Should you stop recruiting during COVID-19? Definitely not.

Comparing the recruitment sales process to the customer acquisition process

Kathleen Quinn Votaw //April 22, 2020//

Should you stop recruiting during COVID-19? Definitely not.

Comparing the recruitment sales process to the customer acquisition process

Kathleen Quinn Votaw //April 22, 2020//

You cannot run a business without people; one depends on the other. If you are in business, you never stop looking for customers, and you should never stop looking for candidates either—under any circumstance. Difficult situations like the one we’re in now are a good time to fill the top of your funnel and capture as many good candidates as you can. Continuity ensures that you always have access to top talent, and you are prepared for recovery when it comes.

“Top of the funnel” refers to the recruitment sales process, which many companies don’t realize should be much like their customer acquisition process. The funnel includes all aspects of recruiting, including employment branding, lead generation, candidate engagement, candidate screening and assessments, candidate interviews and, ultimately, the offer.

Your candidates, like your customers, consider your reputation in the market and your values before they join your company (or do business with you), and they expect you to reach out and begin building a relationship with them.

That relationship continues long after candidate becomes employee. Your retention efforts are equally important to continuity. After you’ve moved from branding at the top of the funnel to your employment offer at the narrow end, think hard about what you’ve “sold” your candidate and make sure it truly reflects your culture, values and employment brand. Whether acquiring customers or candidates, it takes a sales process to attract, win and keep the people you need to succeed. Without a process, you may have to settle for average or for no one at all, when every company should always be vying for the most productive employees and the most profitable customers.

When the good times are back, you will still be dealing with the same skills and inventory shortages and competing to win the best talent. You’ll still need people with both technical and soft skills, and who fit snugly into your culture as well. Even in hard times, the best people are in demand. Don’t wait for an opening to reach out to them. You need to cultivate good talent over time.

Make sure you have the right sales strategies, the ones you use to acquire your customers, and take advantage of effective new recruiting tools and technologies. Make your top priority to never stop recruiting the best people—no matter what else is going on around you.