Review your workforce management strategy

Long story short: From recruiting to layoffs, are your workforce management tactics effective?

August 12, 2022 10:49 AM

Employers have had to continuously pivot when it comes to managing their workforces during the pandemic. Now, with recruiting efforts intersecting with possible layoffs, are your strategies up to par?

In this week's top stories, employers are giving their workplace management practices an audit. When it comes to recruiting, HR leaders need to embrace the benefits of platforms beyond LinkedIn, and become "socially savvy," says Bryant Chase, social media director at social recruiting platform CareerArc.

"The most effective job posts on social media are really simple. They can be as impressive or basic as they need to be for your purposes," he says.

Once employees are in the door, making sure they're paid equally and supported with benefits is an ongoing effort. Education benefits, for one, can help employees advance their career, and providing scheduling flexibility can support women in particular as they return to the workforce.

Sometimes, even with the best policies and practices, layoffs are inevitable, but even then, employers can lead with compassion and empathy. A CEO who's gone through the process shares his best practices. Check out more in the stories below.

Recruiters are going to have to get 'socially savvy' if they want to succeed

Social media will become a staple of the recruitment process, but it won't drastically change a recruiter's skills. It's just a matter of broadening the scope, Bryant Chase, social media director at social recruiting platform CareerArc, tells associate editor Paola Peralta.

"Look at social media as an opportunity to get back to what you do best — especially for recruiters who are uncomfortable with social media," he says. "It gives you more time for sorting through candidates and more space to find the right candidates all while focusing on your company's branding."

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Recruiters are going to have to get 'socially savvy' if they want to succeed

Taking a stand on the gender pay gap will benefit all of your workers

Women still earn 82 cents per dollar that men make in 2022, and that figure was the same in 2021, according to Payscale's State of the Gender Pay Gap Report. But with millions of women looking for opportunities to return to the workforce, companies that aren't moving the needle forward are going to fall behind.

"With everything that's happened in just the last couple of years, you want to be at a spot where you're driving a diverse workforce," says Irina Soriano, author and vice president of enablement at software platform Seismic. "If any woman gets the sense that's not the case, you're not going to be a desired place to work."

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Taking a stand on the gender pay gap will benefit all of your workers

How an education program helped this product manager land her dream role at Spotify

Like many young professionals, Christina Gilligan felt like she was at a standstill in her career. In 2021, after years building a resume in tech and product management, she was feeling restless in her position at an advertising agency. She turned to Emeritus, an online education platform that works with companies to provide full-time, affordable courses from accredited global universities. She signed up for a 6-month certificate on product management, a personal investment that felt well worth the potential ROI.

Gilligan recently spoke with associate editor Paola Peralta about the importance of education platforms as an alternative for employees looking to upskill, and how earlier this year, her experience and expanded education landed her a dream job at Spotify.

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How an education program helped this product manager land her dream role at Spotify

Cut once and cut deep': This CEO shares 7 best practices to managing layoffs effectively

Between record-breaking inflation rates, supply chain disruptions and the Fed hiking interest rates up, many are concerned that the U.S. economy is headed toward a recession — and that its arrival will bring along a wave of layoffs.

While there may be no way to stop layoffs from happening, that doesn't mean companies have to add salt to the wound by engaging in poor termination practices, Nolan Church, co-founder and CEO of Continuum, a talent marketplace for freelance, executive roles, tells associate editor Deanna Cuadra. He shared his seven best practices for conducting layoffs with empathy.

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Cut once and cut deep': This CEO shares 7 best practices to managing layoffs effectively