Helping People is What Recruiters are Hard-Wired to Do

Now is the time for recruiters to shine. As companies shut their doors in order to combat the fast-moving COVID-19 threat, people are facing fear and uncertainty about their livelihoods.

In recent memory, forest-fires, drought, tsunamis, and hurricanes have happened and certain pockets around the world may have been affected. But never can I remember one single event shutting down the world economy in the way that COVID-19 has since December.

Recruiters are poised to be helpers in a crisis like this.  Here’s how we can help, no matter what industry we specialize in:

• Contact your network to see how they’re feeling and what they’re facing right now. Think of it as a pulse-check, not a business development call. Ask your contacts what changes are happening and listen with your full self to their answers. You don’t need to fix things for them, you do want to be a resource if you’re able. At this time, your greatest gift may be your ability to listen and understand what fears are cropping up.

• Open your calendar for candidates. As many job orders are placed on hold, it’s natural to think there is no reason to get on the phone with candidates. You’re no longer working to move the candidate through a pipeline to a job offer just now. Instead of using “free” time to worry about your own fears and lost commissions, open your calendar for time to listen to candidates and understand their skill sets. Whether you use that time to build a bench of viable candidates when your roles open up again, or you use the time to help anyone in your network who needs to brainstorm about their career options, offer your expertise and be of service.

• Share your wisdom. It may have seemed logical to keep your recruiting “secrets” to yourself when you were in fear and competition mode. Now we can help each other and understand how much we have to offer those who may be suffering job uncertainty. Create blog posts, post articles and resources on social media, or record and share videos about companies that are hiring or other networking or interviewing tips. You can gear these posts toward your specific audience or to the job hunting public at large. Give freely, so that others may grow and succeed. You’ll feel good and it’s likely that the goodwill will come back around when you need it most.

• Be of service. Recruiters know how to re-write resumes and how to coach people to present their best selves during interviews. Whether you offer coaching regularly on these topics or not, find ways to share your insights and help others be prepared for job hunting, if and when the time comes.

• Coach employers on effective ways to interview and hire the best talent during trying times. Many companies have interviewed and hired the same way for generations. In many cases, they continue to deal with attrition and other hiring failures. Now that their hiring is on hold, you may find you’re an excellent resource to help them revamp their processes so that they are poised for a stronger hiring and intake process when their hiring freezes are ultimately lifted.

Recruiters, this is a pivotal time for us to show people the value we bring – not just to the bottom line, but to human connection as well.

What are your thoughts? How are you using your recruiting expertise to help others during this trying time?

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