we do. Keep in mind that when candidates are looking for a new job, it’s nerve-wracking. They may already be stressed by financial pressures, a toxic work environment at their current job, or other personal deadlines that are putting pressure on them. While it may not be our job to act as their therapist and hold their hand, it is our responsibility to recognize the humanity and vulnerability that comes with sending in an application.
 
​After all, people may not remember what you say or do but they will remember how you made them feel. How we treat applicants during the recruitment process says just as much about our brand as an employer and our company as their application says about them. In our experience these are the most common hiring etiquette faux paus that companies commit during the recruitment process.

Keep Candidates in the Know

​Although you want to fill the open position on your team as fast as possible, if you are like most employers you will likely keep the application open until your new hire signs on the dotted line. Regardless of where you are in the recruitment process be sure to keep candidates updated on where their application stands in the funnel. You can achieve this with an automated applicant tracking system where they are able to check their status online or by setting hard dates of when they can expect to hear back from you after each interaction. Point is, don’t leave them waiting because they are applying to other jobs and will go with those jobs if they don’t hear back from you. 

Stop Ghosting Candidates

We don’t like telling applicants they didn’t get the job any more than you do, but we do it out of simple respect for the candidate. You’d be surprised how fast a company can get a reputation for ghosting, causing good candidates to not apply and making your recruitment efforts that much harder. If you don’t have the time to tell them one-by-one, make it easy on yourself and create a rejection email template in your automated email marketing software. For candidates who didn’t advance to the next step, import a list of these candidates into an email campaign and send a personalized automated email with a note explaining your decision to not go forward with their application. This at least gives them closure about your company as they continue their search and avoids any hurt feelings of being ghosted.

Give Feedback to Candidates Further in the Process

In a typical job search, hiring managers will interview anywhere between three to five candidates. It’s a big step considering that you both take time to evaluate each other and form opinions about one another. An interview makes a job posting suddenly become real and extremely personal. Like any other form of communication, both parties should offer each other feedback. The candidate will inform you of their interests and concerns with the position so you can address it, and you should do the same for the candidate so they can address any concerns you may have. Open communication is the best way to evaluate one another. Don’t lose out on that opportunity.

 Utilize a Recruiter

We know that sometimes remembering to get back to candidates can slip your mind when you still have your full time job to do. That’s where your recruiter comes in. In addition to handling the recruitment process for you, your recruiter acts as the ambassador to your company and their entire job is to keep you and the candidates in the know throughout the entire process. Utilizing an experienced recruiter you trust is the best way to ensure that candidates have a positive and seamless experience throughout the application process, thereby, leaving a positive lasting impression about your company. At DCAProSearch, we understand how sensitive recruiting can be for both you and the candidates and we ensure that we approach every search with humility and respect for everyone involved.

Although recruiting can be stressful, it is just as stressful for the candidates applying to be a part of your team. Simple recruiting etiquette can mean the world to candidates and leave them with a good impression of you and your company regardless of the outcome. It’s the same courtesy you would hope to receive if you were in their shoes. For a strong recruitment partner and to find out more about how we approach a search to fill your important positions, visit our website.

When we reflect back to 2010 the world looked very different from what it does today, almost ten years later. We have seen more technological and cultural shifts in this decade than any that came before. The world seemed to move so fast around us, and diversity quickly became the buzzword of the decade. Let’s take a look at how diverse voices found their way into the spotlight in the last ten years and how these same voices are going to continue to catapult us into the new decade of diversity, inclusion, and equity.

Age
More recently in the last few years, Gen Z has proven that age really is just a number. Seen as the generation of young activists, Generation Z (1995-2015) have found their voices in activism and standing up for what’s right. The March for our Lives in 2018 was a student led initiative started by the students in the Parkland shooting to urge policy makers for gun control. This year, Greta Thunberg was named Time’s youngest Person of the Year for her activism to prevent climate change. Millennials, step aside for the new generation because Gen Z is leading the way in social media, activism, education, and consumerism and making sure their expectations for diversity, ethicality, and sustainability are met by every brand they engage with.

