Where to Find Top Talent for the Holidays

November 4, 2015 | 2,159 views

Where to Find Top Talent for the Holidays

Where to Find Top Talent for the Holidays

This time of year, it’s a hiring race. Applicants put in their applications for seasonal positions and businesses strive to find the top talent to fill their schedule. During this chaos and confusion, it is difficult to know whether you’re hiring the best people for the role, or if you’re hiring in haste to get more workers into your stores.

 

As holiday sales start to surge, here are a few tips to help you find the best employees to fill the holes in your schedule.

 

Look for Tech Savvy Employees

 

Chances are you’re using a lot of technology in your business. You have software to learn, hardware devices to contend with and apps to download. Employees who can adapt quickly to this new technology are ideal.

 

For example, having someone who is resistant to learning how to use a scheduling app could pose a risk for missed shifts or updated schedules. Having someone familiar with technology who can quickly learn a new app or tool will save you time and save your employees hassle in the long run.

 

Ask for Referrals

 

The employees loyal to your store all year round make an excellent resource for new hires and job candidates. Start a short-term referral program if you don’t have one already. Get your team on board with helping to fill your seasonal positions. Your employees will love the opportunity to work with their friends during the holiday and you’ll get a higher caliber of applicants you might not have seen before.

 

Post Job Openings in Your Store

 

Perhaps some of the best job candidates are your regular shoppers or visitors. These people already understand your company culture, the level of service expected, and what you offer. Half of the training is finished before they even begin.

 

Post your seasonal job openings in your store to plant a seed among these regular shoppers. Even if they don’t apply, they’ll appreciate you gearing up to serve them through the busy season.

 

Ask Last Year’s Seasonal Workers

 

If you hired seasonal workers last year, you might want to reach out to them again. These people are familiar with your processes, your store, and your offering. If they fitted in well with your company culture last year, they’ll fit in well again this year. Reach out and extend the offer to return for the 2015 holiday season. This is perhaps the easiest way to find top talent without having to battle against your competitors for top contenders.

 

Seasonal staffing is tricky. With these tips you’re more likely to find the right people to fill your open positions without sacrificing quality of service.

 

Author Profile Jon Forknell is the Vice President and General Manager of Atlas Business Solutions, Inc., a software marketing company specializing in employee scheduling software, including ScheduleBase employee scheduling software, and other business software solutions. In the past, Jon has been recognized by the U.S. Small Business Administration as a SBA Young Entrepreneur of the Year. Atlas Business Solutions was named as one of Software Magazine’s Top 500 Software Companies in 2004 through 2007 and again in 2010, 2013 and 2014. 

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