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On April 8, China’s government ended Wuhan’s COVID-19 lockdown, marking an important milestone for the coronavirus pandemic – and a sign of hope for a world still struggling under its hold.
While nobody is being complacent about the future, the date marked a potent signal that for now at least, the rebound and revival period for China’s hiring market is under way.
There will surely be bumps along the road. Yet with China gradually recovering from a crisis that first started in late-January, the return to work of businesses and workforces is a ready sign of a job market slowly warming up again.
Michael Page’s China offices started to reopen from mid February and by mid March all were fully open. Since then all staff have been office-based, having responded promptly to adapt to China’s new hiring conditions, thanks to agile team management and working styles. Here is a look at how China’s recruiters focus their efforts during the post-epidemic period.
The COVID-19 crisis had a huge impact on industries and the hiring market. Though businesses are rebounding, some companies remain cautious about their hiring plans in first half year. Recruiters see both positive and negative sentiments within the market, and the way to get through this is to be transparent within the team.
“As a leader, you need to explain the reality of the current market to your teams instead of concealing the truth,” notes Yuki Chen, regional director at Michael Page Shanghai office. “That way, you can build a trusted and inspiring team culture, which is even more important in tough times.”
After returning to the office, Yuki and her Shanghai team set about sharing market and client information, personal performances, successful stories, and useful suggestions during their weekly team meetings every Monday morning. The result was a positive and motivated team, despite the prevailing sentiment.
For recruiters, when the market is bouncing back is a perfect time to build good relations and maintain dynamic conversations with clients. Thus, Michael Page recruiters spend much of their time on business development calls, getting to know clients’ business situations and hiring plans, recommending ideal talent for their needs, and helping ideally set up a talent pipeline for potential hiring in Q2.
“When the market isn’t as strong as before, we need to be even more proactive,” says Lily Liu, director at Michael Page Beijing. “We need to make more of an effort to improve our visibility in the market, add value and be more competitive.”
The COVID-19 crisis may delay the hiring process in some sectors, but it does not delay recruiters’ ‘customer first’ spirit. No matter working from home at the first beginning or returning to work, recruiters at Michael Page China keep providing constructive and valuable suggestions to candidates and clients, to help them get through the difficulties and get well prepared for future.
“what I have been sharing with my candidates is keeping calm in chaos, reflecting yourselves to know what you really pursue, and not being affected by others or the sense of crisis.” Said Jesaline Huang, regional director at Michael Page Shenzhen. “The real driver for changing jobs is your personal situation by analyzing your abilities and career direction, instead of external noises.”
On the contrary, what she suggests her clients is proactively reaching out to talent when market is slowing down, because now it is a perfect time to find high-quality talent. “Be agile and active, companies can grasp this time-window to extend market share.” She noted.
During the past few weeks, recruiters at all Michael Page offices attended a lot of training, to upskill themselves towards being fully prepared for a hiring recovery. Topics included how to communicate with domestic clients; how to bring better service quality to our candidates and clients; and how to look for new business opportunities.
“Issues can be ignored when the market is booming, as everyone is confident, and no one has time to stop to reflect themselves,” said Lily Liu. “This period of time gives us an opportunity to reinforce basic consulting skills and improve our core value.” As she observes, once the market confidence is up, China could bounce back quickly, so it is critical to be fully prepared.
Companies and professionals are keen to know the unvarnished market information and trends even in tough times. But due to the social distancing rules, PageGroup cannot offer in-person events just yet. To share the most relevant market insights, Michael Page China have conducted over 10 online webinar events up to date, sharing discipline insights covering the likes of manufacturing, human resources, supply chain, financial services and legal. The feedback has been strong, and the webinar format is set to become a regular mainstay.
Leaders play a bigger role in guiding the direction and spirit of the team during this unique period of time. After returning to work, Michael Page leaders have been active in taking up the hiring conversation with clients and candidates at the front line, which is a strong encouragement to team members. “Everyone needs to play a part,” notes Yuki Chen. “Especially when you’re a leader, you must do more and do better now.”
Due to the COVID-19 crisis, remote interviews quickly became the new normal for clients and candidates. However, it was not always easy for everyone to accept this. Recruiters quickly became responsible for education and influencing change. “Some clients welcomed remote interviews in the first several rounds of interviews, but they still wanted to see the candidate face-to-face for final interview,” noted Lily. “It may need more time for remote interviews to be fully accepted by society. We have to explain its benefits for clients in these unique times. That’s our responsibility as consultants.”
When coming across tough times, it’s normal that people will get anxious. Yet it’s better where possible to remain calm, by continuing what you’ve being doing, and trying to be less affected by outside noise.
“I take this as an opportunity to get together with my family, or to read the books that I’ve been keen to read,” notes Jesaline. “If you focus on bad news, you’ll be affected by it. But focus on yourself and the beautiful moments around you that you’re grateful for, and you’ll regain that positive energy. It’s about finding that different angle.” During the downturn, Lily started running again after a long hiatus, while Yuki practiced her training skills: “Try to worry less – make the attempt to get back to nature. And essentially, you can start over again.”
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