Women’s Empowerment
#MeToo. The most wide spread and impactful social media movement of the decade. Women took to social media to support each other and dispel the stigma around speaking and reporting sexual assault. The movement created winding change in both feminine and masculine spheres of influence as celebrities openly shared their stories of survival and masculine brands and celebrities debunked outdated stereotypes of toxic masculinity and “boys will be boys” culture in exchange for true allyship and understanding. Equally empowering, the Team USA’s women’s soccer team successfully fought for equal pay to their male counterparts after winning the Women’s World Series proving that gender has no limitations. Needless to say, 2020 is the decade of the woman. Say goodbye to locker room culture and the men’s club because women are coming in strong.

Gender & Sexuality
This decade saw the rise of the Gender Revolution in National Geographic and huge victories for the LGBTQ community. The 2015 Supreme Court case Obergefell v. Hodges made marriage equality the law of the land as LGBTQ couples gained the right to marry under the law. Facebook, Twitter, Tinder, and other social media sites re-evaluated their definition of gender to include 58+ gender terms. And what was the 2019 Mariam-Webster Dictionary’s word of the year? The non-binary, gender-neutral, pronoun “they” as used by Sam Smith and countless others across the country. In the new decade we will continue to see wider forms of non-binary or genderless expression in fashion, beauty, and self-representation as employees continue to observe and celebrate their true authentic selves.

Race and Ethnicity
Representation was a big theme of the decade as consumers demanded to see themselves represented in media, advertising, and art. The need for diverse racial representation led to the success of prominent African American films such as Us and Black Panther and the cult followings of English language Telenovelas such as Jane the Virgin and Devious Maids. Consumers in this decade did not tolerate the omission of People of Color as seen in the 2015 Oscars awards hashtag #OscarsSoWhite. Brands also jumped onto the call for racial diversity from Coca-Cola’s “America the Beautiful” ad or Nike’s support of Colin Kaepernick. The next decade, brands will follow the precedent Rihanna started with Fenty Beauty by incorporating all skin tones into leadership, marketing, and advertising to create representation.

Ability
Athletes, academics, and activists all exemplified time and time again that in the last ten years people with disabilities were stronger and more vocal than ever before. In 2012, Oscar Pistorius became the first double-leg amputee to participate in the Olympics inspiring amputees across the world. Two years later people around the world began pouring buckets of ice water on their heads to raise awareness for ALS, a disease that would later take the life of the most influential scientists of our generation: Stephen Hawking. Sesame Street introduced the first autistic character on the show in 2017 to normalize different ways of behavior and ways of engaging the world. In the new decade with so many prominent voices empowering disabled individuals, stigmas around disabilities will continue to decrease as many choose to embrace and disclose disabilities to their employers, families, and friends who in turn need to learn ways accommodate all forms of how people interact with the world around them.

The New Decade: 2020
The last decade has seen consumers and influencers loudly making calls to action and the brands and causes that succeeded this decade took those calls to heart. The brands that were successful saw the social and cultural shifts that were happening around them and implemented them both in and out of the office. However, the brands of 2020 are going to have to be more focused on DEI than ever before. Unlike the brands of the 2010’s, brands in 2020 will have to do more than simply recognize diversity, they are going to have to embrace it and empower diverse voices to make decisions that will impact a diverse set of consumers. 2020 will not be a homogenous decade and neither can the brands that will succeed. DCAProSearch has been at the top of this movement since for over two decades and we will continue to partner with brands to recruit diverse talent that speaks to the diverse audience of 2020.
From everyone at DCAProSearch thank you for a great decade and we wish you the best in 2020.

