Jarvis Johnson

As the summer draws to a close, many in the food manufacturing industry (companies and candidates alike) might have noticed a familiar slowdown in the recruitment market; a phenomenon we often refer to as the “summer slump.”

There are less jobs being advertised, less candidates applying for jobs, delays in setting up interviews, gaining feedback and decisions being made. To some extent this is inevitable with many people taking annual leave, however, with September just around the corner, now is the perfect time to shift gears and prepare for a busy and productive build up to the Christmas period.

September often feels like a mini ‘New Year’ but we want to share some tips on how you can turn the summer slowdown into a strategic advantage and get your recruitment plan ready for September.  There’s 8 tips in total and in this article we will share the first 4…watch out for the next 4 in our next article!

1. Evaluate Recruitment Activity

Before September kicks in, take a step back and assess how any live recruitment projects have been performing.

• If you list vacancies on your website, carry out an audit on your jobs page; ensure that any vacancies that have been filled (or are on hold) have been removed; if your jobs pages look stagnant it can be off-putting to candidates seeing vacancies that have been open for months. Also check that any salaries quoted are up to date as these sometimes flex throughout the life of a recruitment project and you don’t want to be missing out on applications at the higher end of your salary bracket.
• Have there been any consistent challenges in recruiting for this vacancy ? Review the list of applications that you have rejected so far. Are there any trends in reasons the company hasn’t progressed them  (wanting hybrid working, salary expectations too high, certain qualifications missing). If you’ve been working with recruitment agencies they should quickly be able to provide you with a summary of this data. This information can be useful when revisiting job specs as described below
• If you’ve been working with agencies and haven’t had the right sort of CVs from them now’s the time to research some specialist agency partners in the job functions you’re looking to fill

2. Review Your Interview Process

Look at each vacancy and review notes from previous interviews. Are you getting many candidates pull out after first interview stage?  If there are more than one or two, here’s some things to think about :

• Does each interviewer have a structured list of interview questions? Does each question have a purpose? We sometimes have feedback from candidates that “quirky / leftfield/ clever” interview questions can make them feel uncomfortable and  they can feel like the company wants to trip them up. Interesting, relevant questions that get candidates to open up and engage during the interview are a bonus!
• Does (or could) the first interview stage put the candidate at ease by including a brief introduction to the company, role, team structure, reasons for hiring etc? Candidates want to get a sense of the culture of the company and the personalities of the people they will be working with. Making even the first stage interview a two way exchange of information can sway a candidate who is on the fence about a number of job opportunities
• If you have doubts about a candidate’s abilities, skills or experience during an interview, don’t be afraid to address the elephant in the room…. “you’ve told me that you’ve been on a HACCP team in the past but haven’t led one before, how would you reassure me you could handle this part of the job?”
• Do your Hiring Managers regularly postpone interviews at short notice? Or take ages to find time in their diaries? Is there a big delay between first and second stage interviews? In a competitive market delays in the process are off-putting to candidates and mean that companies which are more agile at getting to offer stage are securing candidates who could have been a perfect fit for you.  See if all those involved in the process can commit to and diarise some regular interview / CV review slots to keep the process moving apace.

3.Re-engage with Your Team

Summer holidays are a time where team members may reassess their career aspirations so September is the perfect time to re-establish strong relationships with your team. After the summer, everyone might need a little boost to get back into the groove. Plan a team meeting or casual 1-2-1 check-ins to discuss upcoming projects and expectations. This is also a great opportunity to reignite team spirit and ensure everyone is aligned with the goals for the rest of the year. Having individual sit downs with the team could also help bring to the surface any underlying niggles and hopefully reduce the risk of surprise resignations, adding to your recruitment headaches! You may even open doors for internal candidates to express interest in vacancies you have been struggling to fill.

4.Revisit Candidate Specifications and Job Briefs

While its quiet, take the time to sit down with the Hiring Managers and check that nothing can be tweaked on the job specifications and profile of candidates you are looking for. Look at your notes from interviews, rejected applications analysis and review any changes within the team and wider business

• What are the essential skills / experience vs those that are “nice to have”? It is unlikely you’ll find someone who has done 100% of the job before (and if they have, the new role is unlikely to offer them any opportunities for development!). Being more flexible on a few skills can give you access to a wider pool of candidates – you could even revisit applications you rejected in the early days if requirements change significantly.
• How attractive and competitive are your roles? Not pitching your roles correctly from the beginning can have a negative effect on recruitment and damage your brand too. If you start an advertising campaign with a salary you know is low “to see what’s out there” and find you  aren’t successful in locating the right candidate, you may find that, even if you increase the salary later on, you risk people that saw your ad first time round being left with an impression that your company are “low payers”.
• If you haven’t advertised salary; consider adding a salary bracket to your adverts – what have you got to hide?! There is often a highly significant increase in applications when a salary range is displayed – and it prevents you having to deal with lots of applications from candidates who are massively under or over budget.
• Could any of this role be done from home? Hybrid jobs are sought after and in some cases candidates will not consider jobs where some element of home-working cannot be accommodated
• Is the job title attracting the right candidates? Have a look at what competitors are calling their roles. People may not be finding your vacancy if the job title is too niche. Tweaking job titles in your ads can help attract more candidates.
• Speak to your recruitment agency partners to get their input into the candidate requirements; they will be able to advise you what response they have had when talking to candidates, and whether tweaking a role’s requirements is likely to result in more suitable applications.

In Summary

For Food Manufacturers with vacant roles, the transition from a “Summer Slump” to a bustling September, packed with interviews, is all about preparation. By evaluating what has been done already, looking at what could be tweaked and seeking out new partners you could be all set for a positive to start September!

Watch out for the next 4 tips in our next article!

If you’re struggling with a Technical, QA or NPD vacancy that’s been lingering for a while and you feel you’d like a fresh pair of eyes on it for September then contact us to set up a no-obligation, non-salesy conversation at enquiries@jarvisjohnson.co.uk

Blog