All professional industries, as a general rule, are in a state of perpetual change. As new technologies emerge and workplace practices evolve, organizations must be able to adapt in lockstep, otherwise, they may run the risk of being left in the wake of other, more agile organizations. Recruiting and hiring methodologies and practices, in particular, are subject to especially rapid rates of change. With each passing year, recruiting practices that were once believed to be indispensable are discarded for new technologies and approaches that are able to more effectively serve the new demands of a given business and industry.
Major Hiring Trends of 2020 That Employers Should Be Aware Of
1. Culture will be a priority.
In the past, employers tended to prioritize a candidate’s technical abilities over his or her compatibility with the unique workplace culture that they’ll be entering. Today, the boundaries and cubicles that once separated colleagues are disappearing and being replaced by an increasing degree of interdependence and interaction. While hiring based on technical skills will always be a primary concern for employers, there is a corollary need for culture-based hiring that is becoming more and more prominent. It’s crucial, therefore, for hiring managers to be on the lookout for candidates whose personalities and interpersonal skills will mesh well within the broader atmosphere of the workplace.
2. Flexible work options will be more commonplace.
The emphasis on a healthy and thriving culture within the workplace is growing in tandem with increasing tolerance for – and even dependence on – flexible work options for new employees. New communication technologies are becoming available at an unprecedented rate, making it easier for team members dispersed over a broad geographical area to effectively work together. Gone are the days of teams being required, by necessity, to work from a single location; in 2020, the trend towards hiring remote employees can absolutely be expected to continue.
3. Employers will focus more on demonstrable skills than on education.
Top companies like Apple, Google, and Netflix have already ditched their requirements for candidates to carry degrees from accredited 4-year universities, favoring instead that prospective employees only come equipped with certain skill sets. These companies are quick to insist that this decision in no way means that they’ve lowered their hiring standards, but is instead intended to open their recruiters up to a vast swathe of talented candidates who previously may have been immediately overlooked due to their lack of a formal higher education. In 2020, more employers can be expected to follow suit.
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