It’s the time of the year that we either look forward to or dread. The time between Thanksgiving and Christmas is when evaluations are usually taking place. So it’s important that you get ready for that all important End of Year review. Below are 5 ways to prepare.
1. Schedule a Review Meeting with your Manager
Sometimes your manager might be so busy that they miss scheduling the reviews. There are also times when reviews aren’t due at this time of year. However, it’s still worthwhile to ask your manager for feedback on your work throughout the year as compared to their expectations. It’s important that you prepare well and have a list of your achievements during the year which have either saved the company money, time, or expenses. Don’t take it for granted that your manager remembers all your achievements. More than likely, they don’t so it’s important to remind them of these areas for that all important consideration of a possible promotion or raise. If your manager doesn't schedule the meeting, then you should take the initiative to ask for the end of year review meeting.
2. Know What You Have  Brought to the Table
Evaluate your projects week by week, then month by month. If you didn’t take notes throughout the year, go through your emails and/or texts to try to put it all together. List each project you worked on and your achievements on that project. What was your part of the project? Did it add to the overall team success? Did it save the company money in regards to time or expenses. Did your project add revenue to the company? Did you lead a project? If your work saved the company money or add revenue, does it call for an increase in base or bonus? Do the math and if the answer is “yes”, then ask for the all deserving increase in base or bonus.
3. Practice Your Presentation
It’s always a bit unnerving to toot your own horn but toot you must. Remember your manager supervises an entire team and they can’t possibly remember everything you did throughout the year so it’s up to you to make your case. Play out your presentation in your head, have your notes ready, create a PowerPoint presentation if you need to so you don’t miss any projects. Visuals are always effective. You can even practice your presentation with your trusted friends or family members. Confidence is one of the most important parts of your presentation.
4. Know Areas You Can Improve On
You should also think about areas where you may have missed the point and list how you intend to improve on those areas. You can even ask for a small budget for self-improvement seminars in certain areas. These are all gains as well. Your manager will be impressed that you also understand areas that you need to work on and they will be happy to provide the assistance in that. Ask your manager which areas they feel you can improve on as well and ask for strategies they feel would help in that improvement. As long as they see that you truly want to grow and improve in areas that are important to the overall department/company success, you will have your manager on your side.
5. Make a List of your Goals for the New Year
Not only do you prepare to present your achievements of the current year, but you also want to present your goals for the New Year. The goals you present should be your professional goals. However, you should also know how they pertain to your department/company. Your professional goals should also be to help your supervisor and your team shine and get ahead. Ask your boss what goals they have for you and for the department so you can incorporate those into your overall goals for the New Year and keep those goals handy so you can keep tabs of your progress which will also help in your review for the following year.
When you prepare ahead of time and know your achievements from the current year, strategize how you can improve in the New Year, and list your goals for the New Year, you can go in with confidence to speak with your Manager and present your case for a well-deserved promotion and/or raise. At DCAProSearch, we can coach you through that thought process and be your sounding table in role playing. We Toast to your success with your end of year review!

