​‘Tis the season to be busy! The festive period is always a pinch point for recruitment especially in the retail industry, now also accounting for Black Friday (26th November) and pushing through until the New Year’s sales.

Add into the mix that we are currently operating in an environment where the REC report that there are 1.66 million vacancies to be filled across the UK, and not enough people to fill them, it becomes clear that planning your recruitment strategy in advance is paramount to an effective festive workforce.

So where do you start? Here are some questions to ask yourself to map out your festive recruitment requirements:

• What is your business plan forecast for sales or throughput from now until the New Year?

• How do those forecasts impact your workforce requirements?

• What steps have you taken to ensure you get the best possible workforce, the reliable and efficient, when you need them?

• Have you accounted for unexpected extra need? (e.g if someone were to need to isolate or became ill)

• How does your local labour market match up to your needs?

Do you feel prepared for the festive season? Act now to avoid stress later, get in touch to find out more about how Thrive can help to plan, recruit, and manage your workforce needs.