Gain an edge by hiring in the holiday season - Five reasons to hire in December

Matthieu Imbert-Bouchard, Managing Director of Robert Half Singapore

Matthieu Imbert-Bouchard, Managing Director of Robert Half Singapore

It might not be an obvious first choice, but December is a smart time to hire.

The final month of the year offers valuable opportunities to recruit high-quality professionals, and hit the New Year running. Even as Singapore leads the Asia-Pacific nations in talent competitiveness according to the IMD World Talent Ranking 2018, businesses are increasingly recognising the importance of staying ahead of regional competition by attracting a top-tier pool of highly-skilled professionals.

Here are five compelling reasons why hiring in December can give businesses a competitive edge in 2019.

1Stay ahead of the competition

Many companies are looking forward to taking a break, and as a result, recruitment will be well down their list of priorities. But as we’ve pointed out, there will still be a steady supply of people who are on the job-hunting trail.This means that if you make the effort to fill vacancies in December, you’re more likely to get the cream of the crop before your competitors do.

The other major advantage is that you’ll be heading into the new year with the headcount you need to get the business off to a running start.

2 Increased visibility of job postings

Many companies slow down their hiring activities during December, resulting in fewer job postings. By advertisingvacancies during this time, they will be much more visible to candidates.

3 Scheduling interviewscould be easier

December is traditionally packed with networking events, and this can make it easier for candidates to attend interviews without raising the suspicion of their current employer and dealing with the restrictions of work.Through your company’s own end-of-year celebrations, you can introduce new employees to your team culture and integrate them within the team.

4 Take advantage of the social media peak

And with workloads becoming lighter, many people will be spending more of their day posting on sites such as LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. This creates a great opportunity to leverage these social platforms to promote your company and its current hiring requirements. Furthermore, the ability of sites such as LinkedIn and Facebook to deliver targeted content to users who are most likely to be receptive to it, will assist you in searching and sorting for the best candidates.

5 Tap into New Year’s resolutions

The flip of the calendar is a prime time for professionals to re-evaluate their career plans, and makeNew Year’s resolutions focused on change. This can be a good window for businesses to market this to candidates in December - having a new role lined up for 2019 means one less item to clear from theirto-do list.

December sees many people not just thinking about the holidays, but also reflecting on the future trajectory of their career. If you have time or budget to spare, it’s a great time to reach out to high-quality candidates who are thinking of pursuing new job opportunities.