Only two months until the end of 2019 and that means that year-end reviews are right around the corner. For some people this may mean raises, promotions, and good fortune while for others they may be getting feedback that they aren’t expecting. Regardless of which side you are on, it’s a good idea to conduct a self-assessment of how you would grade yourself so you can go into your meeting prepared to toot your own horn or utilize constructive criticism.
Create a Personal Deck of Achievements
Many times, at work, it is easy for the days to become weeks and the weeks to become months and before you know it, you have worked on dozens of projects and reports that you and your bosses forgot you even touched. The easiest way to get recognition for your growth is to record it. Create an organized deck or spreadsheet of what you have worked on since your last review that you can show your boss. That way you aren’t struggling to remember what you did when called in to discuss your progress.
Top 5’s and Not-so-Top 5s
What are your strengths and weaknesses? It’s the most overused interview question, but also the most important to keep in mind for yourself to know where you have shined and where you may have fallen short over the year. This way you are able to identify areas where you should focus on during your year-end reviews, and areas that you need to better position yourself in  for improvement. Weaknesses aren’t always weaknesses if you are able to show your boss that you are already on the path of improvement.
Prepare an Improvement Potential Path
A weakness or shortcoming isn’t the end of the world if you have a plan to better your skills in that area. If you have noticed you have a weakness, it is probable that your managers and coworkers have noticed too. Prepare a plan to improve your weaker skills before your manager addresses those weaknesses as a reason to pass you up for the promotion. This could be taking a class, asking for training, or taking extra time to complete a task.
Your Knowledge, Skills, Attributes, and Other
What do you know? What can you do? How do you work? What are your secret weapons? These are all questions that you should be able to answer about yourself and be prepared to tell your manager. In addition, you need to keep track of when you learned new  knowledge, skills, and attributes to better trace your progress and self-improvement to justify that you are growing in your career.
Know Where You Started and Where You’re Going
It is impossible to track how far you’ve gone if you have no idea where you started. Similarly, it’s hard for your manager to give you direction if they don’t know where you are going. Be clear in voicing your goals within the company and your progress. That way all the key players in your career know what your next steps are and will keep you top of mind when looking to fill positions that align with your goals.
While year-end reviews can be nerve-wracking, a successful self-assessment will prepare you for any feedback that you may receive. Before you go into your review, know where you have been and where you want to go. Contact your DCAProSearch recruiter to go over your career and set your career goals before going into these reviews to better understand what to expect and where you should be going.

In the world of business, everything is measured. The same goes for our hiring practices. Diversity and inclusion cannot be an initiative that is only spoken about. As Sophie Bellon, Chairwoman of Sodexo, tells us “what gets measured gets done.” The same goes for our hiring practices. HR and hiring managers should be establishing diversity goals to encourage diverse hiring practices throughout the company. However, although 42% of the population self-identifies as “multicultural”: African-American; Hispanic; Asian; Disabled or LGBTQ+, an AIMM’s Multicultural Benchmark Study shows that only 16% of marketers imbue their outreach with cultural insights aimed at these audiences. AIMM is a committee formed by the ANA (Association of National Advertisers)and is short for Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing.
Human resources, top level executives, hiring managers, and employees should make it a priority to sit down and define what diversity looks like within the company. Hold a town hall or fireside chat so all members of your organization can get involved in defining what their workplace will look like and what improvements should be implemented in the hiring process. Here are some tips on how companies throughout the country have set and achieved their goals.

Match the Demographics of the Country

With countless different voices in the country, it can be difficult to ensure that all are represented within the organization. That is why many companies strive to match the racial demographics of the country to ensure all voices are present in proportion to the population. Specifically with Gen-Z  consumers, younger consumers are drawn to companies that are representative of the diversity that exists within the world and want brands that demonstrate they are leading the march serving all consumers.

Diversify all Levels of Management

In addition to diverse hiring practices, make sure that you continue to empower different voices within the organization from interns to C-Suite executives. Diversity will not be effective if your diverse employees are concentrated at the bottom levels of management. Having diversity at all levels of your corporation allows for the dissemination of experience and solutions at all levels that will be integrated for an enhanced problem solving capacity for your business.

Invest in a Chief Diversity Officer

Consider your Chief Diversity Officer your accountability partner. With his/her team, the CDO will measure the effectiveness of your diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and find areas to improve diversity practices by creating a report for top management every quarter. Although it’s possible to achieve diversity without a CDO, remember that achieving DEI in a company is a sensitive task that can sometimes lead to frustration if not incorporated correctly. Therefore, a certified and experienced CDO will help aid in the implementation of strategies and help you get the most of the benefits of diversity.

Strive for Diversity and Inclusion Awards

Various awards and recognitions exist for companies that have excelled in their DEI practices. Such awards include the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index, Bloomberg's Gender Equality Ranking, NASSCOM Corporate Awards for Excellence in Diversity and Inclusion among various other awards. Although these awards shouldn’t necessarily be your motivation for implementing DEI strategies they represent a good benchmark to how well you are achieving your goals.

Diversity Tip: Know the difference between a goal and a quota.

