What Candidates want in a Post-COVID workplace

As the Coronavirus continues to be prevalent in our everyday life, the values and desires of job seekers are undoubtedly changing.

Despite the halt in availability of jobs during the height of lockdown in 2020, many clients are now actively recruiting to fill new roles. The question now is – do these roles fulfil the needs of job seeking candidates?

Due to the panic and uncertainty associated with volatile employment, aspects such as job stability, flexible working and company culture are important to candidates now more than ever.

Stability

It should come as no surprise that in these unprecedented times, job stability is one of the most important aspects for candidates when searching for roles. Contrary to popular belief, job stability is more than just the capacity for an employee to hold a role long-term. It also refers to employees receiving stable pay, benefits, and reduced stress levels. Importantly, stability in the current climate is vital to maintaining the candidate’s mental well-being so that they are not constantly living under the stress of an uncertain job future and wondering how they will provide for themselves and their family.

Flexible Working

Flexible working is another important facet of the post-COVID working world that candidates look for in roles. Firms had to transform and adapt extremely quickly given such little notice before the national lockdown in March 2020. Ever since, ways of work have not been the same, and probably never will be. Pre-COVID, it was rare for support staff roles to be allowed to work from home, but now that firms are equipped to work remotely and support staff have demonstrated that this can be done, many candidates and employees find themselves searching for roles where working flexibly is still supported by employers. This combination of working from the office and home provides candidates with the best of both worlds. It allows for social interaction, connection, and collaboration with colleagues whilst in the office, but also gives employees a better work-life balance, improved fulfilment in their role and often greater productivity considering the time (and money) saved in commuting.

Company Culture

Finally, many firms failed to engage staff during the early stages of COVID given the initial difficulties and lack of person connections when everyone started working from home. Companies who recognised and rectified this issue early earned the trust of their employees and found themselves with a much more cohesive, engaged, and productive team. A strong company culture is notoriously linked to higher employee retention rates, better overall performance, and easier attraction of top talents. Therefore, it comes as no surprise as to why this is something candidates are searching for in new roles. People want to work for a firm where their employers care about their well-being and their colleagues work cohesively with each other to achieve great results.

So, can firms adapt to these new priorities of candidates in the ever-changing external environment? They are going to need to in order to attract and retain the best employees in the competition for talent in a post-COVID working world.