Tips on how to prepare early for peak
I love a quote – ask my team they’ll tell you.
This one is becoming more and more apparent as we go through the year in preparation for peak trading.
“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail”
was a famous quote by Benjamin Franklin. This has been updated more recently I suspect by the quote
“Proper preparation and planning prevents poor performance”
...which, when I looked this up online it has apparently originated from the British Army – who knew? Yes, I am aware that there are other versions of this that have been generated with a little bit of emphasis added.
The truth is this – we are already over halfway through the year and if you or your business haven’t started thinking and planning peak, the more the above statement is going to become your reality.
Let me give you some facts that might help show you what I mean.
We can all agree that Northamptonshire is the logistics hub of the UK right?
Well, we love a statistic here at ACS and can give you a tonne of them however, the most interesting one we have captured recently is the low level of unemployment in the area continues to be tracking at 2.8% which is 1% lower than the national average.
More interesting that this, there are currently 0.27Forklift drivers for every job that is currently being advertised in the area. Scary I know. There are also 3 vacancies for every candidate so we have most certainly reverted back into it being a very candidate led marketplace.
With the uncertainty around the market and with the industry still experiencing a distinct lack of skill coming through, the need to be more flexible and more importantly, open-minded in your approach to recruitment is becoming even more apparent.
I know I am not telling the majority of you anything you don’t already know however, would it be surprising to hear there are still many companies are still either in denial or just simply think that “it won't affect me”?
I can tell you there are a lot.
Logistics benefited hugely during the COVID years, grasping a variety of candidates from sectors which were unable to trade due to restrictions or had been put on furlough whilst their employers built back up to trading levels where they could afford them back.
We all got a big smack in the face last year though didn’t we?… When the world seemed to venture into a huge staffing shortage crisis, again battling peak as best we could.
We have lots of knowledge now that we can collectively pull on to prepare for Peak 22. Perm recruitment has grown hugely and this has been proven by the aforementioned statistics.
If we haven’t learnt or factored in plans A, B or even C based on last year's learnings, then you can honestly expect to fall short of your expectations. If you haven’t started discussing peak with your recruitment partner, you should be picking up the phone and insisting on opening these discussions.
You shouldn’t or don’t need to panic though – there is still time to get to grips with peak and ultimately plan your staffing needs for Q4. Regardless if it's temporary or permanent, I can offer you some reassurance that people are moving, the recruitment wheel is very much turning and there are solutions available to help you and your business recruit talent.
But…..
You need to move now.
I have been working hard with my teams and clients to plan and strategize delivery for Peak 22.
We have worked tirelessly on our peak planning strategy with clients and now feel confident that our Plan A and B are in place...and accessible.
If you want to explore what options are available and accessible in the market now, you can reach out to me directly.
You can also book a time to suit you in my calendar here
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