Although diversity should be a goal for all growing companies, it is important that it is not forced on business leaders as a mandate from HR, but rather an attitude that is adopted by all managers throughout the company. This will lead your leaders to create goals as opposed to filling quotas. A goal is created because hiring managers recognize the value of diversity and thus they encourage diverse hiring practices. Whereas, a quota forces hiring practices without valuing what diverse talent brings to the table.

Diversity and inclusion is an essential part to growing your business to reflect the modern day workforce and the modern day consumer. More than ever, consumers expect businesses to be diverse, equitable, and inclusive and will reward businesses who represent these values. While it can be tricky, DEI is well worth it and pays off in consumer loyalty and brand recognition. At DCAProSearch we have been leading the way in diversity recruiting finding diverse talent for companies and agencies for over 20 years and we will continue to shout the importance of DEI from the rooftops until diversity, equity, and inclusion are recognized as the standard. We have been, and will always be, your diversity recruiter.

You have had an open position on your team for weeks now and it seems that every candidate who you have interviewed has been a complete dud. Can it be that all the great candidates are already taken up? Not likely, but it could be that you just aren’t reaching the right candidate for the position. Recruiter marketing is just as important as consumer marketing if not more so because the right employee can boost the brand to new heights while a bad employee can break the bank. But fret not, there are ways to get out of your recruiting slump and find a true rock star.

1)     Re-imagine the Position
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Top-tier candidates want to be challenged and continue learning throughout their career. If they are ready to leave their current position it often means they have grown complacent and don’t feel like they are growing anymore. That is where you come in. When defining what the role will look like avoid consolidating tasks that mirror every other job posting for similar positions. Marketing is about making your position stand out, differentiate it by creating a unique position the candidate cannot find elsewhere. This may entail creating a lively company culture, investing in new revolutionary methods, or encouraging out-of-the-box solutions. If money is the only differentiator you have for your position, then be prepared to replace your employees quickly once another company comes and offers them a bigger paycheck.

2)     Drop the Outdated Job Description

Useful tip: Never reuse your job descriptions. The world is constantly changing and thus so are the tasks and challenges that your employees take on. If you reuse a job description that was written the last time the position was open five years ago, then you are going to get a candidate who is equipped to deal with the challenges you faced five years ago rather than today. Similarly, updating an old job description is just as bad because it limits your scope of what the position could look like to what the candidate’s predecessors have already done before. Create a new and unique job description for each position that becomes available that builds upon current team strengths, fills team limitations and takes into account current and future challenges, changes in the workplace, and new technologies. It may seem like a lot of work, but it will help you stay true to your vision of the company and current needs.

3)     Stop Posting on Job Boards

Posting a job on a job board is the equivalent of trying to catch a big fish in a crowded pond. Sure you may get a lot of nibbles and bites, but more than likely they don’t possess the qualifications you are looking for. You want an employee who is dedicated and passionate about your company and who seeks you out. You deserve an employee who has a proven record and is proud of the work they put forward. Well, it turns out most people like that already have a job. They are the passive candidates who are happy with their current jobs but might be persuaded with an interesting and challenging opportunity. That’s where 3rd party recruiters can help out as your company ambassadors and their vast network.

4)      Team Up With an Outside Recruiter

The number one excuse that hiring managers say for not choosing an outside recruiters is that the HR department already utilizes in-house recruiters. That’s fine for roles that are easier to fill or may be filled internally. However, the biggest drawback of in-house recruiters is that they are company branded meaning their network is limited to only people who have thought about working for you in the past or people they have already reached out to. Third-party recruiters have a broad network of candidates and can introduce your positions to a whole new audience of candidates from various different backgrounds whom in-house recruiters would have never known existed.

