Retail recruitment: how to hire quickly, but efficiently
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A large intake of temporary workers to cover a seasonal spike in retail is usually a huge undertaking for HR and hiring managers.
The processing of applications, interviews and the completion of hiring procedures has to be done in a short timeframe. While this is necessary to cover seasonal demand, the speed in which it takes place can open the business up to vulnerabilities. These can include bad hiring decisions, reduced training time, and compliance issues.
Businesses somehow, then, need to build a strategy that brings in good temporary hires, while mitigating the negative risks. So how can HR do this?
Every seasonal hiring period brings an urgency and high demand for temporary workers. And in order to stay ahead, retail businesses need to make the right decisions under these high-pressure circumstances.
Executing this involves careful planning and strategy - and the good news is that Veremark’s background screening software can help you navigate it effectively. Here’s our tips on surviving your next peak hiring season.
1. Start Early with Forecasting
Anticipate demand: Analyse previous seasons’ hiring data to estimate how many workers you'll need. This includes understanding peak periods, locations, and roles that require reinforcement.
Budget accordingly: Set a clear hiring budget that considers recruitment, onboarding, and potential overtime for seasonal workers.
2. Define Job Roles and Expectations Clearly
Create specific job descriptions: Seasonal roles often have unique demands (e.g., flexible hours, fast-paced environments), so be explicit about job responsibilities, working conditions, and expectations.
Highlight perks: If possible, promote attractive features of the role, such as flexible shifts, employee discounts, or potential pathways to full-time positions.
3. Leverage Technology and Automation
Applicant tracking systems (ATS): Use an ATS to streamline application tracking, interviews, and offers. Veremark’s employee checks integrate with most HR systems for easier screening.
Use online job boards and social media: Expand your outreach by advertising through various online platforms like Indeed, LinkedIn, and social media networks.
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4. Tap Into Existing Networks
Internal referrals: Encourage current employees to refer friends or family for seasonal positions. Often, referrals lead to higher-quality hires, as they already have some understanding of the company culture.
Rehire former seasonal employees: If you had good experiences with previous seasonal workers, consider offering them positions again. This reduces onboarding and training time since they’re already familiar with the company.
5. Streamline the Hiring Process
Set clear timelines: Shorten the recruitment cycle by having a defined hiring timeline, from application submission to job offer.
Screen effectively: in a tight timeframe, you need a screening process that works fast but efficiently. Checks like Instant Employment Reports can verify a candidate’s work history in moments.
6. Focus on Soft Skills
Adaptability: Seasonal employees need to adjust quickly to new roles, environments, and potentially fluctuating schedules. Prioritise candidates who show flexibility and a positive attitude.
Customer service: If hiring for customer-facing roles, emphasise soft skills like communication, patience, and problem-solving, as these will directly affect customer satisfaction during peak times.
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7. Provide Efficient Onboarding and Training
Simplify onboarding: Have a streamlined, standardised onboarding process that includes only essential training and paperwork. Veremark’s processes also ensure compliance with labour laws all over the world.
Offer targeted training: Focus training on key tasks the seasonal workers will perform. Provide them with the resources and support they need to get up to speed quickly.
9. Monitor and Optimise in Real-Time
Assess performance regularly: Check in on seasonal workers' performance and productivity. This will help identify who may need extra support or training and keep overall efficiency high.
Adjust hiring strategy as needed: If the initial wave of recruits doesn’t meet demand, pivot quickly—either by hiring more or reallocating resources within the team.
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10. Maintain Employer Branding
Treat seasonal workers as part of the team: Ensure they feel valued by involving them in team activities, communicating openly, and offering recognition for their work.
Consider future hiring needs: Positive experiences can lead to future recommendations or returning workers, so nurturing your relationship with seasonal hires can strengthen your long-term talent pipeline.
Veremark is committed to helping businesses recruit as smoothly as possible, and provide more informed hiring decisions. By following these strategies, you'll help your business run smoothly during peak seasons. If you need advice with employment screening through your next peak hiring period, get in touch here.
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FAQs
FAQs
This depends on the industry and type of role you are recruiting for. To determine whether you need reference checks, identity checks, bankruptcy checks, civil background checks, credit checks for employment or any of the other background checks we offer, chat to our team of dedicated account managers.
Many industries have compliance-related employment check requirements. And even if your industry doesn’t, remember that your staff have access to assets and data that must be protected. When you employ a new staff member you need to be certain that they have the best interests of your business at heart. Carrying out comprehensive background checking helps mitigate risk and ensures a safer hiring decision.
Again, this depends on the type of checks you need. Simple identity checks can be carried out in as little as a few hours but a worldwide criminal background check for instance might take several weeks. A simple pre-employment check package takes around a week. Our account managers are specialists and can provide detailed information into which checks you need and how long they will take.
All Veremark checks are carried out online and digitally. This eliminates the need to collect, store and manage paper documents and information making the process faster, more efficient and ensures complete safety of candidate data and documents.
In a competitive marketplace, making the right hiring decisions is key to the success of your company. Employment background checks enables you to understand more about your candidates before making crucial decisions which can have either beneficial or catastrophic effects on your business.
Background checks not only provide useful insights into a candidate’s work history, skills and education, but they can also offer richer detail into someone’s personality and character traits. This gives you a huge advantage when considering who to hire. Background checking also ensures that candidates are legally allowed to carry out certain roles, failed criminal and credit checks could prevent them from working with vulnerable people or in a financial function.
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