Life Sciences

He Who Hesitates is Lost

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The talk of mergers and acquisitions like GSK’s recent takeover of Human Genome Sciences (HGS) still fills the September air, and the robust hiring in July may have cooled according to the latest unemployment report. But those life science companies that are looking for folks continue to struggle to find the talent that they need. As this article states, it may be as much a product of client behavior as the market itself.

We continue to find that given feelings of marketplace uncertainty, hiring authorities have become more cautious and deliberative in their decision making processes. As hiring processes drag on, the talent that clients truly want, those that aren’t actively looking, become disinterested over time and are more apt to turn down offers if too much time elapses from the initial interview until the offer. Furthermore, lengthy processes can often result in other employers swooping in with other opportunities or counteroffers from their current employer. In any case, with the passage of time, no benefit to the client from a hiring perspective can come of it. 

So, let us work with you to streamline your hiring processes so that they can be thorough yet expeditious, and allow you to capture those impact players before your competition does.

Shawn Barley

President, Life Science Division

The Richmond Group USA

Managed Care

End of Year Planning

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Welcome to the end of the third quarter!! Fall is upon us, and budget season is here. Our eyes and minds are focused on finishing the year strong, but we are also thinking ahead to what 2013 is going to look like. It is extremely important to have the right players on your team, so here are some tips to finish strong and build for the future.

  1. Don’t lose your headcount! Organizations tend to either stop hiring or cut positions in the 4th quarter, especially if they have been open for an elongated period of time. If these positions are crucial to your success for 2013, you need to move with speed before you lose them.
  2. 2.        First quarter hires. Think about when you need your first quarter hires to make an impact. If you are looking for them to make an contribution early in the year, you need them aboard in early January at the latest. It generally takes between 60-90 days to identify, interview, offer, hire, and start a candidate. If you want them to start in early January, you should start your hiring process no later than October 1.
  3. 3.        Under-Performers. Everyone has them, how are they impacting you? It is a very hard decision to make, but you need to think, what would our results have been if ……..? This is a great time to upgrade or top grade your team. End of year results are in and you can easily justify a change if employees have not met their numbers. Again, what if everyone was as good as your top 2 or 3 performers.

Have a great finish to the third quarter, and good luck for the rest of the year!

Jeff Meyer

President Maanged Care

The Richmond Group USA

Chemical

First Friday Preview

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This morning the big red bulletin on NBC News online reads “Jobs Growth slows to a snail’s pace in August”.  It also states that more Americans are giving up looking for work.  Certainly the upcoming election is impacting employer’s decisions to hire and there are many positions still vacant from earlier this year.  The range of positions that companies have marked to fill are related to either incremental revenue or maximizing capital slated for projects and expansions.  Actually making the decision to hire seems to be the challenge.  Nearly every position we see requires advanced technical training and certification.  Sometimes a position requires such a unique combination of skills and certifications that it is nearly impossible to find a candidate, much less a selection of candidates to compare.  The specificity of these roles can eliminate or hinder hard working technical professionals from applying. There are many candidates who can do the job and be willing and enthusiastic about on the job training.  Managers require workforce to increase and improve production, grow revenue and market share.  Yet managers also need to minimize overhead and production costs.  It’s obvious that we need revised legislation to lower regulatory costs which can free up capital for employee on site training and administrative costs.  On the positive side, flexibility in candidate criteria and the selection process is one thing that we can adjust in the hiring process that will lead to success in hiring. 

Zach Price

Director, Chemical Technologies Division

The Richmond Group USA

Uncategorized

Canadian jobs market improved in August

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The Canadian employment picture improved during the month of August, after struggling a month prior.

Data from Statistics Canada showed that employers added 34,300 jobs last month after July saw losses of 30,400. The figures also revealed that there were 46,700 new part-time jobs added to payrolls as well. The unemployment rate remained at 7.3 percent because more people began looking for work. 

"Taken in the context of hiring in the last few months, today’s employment data are consistent with the trend of economic growth of roughly 2 percent or so," said Emanuella Enenajor, an economist at CIBC World Markets. "Although Canada’s hiring data were a positive, the lack of momentum in construction activity adds caution to the overall pace of the domestic economy."

While the private sector has been making progress, the Canadian government has been stepping up efforts to improve the job market for young people. In July, Canadian lawmakers said they would be putting more money into a youth job training program.

Contract Staffing, Uncategorized

More people making job changes

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At PeopleSolutions, we are continuing to see more people making job changes as confidence grows with new opportunities. Many companies are using this change as an opportunity to evaluate positions, and look at the talent needs within their organizations. When faced with this situation some questions to consider: What talent is needed for the role? Who is available? What will it cost? How quickly can I interview and hire? 

We can help you answer these questions, and present the talent to you. We are fortunate to work with clients everyday in evaluating the needs of their organizaton. The right decisions can be critical to success! Please let me know how we can be of service.

 Sincerely,

Tom Bailey

 804/288-6035

Tom@peoplesolutions.cc

Accounting

Technical Skills Gap

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Most commonly heard feedback from our conversations with hiring authorities “we are not hiring” or “there are plenty of people who are unemployed when the need arises”.

Hmmmm…   So, why are companies having such a hard time filling pivotal roles in their organizations?

Experts are calling it the “technical skills gap” of this decade.  Companies are feeling the shortage of skilled professionals as these organizations seek the sophisticated personnel required for improving and implementing efficient systems.  Specific skill sets for these high demand niches are increasing in demand and decreasing in supply.

“When a company can’t hire enough qualified workers, it may risk a loss of production, or it may have to resort to a mix of expensive strategies like paying more overtime, hiring people at higher wages, or calling in consultants” McCann 2011

We are embarking on a more candidate driven market than most of us have ever seen.  When the demand increases and the supply decreases, as all wise accountants know, there becomes a challenge.  The result…business and employees will be negatively impacted.  More turnovers from the overworked, more money spent for the additional time invested to get the job done. 

Solution – act now!  Plan for human capital needs within your organization before the candidate “feeding frenzy” begins.  Remember strong candidates will be in the driver seat more than ever to determine their next opportunity.  Please let us know how we can partner with you to attract the top talent and help your organization stay on top.

Krissy Whitaker

Director of Accounting & Finance Division