In a recent blog I came across the writer claimed he would be a rich man if he had received a pound for every time he had heard business owners and executives say, "Good people are hard to find." Don't you find that remarkable? I certainly do!
Just think about it. Recruiters only respond to applicants that they are willing to put forward to their clients because they apparently get so many applicants for every position. Let's be conservative and say that is 10 applicants for every job. (You can appreciate that has to be very conservative for otherwise they would surely be able to respond to every applicant!) From those 10 let's say they decide to interview 5. That means that 50% of the applicants are deemed to meet your criteria for the position.
The recruiter will interview them, verify qualifications and check references. They may even subject them to a battery of tests to further prove their mettle. From there they will create a shortlist of 3 for you to make your final choice.
In your organisation they may well be subjected to any or all of the following:
- A number of preliminary interviews;
- A screening process of some description that tests their psychological profile, aptitude, capability and cultural fit;
- A second, and possibly even a third, interview.
From that you will then make a decision and offer the ideal candidate the role. Providing you haven't taken so long over this entire process that they have accepted a position elsewhere, you now have to negotiate all the terms of employment to ensure you meet their aspirations. Assuming there are no glitches there you now have someone who is:
- Definitely capable of doing the job; and
- Prepared to work for you on terms that have been agreed by you both and that therefore must be considered satisfactory by both parties.
In light of all this it is clearly ludicrous to say that there are no good people. Particularly when you consider that my conservative numbers are likely to be considerably understated. How can there be a 'War for Talent'
On top of that, you will agree that everybody wants to do a good job. A new position is always stressful because new employees are anxious to please and at the same time have to learn the way "things are done around here!" So consequently, attitude is not a problem either; certainly not initially.
Why then do statistics show a recruitment failure rate of 42% within the first 6 months of employment? Rather than being an indication good people being hard to find, is perhaps rather an indication of there being few good employers?
So what are you going to do about it?