Employee recruitment during the pandemic: MicroStrategy Poland

The COVID-19 outbreak has had an unprecedented impact on businesses around the globe. How do companies recruit new employees during the crisis? How do Polish recruiters communicate with candidates from abroad? We are talking with Karolina Grzelachowska, Talent Acquisition Director at MicroStrategy Poland.

Has the current situation affected your recruitment processes in any way?

We continue the processes that were already underway. In order to protect the safety of our candidates and managers all job interviews are conducted using available technologies (Skype, Webex). These solutions are not new to us because we use them in normal circumstances too, so everything is running smoothly. We are aware that a face-to-face meeting is important to our candidates, so we want to provide them with that opportunity as soon as the situation allows it.

Do you employ a lot of foreigners? Are you looking to hire more foreign professionals in the coming months?

MicroStrategy is an international organization, all the teams in our Warsaw office employ foreigners. At the moment, closed borders pose the biggest obstacle for us because we are unable to set a start date for new employees and we might have to extend the process of recruiting our candidates from abroad. No one can be certain how long this situation will last and what effect it will have on the job market. It is predicted that economies around the world will experience a temporary slowdown, which will certainly affect the number of recruiting processes. However, our long-term plans are to increase employment in our office in Warsaw.

How do you recruit candidates from abroad during the pandemic? Is it a huge organizational challenge?

As I have said, shutting the borders surely does not help us with international relocations. That is why a greater flexibility is required from us and our candidates. If I were to find one positive side of this unusual situation, it would be the availability of candidates, who can schedule an interview more easily if they do not need to leave their homes. Due to current government regulations and market conditions, a lot of candidates are searching for a job or working from home, where they feel more at ease, so we are able to do more interviews in less time. Our tools or the way we conduct job interviews have changed - the recruitment stages that would normally take place at our office have moved online - but generally, the current situation has not affected our effectiveness or the recruitment schedule in any negative way.

What job positions are you recruiting for at the moment? Did you have to alter your recruitment plans?

At the moment we are focusing on the roles that are crucial for running the business and for successfully supporting our Clients in their business activities. Therefore we are mainly looking for technical support professionals with foreign language skills.

Has your company - like many others in Poland - joined the "stay at home" campaign and allowed the employees to work remotely?

Of course – our employees are not only offered the choice but even encouraged to work from home. The safety of our employees is a top priority for our company and the available technical solutions allow us to work effectively, no matter where we are. The office remains open of course, so if anyone prefers to work there, it is possible. Our employees have been provided with essential sanitizing supplies and the office is cleaned on a regular basis.