Plan ahead for a hiring surge in early 2025!

As we close out 2024, the job market remains tight, especially in the tech sector. Over the past year, numerous layoffs have flooded the market with a wide pool of available candidates. However, even though businesses have been cautious about expanding their teams significantly in 2024 we've seen a lot of these laid-off candidates secure new roles especially over the last 8 weeks with many of the hires made this year being strategic backfills, specialized positions to realign companies long-term goals or less experienced candidates to reduce operational costs.

This cautious approach has resulted in slower hiring processes and, in some cases, longer gaps between the decision to hire and actual job offers. While 2024 had hiring challenges, the winds of change are already shifting, and there are strong indicators and feedback from our clients at Halcyon Knights that many will be hiring in 2025. For hiring managers, this means it’s critical to start planning now to avoid delays and keep up with a more competitive job market.

Why the Hiring Surge is Coming

As we look ahead to the first quarter of 2025, the broader economic landscape suggests that businesses will begin to shift from a cost-cutting, consolidation mindset to a growth-oriented one. The need for innovation, operational efficiency, and skilled talent will drive organizations to accelerate their hiring plans. After a year of slower expansion and cost-saving measures, many companies will want to invest in their workforce to fuel growth and recover from any missed opportunities during the downturn.

This surge in 2025 is coming:

• High demand for GTM talent: Growth took a backseat in 2024 as businesses delayed tech projects, prioritised spending and kicked the can down the road. Budgets are being approved and spending will come back up and vendors are planning to rehire back into their sales teams
• Increased resources talent: An increase in tech and software deals closing in 2025 will lead to demand for other resources needing to be hired to support vendors (talent, marketing, etc) and to support projects (prof services, project management, technical specialists)
• Ramping up strategic roles: Companies will seek to build and grow teams to meet new strategic objectives, including long-term planning and digital transformation projects which will see more senior roles come back.
• Filling gaps from the previous year: Many backfilled or junior roles in 2024 may be revisited in 2025 to hire at a more senior level, further increasing competition for talent.

With this anticipated demand on the horizon, it’s crucial for hiring managers to be proactive in their approach. Delays in hiring can lead to missed opportunities and ultimately affect the company's bottom line. So, how can hiring managers prepare?

How Hiring Managers Can Get Ahead of the Hiring Surge

1. Start Pipelining Candidates Now One of the best ways to prepare for a hiring surge is to begin building a talent pipeline well ahead of time. Reach out to potential candidates now to gauge their interest, understand their career goals, and establish connections. Keep in touch with top talent, so you are ready to move quickly when the hiring surge hits.
2. Block Interview Times in Stakeholders' Calendars As hiring activity ramps up in early 2025, interview schedules will quickly fill up. To avoid delays caused by scheduling bottlenecks, ensure that key stakeholders—such as department heads and team leaders—reserve time in their calendars for interviews well in advance. By setting aside time now, you’ll be able to prioritize interviews without scrambling for availability during peak hiring periods.
3. Get Job Descriptions and Recruitment Budgets Ready In preparation for the expected surge in hiring, ensure that job descriptions are up to date and reflect the skills, experience, and qualifications your company will need in 2025. Additionally, ensure your recruiting budget is ready to support a more aggressive hiring strategy. This might involve allocating funds for higher salaries or broader recruiting efforts as the demand for talent rises.
4. Leverage External Agencies for Support As hiring intensifies, it’s likely that internal recruitment teams will feel the pressure. External recruitment agencies can be a valuable asset during these times, as they bring several benefits to the table.

Planning ahead means you'll fill your seats quicker!

The hiring landscape is about to shift dramatically from a market saturated with candidates and little competition for talent to one where a lot of vendors emmerge all around the same time chasing the same talent. Those who are unprepared will find themselves scrambling to fill key positions while competing against other organizations for top talent. By acting now to build candidate pipelines, block out interview times, prepare job descriptions, and utilize external recruitment agencies, hiring managers can stay ahead of the curve and ensure they are ready to move swiftly when the surge arrives in early 2025.

Remember - there is a huge cost in keeping seats empty - if you want to hit your goals, grow revenues and win market share in 2025 -plan to fill your seats quickly!

Peter Murphy - Senior Recruiter at Halcyon Knights