Unemployment rates are at an all-time high, which might make you think that employers hold all the cards in today’s recruitment market. In fact, many businesses are finding it harder than ever to fill vacant positions, and competition is especially ferocious at a senior level. Landing a top-tier candidate is a real challenge that requires an airtight recruitment process.

In today’s candidate-driven market, there is a stigma around securing elite candidates, and that it takes paying them top dollar to come to work for your company. And if you cannot, then your pool of prospective employees starts to dwindle.

I was recently reminded of a time when I was serving as the HR leader in an HR outsourcing engagement and one of my client's employees came to me with a query about family leave options available. This employee was about to become a mom through surrogacy, and she was unsure about what kind of benefits she could claim. Questions like, can adoptive parents claim short-term disability leave, like other employees do after childbirth?

Whether an executive or a mid-level manager, the majority of candidates generally hate panel interviews. If you’ve ever experienced one during your job search, you probably understand why. It’s overwhelming to find yourself outnumbered by strangers who are taking turns lobbing interview questions at you as they make their hiring decision. It’s a lot of pressure both in-person and even preparing for a panel interview, and that kind of pressure can be counterproductive as candidates get too flustered to give detailed answers.

Hiring Top Executive Talent in a Hyper-Competitive Market Co-authored by Debra Kabalkin, Practice Leader, Talent Acquisition and Kyle Robertson, Senior Recruiting Consultant

As more people receive a COVID vaccination, many employers are weighing their options and starting to make decisions about returning to the office. A colleague and I recently discussed what happens after you're vaccinated with a group of young professionals with the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce. We had a great discussion about considerations and forming a plan for returning to the workplace once more people are fully vaccinated.