Time for some tough love. I’m a former recruiter, notoriously obsessed with connecting amazing talent with incredible opportunity, a passionate advocate of every job seeker who just wants a better candidate-to-employee experience. So this is tough love for me, too. Trust me. I want rainbows and unicorns.
But I just read a really scary article. Deloitte released its seventh-annual Millennial Survey. It’s not pretty, but it’s your hiring reality.
- When I say millennials, by the way, the commonly accepted age range goes up to 37. Do you hire 37-year-olds?
- 43% of millennials envision leaving their job in 2 years; of these, 62% would join the gig economy as an alternative to traditional, full-time employment
- Only 28% would consider staying more than 5 years
Well. That’s new, and a bit startling. Here’s what hasn’t changed:
- Average cost-per-hire is still around $4,129
- Average cost of a bad hire is $17,000 per
- Hiring takes a long time
- 60% of potential candidates have quit a job application process because it takes too long
- The majority of the U.S. workforce will be freelancing by 2027; that means lots of boomerang hiring opportunities (see stat above: 62% of millennials find freelancing a great alternative)
What does this mean? If we’re just talking about harsh reality here?
- You need to tighten up your hiring, screening, and onboarding practices (excellent pro tips, Meghan). As in, do it all faster. You have 2 years for a new hire to churn out enough productivity to cover their own cost. Every day literally counts.
- Only 20% of companies are deploying HR and productivity solutions on mobile. We’re nearing full employment; millennials and Gen-Z candidates who can afford to be picky assume they’ll be able to do everything via mobile, and they’ll be turned off when they can’t.
- Offer a great experience coming in, but going out as well. Or you’ll see none of those boomerang hiring opportunities that may benefit you down the road.
- Whatever you deploy, you must be able to self-service, manage it easily, and scale it. No piece of technology is worth your investment unless it’s working for you.
Sorry. That the pressure is on, but not sorry that we can help. Onboarding is the biggest ROI opportunity at work, and it’s easier than you think. That’s the good news. That’s our rainbow. I knew I could salvage this.
