Staffing trends of the past

The topic that has been generating several articles and topics of debate recently is how much staffing has changed. A column from CNN.com featured a staffing expert that said that resumes are obsolete and that with the prevalence of social media, instead of seeing a candidate’s attributes via paper format, managers will soon see a hologram similar to Princess Leia from “Star Wars” featuring a candidate’s presence. I don’t think we’re that advanced yet, but things are evolving. For instance, when I first got into staffing 15 years ago, we used a transparent cover page, with our company logo, my name and contact information, that we strategically placed over the resume before we laid it face down on the printer. Once I was satisfied with the appearance of the resume, I then faxed it over to the hiring manager. Then came the dawn of the internet.

With the first staffing firm I worked for, we had one computer in the interview/conference room in which we could search resumes utilized for sourcing candidates that had internet access. In retrospect, it’s strange to think we would schedule time to utilize that sole computer. When we became a little more advanced, we started e-mailing resumes. That was a real time saver. Candidates could customize their resumes depending on how varied their skill sets were and send over a resume appropriate for a specific job. On the positive side, when it was a stronger, candidate-driven economy, it wasn’t abnormal to see candidates hired after 15 minute phone interviews in the late 90s. Candidates would meet the manager and the rest of the team on the first day of work.

Staffing for today and tomorrow

In today’s model, we tend to see questions that are e-mailed to the candidate to see if he or she is qualified for the phone screen. The candidate goes through a phone screen and one to two in-person interviews, with Skype used if the candidate is remote and then a possible decision takes place. This format has become common because it’s becoming more of an employer-driven marketplace. The pendulum is slowly changing directions though. For instance, candidates going through more arduous interviewing processes are being scooped up for more money, perks and benefits from clients that realize there is a shortage of candidates for niche-oriented positions. A few companies that I’m familiar with have lost several key, technical personnel within a few months due to static hiring practices and salaries not being commensurate with the market place.

Social media, mentioned earlier, is playing a larger role. Companies are becoming more proactive and reaching out to employees through their web presence. This approach can have mixed results. For instance, you drive more candidates to be evaluated but your HR and hiring managers get bogged down with looking through a myriad of under or overqualified candidates related to the job(s) applied for. Many companies look at this as a time saver but Return On Investment (ROI) in terms of hours and money spent needs to be considered. That’s a whole new topic of conversation but lends credence to why staffing firms can be value added differentiators to a company’s bottom line regarding performance. Even if the traditional resume does disappear and we move towards video or holographic profiles, the exercise of sourcing, screening and hiring strong talent will remain essentially the same. Staffing and recruitment have always been partners to employers in this function and will continue to evolve with the trends to be an asset to companies when and how they need the talent acquisition support.

Mike Barefoot is the Senior Account Executive at Red Zone Resources Staffing & Recruitment. Follow Red Zone Resources on Twitter (@RedZoneJobs) or go to www.RedZoneResources.com for more information.