The Future of Work: What Candidates Are Looking For

According to a multiple studies* performed by nationwide consulting firms, nearly 45% of employees are ready to change jobs within months rather than previous years. This comes from a plethora of factors like burnout, lack of new skill opportunities, and not addressing well-being needs. Since our world changed in 2020, employees have switched their previous mindsets and are demanding more. There are three factors candidates look for when deciding between jobs; being able to live their beliefs, work-life balance, and job stability & security.

Living Your Beliefs

With the rise of social media and informed consumers, business messages, and beliefs must line up with their actions. If this is something that will be preached, it must be practiced. Candidates value working for employers that not only support them, but also their beliefs. This also goes into being valued as a worker and a person, with more candidates looking for companies to support their physical and psychological needs. A sustained focus on psychological and biological factors makes employees feel valued as a whole person. Leadership needs to replace the top-down style that was so widely used before 2020 and go deeper than surface level. This idea promotes two-way conversations to enable employees to express their real thoughts. Working closely with your human resources department to figure out what it looks like to implement this leadership style and be able to support your employees.

Work-Life Balance

With increased remote work, the awareness of job flexibility has grown and promotes a greater work-life balance.  Having the personal freedom to work wherever and whenever best suits you, has become the norm. While this flexibility has had major benefits, it can also have its consequences.

Advantages

·       Location independence
·       Commute saving
·       Custom at home office
·       Improved inclusivity

Disadvantages

·       Isolation
·       At home distractions
·       Disproportionate work-life balance
·       Risk of overworking

Because it can go both ways, it’s important to give employees options for their preference of in-person or remote and promote an unplugged ‘5-9’. Having that flexibility will help with recruiting for these positions. That is because, it helps candidates and employees not just see that you value the fact that they have a life outside of work but also that you trust them to get their work done.

Job Stability & Security

After all the uncertainty that 2020 brought, it is important for employers to be a stabilizing force that employees can count on through it all. Security is different now post-pandemic; it depends on your feeling of your prospective or current employer and job field. Stability, being how long one stays uninterrupted at a company, has grown back in popularity. When treated correctly with benefits and compensation and the mentioned topics, candidates prefer to stay with employers for stability and security.

How to Reach this Level

At Skywalk Group we implement these topics with our employees by offering remote flexibility. We provide, recruiting and HR services that help our clients attract, train, and retain the right candidates. We make sure to match up these topics for each candidate and company for a lasting relationship! To learn more about Skywalk Group’s signature RPO service, or our HR consulting services contact us today.

-By Cristina Villalobos

*Our Time to Take Control