The Attrition Condition in the ARM Industry

Over the last 12 to 18 months, the human resources market in the credit and collection industry has swung from an employer-driven market to a candidate-driven market. There are now more positions available in our industry today than there are qualified, passive (those not actively looking for employment) candidates.

Passive candidates are, in most cases, the candidates most valued by employers, though this is not to say that candidates actively looking for jobs are not desirable. During a talent shortage, however, employers are interested in hiring employees who are currently performing a specific function, especially if that individual is a top performer or working for a direct competitor. In this type of environment, it is more important than ever to bring your opening directly to the candidate, either through print advertising, on-line employment sites (www.JobsInsideARM.com) and, in the case of passive candidates, an industry-specific recruiting firm (www.ExecsAllied.com).

What is the effect of a candidate driven market place on hiring decisions?

We are currently seeing rising attrition rates in top talent in the ARM industry for a wide variety of reasons. Companies do not have the right process in place to identify qualified candidates or candidates that fit a company’s culture. Failures can be found in hiring candidates who have been ill-informed of the expectations of the position and the overall culture of the company. Additionally, with positions staying open longer, companies have been increasingly making rush decisions to hire.

And this presents the most worrisome paradox for hiring managers right now. Employers must be nimble in making a hiring decision today. Competition for talent dictates that there is no time to have a prolonged interview process. Companies who are looking to hire the best available talent are now in competition with other companies looking to fill a particular skill-set. But the rush to hire can often create much larger problems than letting a position go unfilled. Companies must focus on not only pinning down top talent quickly, but doing it in the smartest possible way.

How can a company expedite the hiring process without jeopardizing the quality of the process?

Our industry is a small community. With a pool so small, reputations are readily known, both for an individual as well as a company: its culture and its performance in a specific skill. Top-performing companies have strong sales, operations, analytics or processes. Management should be aware (if they are paying attention) of who’s considered a top performer and what companies have strengths in a particular skill set. Candidates coming from these top-performing companies are gold, and can expedite the learning curve for your company in filling a critical need.

The hiring manager responsible for the new-hire should be the first interview. She will be working most closely with the new-hire, and who better to assess the candidate’s qualifications? This process quickly assesses a candidate’s viability for hire. You can either release them from the process or quickly bring them into an organized and thorough interview process. This should not be the final step in the process, but the first stop on multiple interviews which should include peers and HR professionals skilled in scouring a candidate’s past job changes, failures, and successes.