5)     Personify the Job

A job posting shouldn’t just stay on the page. Like a story, the candidate should be able to see themselves in the position and feel invested in the outcome. Job descriptions that simply outline day-to-day duties fail to intrigue a candidate to apply. However, job postings that outline current challenges, company direction, and past or present projects allow a candidate imagine possible solutions and what it might be like to one day get to present these solutions to you as their future employer. The candidate is now more invested in the challenge you present in addition to the job, salary, and benefits that the job will offer.

​If you are in a recruiting slump don’t fret. There are ways to get you the rock star candidate you have been searching for. Albert Einstein said, “insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.” Try a new recruiting strategy or team up with DCAProSearch as your recruiting partner and see how it changes the caliber of the candidates you receive. 

Please say it’s not so! Analysts again are warning of an upcoming recession due to recent market behavior and various financial factors. Whether you believe their assessment of the economy or not, the fact is we are due for a recession at some point. The American economy is cyclical in nature, and considering we are in the longest bull market in history, a recession seems to be due sooner rather than later. I am not speaking as an economist or financial adviser, but as a recruitment partner who has weathered these economic fluctuations with my clients in the past. History has proven that there are ways to weather a recession, and maybe even thrive until the market starts to pick up again.

1)     Hire the Perfect Team Early
We are in a booming economy right now. Use it! Build your dream team now that way you can increase your budget and secure funding now before it is too late. Once a recession hits, your ability to ask the company for a bigger budget to hire someone you need is almost impossible. On average, budgets will remain stagnant or even decrease a little bit. However, if you go into a recession already having built your recession-proof team then their salaries have already been accounted for in the budget planning meetings and their job should be secure going forward. This being said, don’t go overboard by hiring people you don’t need or whose jobs are too similar. This is when you’ll be forced to slim down and let good people go.

2)     Prioritize Your Marketing
During a recession, marketing is often the first thing to go. Marketing is essential in a recession to keep your brand remembered and fighting for consumers. When you decrease marketing and your competitors don’t, you have already lost consumers. However, if you keep marketing strong while your competitors lapse you have an opportunity to win market share. It is possible to grow during a recession, and marketing is the key to doing so. Instead of cutting marketing entirely, create a ranking for campaign importance. The most important and effective campaigns remain funded while other costly or overly risky campaigns get put on hold if the market goes sour.

3)     Add Value not Price
A big trend we saw during the 2009 recession was that prices go up and never come back down. While consumers may choose your brand for a number of reasons, you can be sure that during a recession price is a huge factor of if they keep choosing you or try someone new. Increasing your price will turn away loyal consumers who are looking for a cheaper alternative, therefore boosting your competitors and making you lose market share. Instead, focus on adding value that doesn’t cost much such as excellent customer service, satisfaction guarantees, and loyalty programs to convince your consumer that your existing price is worth it.

4)     Develop Short Term Goals
A volatile market can make long term goals tricky. The economic conditions that exist at the beginning of a recession may not exist in a month, or even a week, after. Therefore, make your goals reflect the volatile nature of the market by adopting challenging yet achievable short term goals. A 30-day goal that can adapt to market volatility from month to month is a good way to keep realistic expectations and act quickly when the market begins to change.

5)     Utilize Partnerships
You aren’t the only one going through the recession. Every one of your partners is feeling it too.  Incorporate Co-op marketing campaigns with retailers or other brands. You marketing dollars will be stretched by bringing partners into a campaign. You should focus on preserving your partnerships because you and your partners are able to do a lot more together than each of you can do alone. To go back to economics 101, like nations, companies have comparative advantages. An advertising firm can do advertising for much less than it would cost you. Similarly, a recruiter can recruit talent for much less than it would cost you. Therefore, by utilizing each of your partners' specialties each of you are able to benefit from gains of trade and produce much better than you would be able to alone.
A recession can be nerve-wracking but you will get through it. Make preparations now before you are left scrambling when the market begins to slow. It may be in a month, a year, or 5 years but it is always better to be ready for anything. DCAProSearch is proud to be your recruiting partners throughout good and bad, and we are always ready to help you build your corporate dream team to help you ride out any storm.