Leadership challenges across recruitment

Written by: Sophie Robertson Recruitment Advisor and Coach Younique Coaching

When Covid hit, leadership in recruitment was tested as no one had a road map for a global pandemic. Leaders divided into a couple of main camps.

There were the ones who responded by planning and strategising for when the pandemic would come to an end by investing in up-skiling their people.

They actively added to their headcount and some even increased their office space! They behaved in many ways in a highly counter-intuitive manner.

There were others who shed their staff and battened down the hatches, waiting to see when the pandemic would pass and what was on the other side.

Whilst it is nothing compared to when the pandemic first hit, leaders are now facing yet another challenge as many markets have contracted.

As leaders you have the opportunity to respond now to when there is an uptick in the economy or you can react by battening down the hatches again.

Shedding the staff you picked up post-pandemic or use this time to work in de-risking your business by:

• Investing in your team whether it be in e g Business Development, negotiation, having a success mindset, selling retained or using AI.

• Working actively on adding or growing additional income streams e.g. running an onhire business, selling SOW or adding a consultancy arm.

• Investing in your culture so you can retain and attract the best staff.

Yes the above requires you to invest money into your business and people and if you do, your business will be ready for the next cycle as the economy is cyclical.

Doing what seems counter intuitive is daunting and scary, but being a brave leader is daunting and scary.

Yet there results can be so rewarding! Fortune favours the brave.

What will you choose?