San Diego Business Coach On Quiet Hiring, Building Successful Teams

By Hoa Quach, Times of San Diego

April 3, 2023

“Quiet Hiring” has become the latest trend among workplaces, especially in industries where companies are downsizing but the workload remains the same. Yigal Adato — a San Diego-based business and leadership coach who has worked with organizations such as Keller Williams and the Jewish Community Foundation — explains what exactly is “Quiet Hiring” and how leaders can build successful teams.

What is Quiet Hiring?

Quiet Hiring is a new term for something that has been happening for ages in business. The term defines when companies move team members from one department to another instead of hiring more people. I remember when I opened up my company, and we were four team members doing it all. I believe the term was coined today to be able to give it an identity. Many are angry about it today because of the lack of communication and vision from company leadership.

What kind of criteria should leaders meet before doing Quiet Hiring?

The issue is that lack of clarity and communication causes doubt and unmet expectations in the team. If someone was hired to do marketing then all of a sudden they are asked to do sales, that’s when the team member could get upset because that wasn’t the original job description. Leaders should sit with the team and be transparent about the needs of the company and inspire the team to do what needs to be done.

How can leaders do this without causing burnout?

Leaders need to communicate with their teams because a lack of consistency breeds insecurity. If a company needs to do this, then they need to huddle with their team and work out a plan together and not just throw it at the team.

What are the biggest mistakes leaders make when they increase workload for existing employees?

The biggest mistake is expecting people to do things because they are getting paid. One client kept asking me how to make his employees give 110% and my question was how well did he know his team. In order to do quiet hiring successfully, you need to know your team’s wants, fears, desires, and capabilities. If not, you are just hoping they will say yes and do the job. If a team member isn’t aligned with the mission of the company and doesn’t feel that they can make an impact, they will be less likely to go above and beyond.

What would you say to anyone who says this is exploiting or taking advantage of employees?

I would say that they probably have not started a company. When you start a company and you are bootstrapping, the CEO works like a janitor and the sales team does accounting. In this business environment, everybody needs to be all hands on deck to be able to make sure the team isn’t burnt out and the company doesn’t go bankrupt.

At what point would a leader say, “It’s time to actually hire more employees?”

It’s time to hire when the capability of the team doesn’t match the necessity of the project or job. I also believe that team members should be free to be vocal and leaders should be open to listening to the team.

Are there any industries where Quiet Hiring is more effective than others?

Some of the industries this could help with are retail and service. In the service industry, you have areas such as sales, marketing, support, and technicians, and I have seen technicians who tried sales and crushed it.

Quiet hiring and quiet quitting are issues when leaders don’t communicate the expectations clearly and when the team doesn’t communicate what they want or need to do the job and be happy. I believe people need to talk more, listen more carefully and to not get offended so quickly.

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