Hiring during a pandemic: The most crucial steps talent leaders must take, according to an expert who's helped Coca Cola, McKinsey, and the United Nations

Associated Press

Consider what hires are crucial.

• Richard Mosley is a nationally recognized employee brand manager who's worked with major organizations - Coca Cola, McKinsey, the United Nations, and 50 others - on talent identification and hiring.
• There are ways leaders can normalize hiring remotely while operating during the coronavirus pandemic, he says.
• Identify what hires are critical, devise a game plan, revisit gig work strategies, and increase employee engagement.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

A colleague recently observed that in business planning there is "regular time" and "coronavirus time." By that, he meant that what we thought was wise and true even one week ago seems completely outdated today. News is arriving so fast that many feel powerless in making short and medium-term decisions and plans.

Richard Mosley

Richard Mosley.

This type of planning paralysis is understandable, given the uncertainty and spread of COVID-19. In a letter to clients on Sunday, Goldman Sachs revised its expectations for real GDP growth in the US to 0% for the first quarter (down from 0.7%), and it now sees second-quarter growth contracting to -34% from 0%. And Morgan Stanley says a global recession in 2020 is now its "base case" scenario.

With a recession on the horizon, labor markets will take a massive hit - and it's a situation that's difficult to compare to previous downturns due to the way it will decimate some industries (like travel and restaurants) while boosting others (like teleconferencing and online education). Even those industries protected in the first months of this downturn may feel supply chain pressures that drag down profitability by summer.

For those working in employer branding, recruiting, and development, the future seems fraught with unknowns, and they'll need to adapt hiring strategies accordingly. When this crisis does end (and it will end), companies that have invested with an eye toward resilience will be ready to emerge stronger and ready to sprint.

These are the most crucial things talent leaders looking to hire during the coronavirus pandemic should do.

Do you have a personal experience with the coronavirus you'd like to share? Or a tip on how your town or community is handling the pandemic? Please email covidtips@businessinsider.com and tell us your story.

And get the latest coronavirus analysis and research from Business Insider Intelligence on how COVID-19 is impacting businesses.