Taking Stock of Summer
What Have We Learned This Summer?
As we transition into shorter days, which often translate into longer workdays for many returning from summer vacations and dealing with childcare issues, it’s time to get serious about hiring. In this month’s newsletter, we’ll discuss how smart employers meet the needs of their people, the benefits of Volunteer Time Off (VTO), and the importance of letting employees be themselves at work.
Lessons Learned from Summer
Most people admit they’re less productive during the summer compared to other seasons. Working parents juggle childcare issues and camp drop-offs, vacations are scheduled during the warmest months, and staying focused on work can be challenging when the sun is shining outside.
Smart employers offer flexible work policies to meet the needs of their workforce in the summer. According to a survey by HR software company Dayforce, more than half of employees work for companies that provide some form of summertime flexibility, including:
- Flexible work hours
- Increased ability to work from home
- Summer Fridays off
- Seasonal work-from-anywhere options
If your company doesn’t offer any of these, it may be time to reassess your policies. For leaders, consider revising your policies for next summer. If you’re disenchanted with your current company’s summer culture, reach out to us at The Swan Group to get a head start on a new job for next summer.
Does Your Company Offer VTO?
VTO, or Volunteer Time Off, is a perk offered by more than a quarter of companies surveyed by SHRM last year. This number has increased since SHRM first tracked such data in 2002. Companies like Hasbro and Timberland are in the mix, not just progressive tech companies.
VTO is more than a way to inspire employees to do good in the world; it brings tangible benefits to the workforce, including skills-building and morale-boosting.
Recommended Reading
- On Inc.: Dell Sees 23 Percent Drop in Company Satisfaction Score Following Return-to-Office Push
- On Worklife: Over 80% of workers are scared of their company’s HR department
- On HBR: Hybrid Work Has Changed Meetings Forever
Can Your People Be Themselves at Work?
Values-based hiring leads to higher retention. When you hire like-minded talent, you find people who genuinely want to come to work. A LinkedIn survey found that 71% of people would take a pay cut to work for a company that aligns with their values.
This doesn’t mean everyone prefers to work for an altruistic nonprofit or a company engaged in blatant virtue-signaling or political grandstanding. However, finding the right cultural fit is incredibly important for most people in their professional lives.
As a recruiter, I work with job seekers daily. While initial conversations typically revolve around the job itself, we eventually discuss whether the hiring company will be a good personality fit. One of the biggest factors for most people is finding a workplace where they can truly be themselves and show up every day with authenticity.
The best way to hire those people? Be authentic in your hiring as well. I am here to help with that.
Launch Your New Search with Us
If you’d like to launch a new search and find the right candidates for your team, reach out to us today.
Are you looking for top IT talent in the pharmaceutical or biotech industry?
Contact us to discuss how we can bring top-tier IT talent to your organization. The Swan Group are executive leaders with extensive IT recruiting expertise in the biotech and pharmaceutical space. Our goal is to ensure that each professional we place and each client we work with achieves a competitive advantage based upon our services.
Are you a professional looking for a new opportunity?
Contact us to discuss your career options or browse our opportunities. As a small boutique firm, we are in the business of building careers, not just filling positions.
ABOUT THE SWAN GROUP
Our goal is to ensure that each professional we place and each client we work with achieves a competitive advantage based upon our services. Our specialty is high-level INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY placement within the Pharmaceutical, Bio-Pharmaceutical, and Consumer Products industries. Thoughts, comments, or would like to discuss further, please contact us.
