The Assess Systems Wire

April-May, 2009

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We all know that in the current economic downturn most companies have slowed or even halted hiring. However, the number of applicants is growing at an exponential rate fueled by the current surge in unemployment as well as the entry of new workers into the labor pool. In economic terms, our supply of potential candidates is far exceeding current demand. Sounds like a good place to be, right? In some ways, yes, because it is a buyer's market. However, in other ways this deluge of applicants creates new challenges.

How do recruiters and hiring managers sort through the vast array of candidates to find the right person for their job?
How can they do this efficiently without taking months to sift out those that are unqualified or perhaps over-qualified for the role?

To brace ourselves for the challenges to come, lessons can be learned from those organizations and industries who have long since dealt with a high applicant to hire ratio – industries such as hospitality, service, manufacturing, etc. These companies are accustomed to having 20 or even 30 candidates for every hire. They have invested in designing good screening programs, populated their programs with high quality content and driven efficiencies into the design through technology.

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