The pool of applicants for each role is increasing, yet there has been a definite decrease in the quality of the applicants within that pool, says Josh Comrie, Managing Director of award-winning IT recruitment company, Potentia.

Comrie suggests that this is due to the fact that many of the highly qualified people who might usually be considering a move to a different organisation at the start of a new year are being more cautious than usual.

“High-performing individuals continue to be given challenging work, interesting projects and market-driven realistic remuneration despite any changes that might affect the business they are working for. Also, they perceive that there might not be the range of roles available in the marketplace due to the economic downturn, so they are choosing to stay put.”

“Ultimately this has meant that employers are having to see a lot more people to find the high calibre applicants, whereas in the past they might have been easily identifiable,” he says.

“In 2004 it was predicted that there would need to be a 100% increase in the number of IT graduates to fulfill the roles available in the marketplace. In reality, there has been a 40% drop in the number of these graduates over the last four years, meaning, when looking for new employment market entrants, organizations have had to rely on overseas applicants to fill roles. Couple this with the largest ever outflow of New Zealanders into Australia last year, and the industry has battled to keep up with itself. This means that the recent slight freeing-up of people through releasing of individuals onto the market has not filled the gaps, as organisations have come to see IT as a critical business enabler rather than a luxury or expense.”

Organisations can derive significant competitive advantages through the application of technology and during challenging times businesses may look to technology to achieve this end.

So how can those employers with roles to fill ensure they get access to high quality people?

Don’t expect that by just advertising a role and seeing a greater number of people than expected apply that you’ll find the employee you are looking for, says Comrie.

“Employers need to be active in their search – don’t expect that you can have the luxury of a long recruitment process and take forever to make a decision. Good people will still tend to move quickly, whatever the economy is doing.”

“Being creative in your search is also key – use your networks and ask your contacts if they know good people who may be interested in quality roles. Be clear what your organisation can offer a candidate, what this role means to your business and how the role could develop in the future,” he says.

Tapping into the services of a high quality recruitment organisation such as Potentia can also be invaluable.

Potentia, winner of the 2008 Seek Annual Recruitment Awards and a Deloitte Fast 50 Company in both 2007 and 2008, uses a revolutionary approach to staff acquisition and retention - combining recruitment and personal effectiveness coaching.

A personalised coaching programme is provided to all new employees placed by Potentia for their first 90 days in a new role, at no extra cost to the employer.

“We take a vested interest in the success of all new employees we place,” says Comrie.

“The first three months in a role is make-or-break time for the employee and too often we find that they may not have fully understood the role before they accepted it.”

“The personalised coaching service we provide gives the employee an external thought partner to talk over any problems and help them become clear on what is required of them in the role, as well as keeping them focused on how to achieve those ends in the best interests of both them and their employer.”

This programme is available to all candidates – whether they be a helpdesk specialist or senior managers – and has proven to be particularly effective for those undertaking new roles after a redundancy. Without coaching to assist in identifying issues, the path to success in a new role can be anything but smooth after a redundancy, Comrie argues.

“Beware the middle manager or highly paid professional taking a large step down as you’ll be unlikely to hold onto this person when other opportunities come their way, he says.”

‘Fall-off’ – where an employee either leaves or is managed out in their first four months – can cause significant disruption and costs for an employer – in terms of replacement delays, work reallocation, re-training, internal team dynamics and client service, etc.

Effectively addressing this issue was a key priority in the creation and introduction of Potentia’s innovative coaching programme, which has had a dramatic effect on the success of the employees they have placed during the three years since it was introduced.

The recruitment industry’s average fall-off rate is approximately 10%; over the last two years Potentia’s has been around 2%.

For more information on the benefits of Potentia’s revolutionary approach to staff acquisition, combining recruitment with personal effectiveness coaching, and their other business guidance initiatives, please visit www.potentia.co.nz

To arrange an interview with Josh Comrie or for further information, please contact him directly:

Josh Comrie
joshc@potentia.co.nz
021 337 997