OK, I know. It's been a long, long time since my last post but I have a legit reason. I've been working hard in a really cool role as the VP of Marketing for a Life Sciences technology company here in Philadelphia. All of the work to create mountains of content, campaigns, and so-on has left me with little to share in terms of this blog.
But today, it's different.
Since the pandemic started, I've watched the growing number of former colleagues and friends lose their jobs as their companies shrank or outright disappeared. Having been in the "transition" phase a few times myself, I know how scary and frustrating it can be and can only imagine how much worse it is this year.
So, this post goes out to anyone who is trying to fill a position or plans on recruiting for talent in 2021. Please understand you are doing far more than "filling a position" or "backfilling someone" or even "building out your team". You are giving a new start to someone. Yes, your new hire could be someone who had a good job and was simply looking for something better. However, consider that you could be doing much more than that.
You could be giving a new beginning to someone who suddenly lost their job due to the pandemic.
You could be restoring hope to someone who was unemployed for a lengthy period and was convinced they'd never work again.
You could be rescuing someone who was pursuing their dream of starting their own business, only to see it fail due to the pandemic.
You could be giving someone a new opportunity to prove themselves after a disappointing recent role or employer.
You could be helping someone transition from a hard-hit industry (retail, hospitality) to a more stable and/or higher growth industry with more potential.
You could be giving someone a stable income and benefits after years of unpredictable freelance or consulting work.
You could be helping someone regain their ability to trust after being betrayed by others.
You could be giving someone new, exciting, "grade-appropriate" challenges after years of "under-employment" which they needed in order to pay the bills and have medical benefits.
You could be rescuing someone from a toxic work environment.
You could be helping someone improve their relationships with their family by improving their self-esteem, pride, confidence, and mental well-being.
In short, being a hiring manager is an incredibly important role. Making a good hire can transform your department and your company while a bad hire could cripple productivity, morale, and teamwork. As you're scanning resumes, conducting phone interviews, and sitting through rounds of Zoom interviews, never lose sight of how your decision impacts each individual. You have tremendous power to shape your company and the lives of others... use it wisely.