The holidays are here, and it seems like they’ve come earlier than ever! Now is the time to ramp up your business and prepare for the next few months of undoubtedly being busier than ever. When preparing for the holiday rush, you may extend your hours, expand your offerings, and grow your customer base. All of these things take manpower that you probably don’t usually need. Now is a great time to evaluate your staffing needs and expand the number of employees you have for the holiday season. Here is a quick guide to holiday hiring to make sure your business runs smoothly this holiday season.
Look For Referrals
Your employees know your organization well and can easily help you find quality employees for the holiday rush. Reach out to your staff and ask for recommendations for friends and family that may need a job or extra income this time of year. They will be happy to help you and a friend!
Target Demographics
There is a unique demographic of employees that are looking specifically for holiday only work, and these are the employees you need to find. People that look for holiday work may already have a job and are looking for a second to supplement holiday expenses. Some may be students in town for the holidays, or they may even be moms and dads that typically do not work. The important quality that your prospective employee should have is that they are only looking for work during this time of year. Some seasonal employees take jobs in hopes that they may be hired on full time after the holidays. While this sometimes is the case, that’s not always feasible, so having employees that understand that is important.
Use An Agency
Sometimes using an outside source, like a temporary staffing agency, is a great and easy way to get temporary employees to help you for the season. While using temps can be a little costlier, they’re typically flexible and eager to work which is a great plus for your business.
Streamline selection
During the holiday season there are plenty of people looking for extra money and therefore work. You may be inundated with applications for people looking to join your team. If this is the case, make it easy to weed out applicants that aren’t qualified for the job. Once you set your parameters and remove those that aren’t a fit, then you will have your selection of applicants to choose from.
Well Defined Job Descriptions
A great way to weed out applicants that do not fit your needs is to make sure your job description is well defined and goes into precise detail of what kind of employee you are looking to hire. You should clearly mention that this is a seasonal hire, and give details about the role and responsibilities of the job you are looking to fill. Providing this information up front will hopefully bring qualified and ambitious applicants your way.
Bring Back Last Year’s Help
Staying in touch with last year’s seasonal help is the easiest and best way to bring on employees for the holiday season. Choosing a previous employee will save you time and money on training. They may need some refreshing, but they have already been trained and know what you expect from your employees. You also already know a lot about them and their work ethic, so you know who is worth bringing back to help you this year.
Hiring extra help for the holidays comes with a price tag, so if you are in need of additional funding, Quikstone Capital can help.
