Despite near record unemployment during the Covid-19 recession, plenty of employers will face major challenges in hiring low-skill, entry-level workers when economic conditions improve. This is, in part, because the overall U.S. workforce will grow only 0.4% in the next several decades. A big part of the problem of finding low-skill workers is the barriers employers create when they focus on screening people out. Typical staffing processes are costly, time-consuming, and repeated endlessly. Businesses spend about $4,100 per employee processing resumes, then conducting interviews, background checks, and drug tests.
Imagine a Hiring Process Without Resumes
Business leaders are being pressed to increase inclusion and diversity in their companies. But typical hiring practices that require resumes, background checks, drug tests, and degrees often exclude many low-skill, entry-level individuals, including the formerly incarcerated, the homeless, and those in recovery. For industries that rely heavily on front-line employees — manufacturing, distribution, retail, and food services, where candidates can be trained on the job — open hiring can offer the opportunity for more diverse talent that would otherwise be ignored.
Open hiring focuses solely on human potential and provides employment to anyone willing and able to work. Using this approach can reduce hiring costs for your company significantly. There are four keys essential for open hiring to succeed. First, tie open hiring to your company’s mission. Second, pursue internal buy-in. Third, reinforce accountability for those who are hired. And last, create an ecosystem that supports the whole employee.