As an HR consultant, almost every leader I have worked for immediately understands the critical importance of recruiting. Yet, throughout these interactions, I’ve been puzzled why a function like recruiting, which is so universally accepted as being essential is generally given such little focus and not nearly leveraged like other key business functions. It's been my experience that initiatives within the recruiting function are almost always reactive. General enhancements, surge support, and third-party recruitment assessments are typically conducted to address deficiencies as opposed to seizing opportunities. Having effective recruiting capabilities and processes can do three major things simultaneously: It can reduce the time to hire; It can generate more business revenue (depending upon the business, of course); and It can be the key business differentiator when it comes to finding qualified candidates in a hot market. Reducing the time to hire metric is important not only to get qualified talent in the door quicker but with an effective team and process in place, it can greatly reduce the amount of time your hiring managers and recruiters spend as well. To the same point, if these open reqs are positions that directly impact your revenue, you want to get them hired and onboarded in a timely manner. In today's market, employers must move fast and they must be intentional about creating a memorable experience to attract and hire key talent. And I think we can all agree that talent is so often what sets a company apart from its competitors.

The federal government has spent a significant amount of time attempting to assure equality throughout the United States' workforce. Whether it is ensuring the EEO statement includes gender identity, sexual preference, or genetic information; ensuring there are not vast discrepancies between the salaries of men vs. women or based on race, or deciding whether to provide paid paternity leave. The world is changing and expectations of employers are too. Is your organization prepared to be inclusive for all?

Picture it: you have just concluded your interview and shaken hands with the ideal candidate who has all of the qualities and qualifications you are looking for in order to fill your open role and you quickly rush back to office to get in contact with your Recruiter to let them know you want to hire them ASAP! You are excited about the possibility of taking your department to the next level and want this candidate to be part of the team. At this point in the process, nothing else is standing in your way right?

Recently, I attended the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce Gov Con Symposium in Tysons. My favorite session was a panel about Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) and how expanding M&A activity has and will continue to reinvigorate the industry. Throughout the session, we heard a lot about the books of business, competencies, and relationships that made sense for the two organizations as they related to whether or not to move forward with a transaction.

Culture develops in every organization. Employers can intentionally guide the environment with visible, well-developed values. Integral to creating a cohesive and collaborative environment in the face of change and conflict, particularly with mergers and acquisitions is an honest assessment of the current climate. Whether organizations are looking to enhance morale, or address a systemic issue, taking the time to develop your organizational identity is critical. To get started, ask some important questions about your organization…

All joking aside, there are lots of reasons why our clients call us to help them conduct an employee survey: they want to know why turnover is so high; they want to know the satisfaction levels of employees with regards to their jobs and benefits offered; they want to know what training they should be offering; and many call us because they are looking to improve what they believe is already a great culture with high employee engagement. Regardless of the reason, they all have one thing in common: they chose to use a third party to conduct the survey.