Shift in hiring techniques - An emerging trend in the COVID-19 era
Is there anything that is untouched or remained unimpacted by the deadly Coronavirus crisis and COVID-19 pandemic? The obvious answer is no. There is hardly any sector or domain which has not witnessed a paradigm shift, and the same holds true for Human Resources as well. A major change is being seen in the concepts and practices of how hiring takes place. Undoubtedly, in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis, a massive shift in hiring techniques will certainly be an emerging trend in this coronavirus crisis.
Unlike earlier when HR managers used to meet the potential and prospective employees in person, now everything has become virtual. HR managers don't get to see or meet the to-be employees of their companies as offices are temporarily closed so as to curtail the spread of coronavirus and save as many lives as we can.
So, gone are the days, when HR managers were successfully able to filter the candidates on the basis of the body language, communication skills, and other basic essentials of performing a job of a particular domain. Physical meetings with candidates reveal a lot about potential employees. Virtual meetings do reveal a lot but just up to a certain extent. Therefore, what to do in such cases, since as of now it seems, as per scientists and government cited data Covid is here at least for some time, hence it's a better and practical approach for hiring managers to stay prepared for the new hiring techniques which will emerge as new trends amid this pandemic crisis.
Work From Home
It goes without saying that Work From Home is a new normal amid the Covid era. Now, since the government is also clearly encouraging private companies to opt to Work From Home so that the spread of coronavirus can be arrested. One new thing has been noticed that now in primary rounds of interviews, candidates are being clearly asked about how comfortable they are with the work from home. When initially, work from home was started on a mass scale in India during the first wave of coronavirus, employees were upbeat but later on they realised that it's not very easy for many employees to work from home due to real-life problems like kids at home, family matters and more. Hence, one of the key changes that have taken place in the primary rounds of interviews is the Work From Home question from hiring managers.
Social Media
It's been noticed that many HR managers are resorting to taking a deep look at social media profiles, accounts, and handles of their candidates so that they can get a primary idea of what their potential employees think, what is their social behaviour on the internet, how cooperative they are, what is their temperament, and other important and relevant things with respect to the job profile.
In this COVID-19 era, professional networking service LinkedIn has become the most sought-after platform for hiring managers to look forward to when it comes to primarily filtering the candidates. It is one of the first steps that HR managers take while selecting candidates. The references and testimonies available on the LinkedIn profile of a particular candidate act as a catalyst in the hiring process.
Keeping the above points in mind, it can be ascertained that a big shift in hiring techniques is already taking place and some of the trends will stay for a permanent basis in the HR world.