Fail-Safe Hiring

The continuing labor shortage is forcing companies to be creative and aggressive in recruiting employees. Some new approaches to hiring can help you snag and keep top talent.

When it comes to hiring, it’s a jungle out there. Unemployment rates are at record lows, and companies are scrambling for talent. Not only is it taking longer to fill positions, but the costs of hiring have skyrocketed. Make a hiring mistake and be prepared to pay even more: The estimated cost of a bad hire ranges from 1.5 to 5 times the departing person’s salary.

The job market for accounting and financial professionals is particularly good. "Every quarter we survey 1,400 CFOs about their hiring expectations. Generally speaking, there has been a steady, strong demand for accountants at all levels," according to Lynn Taylor, vice president and director of research for Robert Half International, a professional staffing firm in Menlo Park, Calif.

What do candidates want? "In terms of compensation, there is a continual increase in the requests for performance-based compensation including bonuses and stock options. Perhaps 10 years ago, you would have had only CFOs asking about that, whereas now, especially in Silicon Valley, there are accountants at all managerial levels making those inquiries," Taylor states. However, she quickly adds, "It used to be that compensation was everything, but the most interesting shift that we have seen is an interest in corporate culture: It has risen to the highest visibility level."

When asked to define corporate culture, Taylor provides a diversified list of components: length of the workday and weekend work, flexible hours and/or telecommuting, style of management (participatory or dictatorial), educational opportunities and availability of mentoring programs. A recent survey by Robert Half International looked at the most important line of questioning by job candidates in interviews. The results, says Taylor, showed "that corporate culture rivaled benefits in terms of importance." She contends, "It’s a pretty major finding when a candidate is talking about medical benefits and a casual dress code in the same sentence."