This holiday season is a welcome distraction to our personal financial woes. Thanksgiving is just around the corner with Christmas nipping at its heels. As the news stations warn about expected flight delays and record breaking traffic, the prospect of spending time with friends and family trumps the certain headaches of getting to our destinations. Who cares about the Dow Jones Industrial Average when Santa is coming down the chimney? Across the country, companies are seeing a dip in job inquiries. Could it be that HR departments and Hiring Managers are experiencing the same holiday anticipation as the general population? A lack of focus is systemic around the workplace this time of year, but the hiring departments are only partially to blame. When it comes to the holidays, job hunters have a tendency to slide into home plate; and who can blame them.

Examining the search trends for major keywords like "jobs" shows a clear yearly drop off in volume. This year's decline is actually part of a consistent yearly trend of decreasing search traffic for job related terms during the holiday season. As job searches taper off, searches related to toys reveal a major spike in traffic. Of course we all expect the demand for toys to build into the Holiday season, but with so many folks out of work the decline in job searches is revealing of the average person's psychology. When it comes down to it, after being beat up during the last year, maybe we just need a break in the action. Maybe seeing Grandma is just more important than hitting the jobs boards one last time.

Companies need to prepare themselves for the dip in interest. Despite the fact that there are more job hunters than jobs lately, the best prospects are still subject to the whims of the holiday season. Even the hotshot, rock star employees of this world are subject to the "after the holidays" mentality. How can companies hang on to those prospects that have real potential? In any situation subject to distraction, organization is the key to success. This axiom holds true for the layout of fighter jet cockpits as well as it applies to your HR department. Stay on the ball, force your key players to follow up and hold people accountable. New applicant tracking software provides a simple solution to clearly track the recruiting process and highlight any bottlenecks. Not that Sandy the hiring manager doesn't deserve a piece of holiday cheer, but if she takes 4 days to follow up with your potential new VP of Marketing, then someone in HR should know. These new programs can provide in depth statistics and help simplify communication within the company and between the company and the candidates.

Some people will make the decision to wait until after the holidays. For those people there is nothing an HR department can really do. Every once in a while people deserve a truly stress free break in the action. For the rock stars on the fence, an aggressive recruiting program can make the difference between a White Christmas and a White Christmas with a job offer. Given the current economy, a new job might be the best gift you can offer.



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