MONADNOCK REGION, N.H. (MyKeeneNow) Hiring has changed — especially here in the Monadnock Region.

With unemployment hovering around the low 3 percent range in Cheshire County and Windham County, VT, labor experts call this a tight job market, meaning there are more jobs than available workers. In reality, the candidates most employers want aren’t actively looking for work — they’re already employed. That means relying on job boards and traditional hiring tactics isn’t enough anymore. To attract better candidates, businesses must shift their thinking and start marketing their opportunities to passive job seekers — and stay visible throughout the entire decision process.

If you’re responsible for hiring and you’re not getting the candidates you need, you’re not alone.

Almost every business owner and manager we talk to says some version of the same thing: “It’s harder than ever to find qualified applicants — and the old ways just don’t work anymore.”

They’re right. And it’s not because they’re doing something wrong.

The biggest reason hiring feels so difficult right now is simple: we’re in a tight labor market. Labor experts use that term to describe areas where there are more open jobs than people available to fill them. Here in the Monadnock region, unemployment rates in both Cheshire County, NH and Windham County, VT have been sitting around the low 3 percent range. In practical terms, that means most people who want a job already have one.

That single reality changes everything about hiring.

When unemployment is this low, you’re no longer competing for unemployed workers — you’re competing for people who are already working. And that leads to an important mindset shift many employers need to make.

The candidate you actually want isn’t actively job hunting.

Your next great hire is already employed, showing up every day, doing good work for someone else. These are what we call passive job seekers. In normal-people terms, a passive job seeker is someone who isn’t unhappy at work and isn’t scrolling job boards at night — but would be open to a better opportunity if the right one caught their attention.

They’re not looking. But they are listening.

This is where many traditional hiring strategies start to fall apart. Posting the same job description, on the same job boards, written the same way it’s always been written, won’t produce different results — especially in a tight labor market. Job boards tend to recycle the same small pool of active job seekers. If that’s the only place you’re recruiting, you’re missing a much larger audience of people who could be interested, but haven’t been given a reason yet.

To reach passive job seekers, businesses need to start thinking differently.

Instead of just posting jobs, you need to market your opportunity. That means getting the word out in places people already pay attention and clearly communicating why someone should even consider making a change. It also means reaching the people who influence them — spouses, friends, family members, and coworkers who love to give advice and often help shape big career decisions.

And the message matters.

Passive job seekers consistently tell us they’re open to new opportunities for a handful of reasons: better pay or benefits, more flexibility or predictable schedules, a healthier work environment, opportunities for growth, or simply feeling appreciated instead of taken for granted. Those are the things that make someone pause and think, “Maybe I should look into this.”

Sometimes the most powerful way to communicate that message isn’t through a polished job description at all. Hearing current, happy employees talk honestly about the work environment — in their own words — can be far more effective. It feels real, because it is.

There’s one more critical piece many employers overlook.

Even if your message is what gets someone interested in looking, they don’t stop with you. Once a passive job seeker becomes curious, they do what everyone does today — they go online. They search. They compare. They read reviews. They look at multiple options.

If your message disappears at that point — if you’re not visible when they’re researching and comparing — you can lose them without ever knowing it. Not because you weren’t a good option, but because another employer stayed in front of them longer.

That’s the reality of hiring right now.

In a tight labor market, hiring isn’t just about filling positions. It’s about earning attention, building interest, and staying present throughout the decision process. If you’re in charge of hiring and what you’re doing isn’t producing the candidates you need, it’s not a failure — it’s a signal.

It’s time for a different strategy.

We help Monadnock region businesses with many types of marketing challenges and opportunities — including recruiting. We may be able to help you too, but we won’t know unless we talk with each other.

If you’d like, feel free to email me to set up a free, no-obligation discussion to see if we’d be a good fit for each other.

You can reach me directly at:
rcable@monadnockmediagroup.com