The recession is over ... well, at least as a recruiting and retention tool for employers.  If you are hiring, you can't miss the pronounced shift in the DC job market.  This year the power is shifting back to the job seekers.   With the national economic news still looking dicey, how can this be happening?  That's exactly what we'll explain in the articles below.

 

In a market upswing that surprised me with its' speed, many more candidates are receiving multiple job offers. (In August, more than two thirds of our search finalists received a competing job offer - that's a heck of a lot of competition for the dog days of August). The plain fact is that, despite a daily barrage of dramatic headlines, this economic recovery is pretty normal by historical standards.  (Yes, a bumpy, slow jobs recovery is normal). 

 

Here's the new reality:  In the DC region, attracting great people is getting far more difficult (just offering job stability is not enough anymore).  But the real problem is not recruiting (you can just hire us for that) - the real problem is retention.  Unless you have a plan, this will really not be a good year for retaining your best people.

 

Nationwide, trust in managers is plunging, so naturally employee engagement is plummeting right along with it.  Low engagement leads to higher turnover - and the top performers are often the first to go.  (Although, I hope they don't deploy the emergency exit chute like JetBlue flight attendant Steven Slater ... we look at why his dramatic exit from anonymity drew so many fans.)

 

Smaller employers who build trust and engagement with their employees have a real recruiting advantage in this job market, but only if they recognize how the job market has changed.