In recent years, the human resources industry has witnessed a series of “quiet” trends, ranging from employees quietly quitting, known as “Quiet Quitting,” to the emergence of “Quiet Firing.” According to the international research advisory firm Gartner, a new “quiet” trend is predicted to emerge in the workplace in 2023—Quiet Hiring.
In fact, the Quiet Hiring model has long been in existence. As reported by “Business Insider,” Southwest Airlines in the United States adopted Quiet Hiring to ensure smooth take-offs and landings of flights. Headquarters employees were recruited to temporarily set aside their regular duties, undergo relevant training, and work in an 8-hour rotating shift system. This initiative aimed to assist in scheduling crew members, ensuring each aircraft had pilots and flight attendants.
Emily Rose McRea, Senior Research Director at Gartner, expressed that such arrangements by companies are driven by considerations of normal business operations. This approach is deemed the fastest and most effective solution to address labor shortages given the circumstances at that time.
In fact, this shift system is highly beneficial for enhancing internal flexibility within the company and fostering the personal development of employees. “We must deploy our employees based on the priority of tasks,” she said.
Starting from the specific implementation, what exactly is Quiet Hiring?
What is Quiet Hiring?
Enterprise recruitment usually occurs for three main reasons: department expansion, new position creation, and urgent task handling. Quiet hiring often falls into the third category.
Quiet hiring is not part of traditional corporate recruitment; it typically arises from the urgent personnel needs related to specific tasks. Companies internally deploy temporary workforce adjustments, requiring employees to take on responsibilities beyond their usual duties.
It can also represent short-term collaborations between companies and independent contractors, with the former being more common in quiet hiring scenarios. According to Gartner, quiet hiring is a human resources strategy aimed at promoting internal talent mobility, allowing companies to acquire new skills and capabilities without adding new full-time employees.
In other words, quiet hiring is a human resources management solution where, faced with a talent gap, companies refrain from hiring new full-time employees. Instead, they choose to address the labor shortage by reallocating existing employees within the company.
In this mode, employees may be reassigned to different positions or take on different responsibilities within their department. So, why does quiet hiring emerge?
McRea states that the emergence of quiet hiring is mainly based on three reasons:
- Economic Downturn Currently, the global situation is unstable, and economic development faces significant uncertainty. In such circumstances, more companies opt to slow down their hiring processes, maintaining employee numbers at the minimum level. Therefore, companies often choose quiet hiring to alleviate internal labor shortage pressures and reduce hiring and human resource management costs.
- Talent Shortage The current labor market does not entirely meet the talent needs of companies. Employers may need several months to find suitable candidates for positions, making the process less cost-effective. To meet immediate labor demands, more companies choose to train existing employees familiar with the company’s operations or collaborate with independent contractors.
- Urgent Work In some cases, companies need employees to complete urgent tasks within a limited time. Mobilizing existing employees who have a basic understanding of the company’s operations is more efficient than hiring new personnel and providing training. According to a BBC report, Colin Hughes, the Chief Operating Officer of Qantas Airways, addressed a labor shortage by asking executives to work as luggage handlers for three months due to the increased leave and labor market challenges caused by the flu and the COVID-19 pandemic.
McRea emphasizes that this is the correct method to maintain normal business operations and an excellent opportunity for upper management to observe and experience frontline operations firsthand.
What are the Benefits of Quiet Hiring?
From a content perspective, the arrangement of quiet hiring may not seem beneficial to employees. However, in the practical implementation, employees not only gain new job skills and enhance their overall capabilities through vocational training but also increase the inclusivity between different departments in the company. Employees will have more internal opportunities.
A recent survey by job platform Monster shows that 63% of employees do not oppose quiet hiring and consider it a good opportunity to expand their professional skills.
For employers, the benefits of quiet hiring are more apparent:
Cost Reduction in Human Resources:
Quiet hiring is an effective and cost-efficient way for companies to fill skill gaps. Companies do not need to hire additional full-time employees or go through lengthy recruitment processes. Instead, they can organize and leverage internal talent through a series of training to meet immediate business activity needs.
Enhanced Flexibility:
By providing relevant skills training, companies can discover employees’ diverse abilities, filling skill gaps within the organization. As employees’ skills become more refined, companies can flexibly arrange the work of relevant employees based on business needs and priorities, achieving rapid deployment of human resources.
Increased Employee Motivation:
Through quiet hiring, employees gain a more comprehensive understanding of the internal operations of the company. Employees will also prove their work and learning capabilities, gaining opportunities for promotion and salary increases. This leads to a significant improvement in work motivation and efficiency. For example, Google has used quiet hiring to identify employees who have surpassed their job requirements, and many employees have been promoted through this opportunity.
How Should Companies Approach Quiet Hiring?
Effective Pre-Communication
When companies engage in quiet hiring, employees might start questioning the significance of their original positions, potentially affecting their self-identification with work and, in severe cases, increasing the likelihood of employee turnover. Therefore, employers must communicate extensively with employees undergoing position changes beforehand, clearly explaining the reasons for such changes and the significance of this reassignment for the company’s business development.
Fair Compensation and Benefits
In the context of quiet hiring, employees often find themselves shouldering additional responsibilities or transitioning to new roles. In response, companies should offer corresponding salary increases or enhanced benefits. Failing to do so may lead to discontent among employees, given the increased workload and stagnant compensation, negatively impacting overall team satisfaction.
