The nation’s unemployment rate has fallen to just over four percent, its lowest level since 2001. That's great news for the economy and American workers. But it does make HR’s job more difficult when top talent quits, particularly in a highly competitive industry like life sciences. There’s one thing to keep top-of-mind throughout the hiring process: time kills deals. The longer you wait to get an offer out, the more time prospects have to look for different opportunities or convince their current employers to prepare counteroffers.
Of course, before you can present candidates with offers, you have to find them. That’s much easier said than done. Recruiting has never been more challenging due to a shortage of core talent in the life sciences market. Four percent unemployment translates to you selecting from a talent pool of candidates who are already gainfully employed. Meanwhile, companies are creating more jobs, which means that when you're hiring for a new position, so are hundreds of other organizations.
As your trusted partner, Randstad Life Sciences streamlines your recruiting efforts by leveraging our extensive global network and powerful HR technologies to locate even the hardest-to-find candidates, including passive job seekers. We relieve you of the stress over missed deadlines due to insufficient headcount by using the best of high-tech and high-touch processes to deliver best-fit candidates with speed and efficiency.
For example, consider how difficult it has become to recruit a Clinical Trial Manager, who can work for hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, government agencies and clinical research organizations. Clinical trials are essential to developing new drugs and treatment methods, so the job prospects for qualified candidates, especially those with a master's degree, are excellent. And that trend shows no signs of slowing. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the job growth for medical and health services managers will increase much faster than the average for all professions, rising 17 percent by 2024.
Put simply, you have to accelerate your timetable. The traditional process of scheduling a phone interview, then arranging a couple of in-person interviews, then holding hiring committee meetings to review multiple candidates takes much too long. You will lose top candidates before you can even present them with an offer.
You must identify ways to identify, recruit, interview and make offers to candidates more quickly. For instance, consider eliminating phone interviews. Schedule one in-person interview and make sure all the decision-makers are in the room.
Or, hold interviews via Skype. More people, particularly millennials, are looking for flexible work arrangements, including the ability to work from home. If you are open to letting employees work from home, conducting interviews remotely demonstrates that your organization embraces telecommuting and will help candidates achieve the work-life balance they desire.
Prioritizing speed during the hiring process may seem counter-intuitive. You still need to determine whether a candidate is a good fit for both a specific job’s requirements and for the overall company culture. But consider the high costs of letting a position sit empty from a productivity standpoint. Haggling over a few thousand dollars for a salary or the number of days an employee can work from home pales in comparison to the time and money you will lose trying to fill the position.
Randstad Life Sciences enables you to create new efficiencies in your hiring process without sacrificing the ability to screen and hire top talent. From discovery to clinical development to market authorization, we will connect you with the expert talent that’s right for your organization.
Contact us today to learn more about how Randstad can assist in all of your life sciences staffing and business needs.