QUESTION: 2010 - what will this mean for you / recruitment?

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Permalink Reply by Andrew McNaught on November 17, 2009 at 16:12

2010 means no more 2009! I have learned to only worry about what I can control otherwise you'll wind up in a straightjacket.

I'm looking forward to seeing the development of technology in recruitment, I suspect the next 'big' thing is around the corner.

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Permalink Reply by Kevin Chappell on November 20, 2009 at 17:06

Yes 2009 has been, um, "character building". But as long as you were able to shift quickly with the market, it wasn't too bad. Many carried on regardless and there have been many tales in our industry of "What do I do now? I've had it so good for so long, I really don't know what to do. The phone used to ring, it's very quiet now...". Really. As you say, all the signs point to better things. The positive out of 2009? Cowboys (and girls) and ratbags predominantly gone.

The Year of the Tiger... Well the fire's died down a bit, the thieves seem to have gone, and the ghosts of the past seem to be just that!! 2010 will mean continuing to adapt and ensuring that we offer value and added value. More of the same? No. The recession has taught clients to be more savvy and as an industry we hadn't been stepping up to the mark and we have suffered as a result of it.

Social networking is an interesting one. Supposedly the new way of finding people. The telephone achieved that in its time, as did email. Yes social networking brings people together more easily, but it also can be used to easily create false impressions. I may be wrong, but I don't think it's the panacea that everyone thinks it is. It's a good way to find people, but then what? That's where we come in, which is really no different to how it has been.

The lesson from 2009? As long as you're agile and prepared to shift and change to what the market demands, then you can survive and grow. And as an industry, we need to change.

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Permalink Reply by Fay Robin Samios on November 25, 2009 at 15:31

2010 means the year that our nursing agency becomes national and we continue to develop our strategic alliances internationally. For nursing the dreaded GFC hasnt had a huge impact we haven't grown but remained steady at 2008 figures

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Permalink Reply by Damian Newland on January 12, 2010 at 4:26

2009 was the year that everyone was searching for better ways to work, how to be more efficient, how to do more with less. The result has been quite spectacular I think as it's forced everyone to challenge themselves and their business models. From a technology supplier's perspective that meant a huge opportunity for providing solutions, and we at Burning-Glass certainly saw a huge demand for 'efficiency' related technology.
I think the direct resourcers made the biggest leaps, and in general innovated more than agencies, learning from all of the advances that have been driven by agencies in the last decade e.g. smarter posting, parsing, talent acquisition strategies and online tools.
For agencies to remain competitive through 2010 and beyond, and to counter the movements towards disintermediation there needs to be continuous innovation in service delivery and the utilisation of technology. Finding the right candidate has to be done more quickly, it has to be cheaper than the total cost of a direct hire, and of course quality must be maintained. On top of this the ability to be able to do so must be demonstratable.
I agree with Andrew that there are big things around the corner for recruitment technology. So much information moves around online now that without the right tools the recruiters job becomes harder, and those with those tools will win the race.
Agency recruitment will recover across the board, direct resourcing will also increase, there will simply be more movement of people in 2010. Job boards will have to work hard to offer more than just a transactional website and derive revenues from other sources and technology suppliers will be working very hard to deliver the next 'big thing'.
Happy New Year!

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Permalink Reply by Paul Jacobs on January 12, 2010 at 10:21

This video may have some good messages for many of us in 2010:

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