Waiting to Find a New Executive Next Year? You May Want to Start Sooner

January is when companies try to make new hiring decisions—and with good reason, too. Budgets are reset. Everyone is well rested. The distractions of the holidays are behind you.  

However, there’s a good case to be made for hiring just a few months earlier, as well. When companies initiate an executive search in Q4 rather than Q1, it can yield several key benefits.   

From efficiency to functionality and more, here are some of the reasons to consider jumpstarting your executive search before the New Year.  

1. Q4 Hiring Provides Better Lead Time

Companies chronically suffer from poor hiring schedules. Gaps in employment often take place before anyone lifts a finger to address them.  

This can create problems at any time, but with executive search engagements, it can be particularly harmful. The vetting process for hiring executives can take significantly longer than an average employee hire. Pursuing passive talent (which is a common activity after the Great Resignation) is also a time-consuming activity since candidates aren’t in a rush to leave their current employers.  

By moving your hiring activities into Q4, you get a head start on a lengthy process. You can take the time needed as you conduct staffing forecasts, gauge upcoming skill gaps, create job descriptions, and find a quality recruiter to help you.   

2. Q4 Hiring Is More Efficient

Q4 can be a slow time. Productivity lags. Attention shifts. Distractions abound.   

To be sure, these are also factors that can make recruiting more challenging during this time. But, if you’re able to put the effort into sourcing and recruiting quality talent in the final months of the year, it can turn an otherwise inefficient time into a more effective one. On top of that, you’ll have access to more candidates, since you’re shopping for talent when hiring cycles and competition are less intense.  

Don’t overlook the financial efficiency of Q4 hiring, either. If you have any money remaining in your budget, you can use it to cover some of the costs that come with hiring. By having the breathing room to plan ahead and work with an industry recruiter, you can increase your speed-to-hire rate, which can work wonders for your staffing expenses.  

3. Q4 Hiring Sets the Stage

One of the recruit-focused aspects of Q4 hiring is that it gives employees the chance to acclimate to their new surroundings before a new year starts. By hiring prior to the Christmas holidays, you create a window of time when you can bring a new member of your leadership team onto your staff without unnecessary pressure.  

You can fill out paperwork and conduct onboarding at your own pace. Any additional training can be set in motion, as well. This allows new hires to become well acquainted with their workspaces, teams, and responsibilities before your company starts working on next year’s goals.  

4. Q4 Hiring Unites Your Leadership Team

Many argue that hiring a new executive in Q1 is wise because it provides your organization with a fresh start. Resetting can be a great way to boost productivity and refocus on priorities.   

However, it’s worth pointing out once more that it takes time to find a quality candidate. That means you and your hiring partner may end up spending a significant portion of the beginning of the year finding, hiring, and onboarding a new member of your C-suite.   

If you opt to jumpstart your executive search in Q4, you can help ensure that your leadership team for next year is in place before the new year starts. Everyone will know their roles and responsibilities, and individuals will get a chance to develop a rapport with one another before things pick back up in the first week of January.  

Initiating a Q4 Executive Search With Stanton Chase 

There are reasons to hire in every quarter of the year. However, Q4 is often perceived as a slow season when your staff’s attention is elsewhere, and hiring should be put on pause. Nothing could be further from the truth.  

“Q4 is often perceived as a slow season when your staff’s attention is elsewhere and hiring should be put on pause. Nothing could be further from the truth.”  

By proactively starting your executive search in the final quarter of the year, you put yourself in the driver’s seat. You can conduct potential candidate research, gauge needs, and avoid unnecessary pressure as you go about the hiring process.  

Remember to work with a reputable, industry-specific recruiter, too. Our team at Stanton Chase’s Los Angeles office already has the recruitment tools in place to execute a successful executive hiring strategy at any time of the year. With multiple practice group expertise, we are well positioned to bring our clients the talent they deserve.  

If you would like to get the jump on your competitors and hire a new member of your leadership team at the end of the year, contact us now. We’d love to put our expertise to work to help you set the stage so that your leadership team can hit the ground running as soon as we all return from the holiday festivities.