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| Successful | On-Boarding | Partnership |
Through our experience, it’s been proven time and time again that the lack of a clear talent attraction strategy and an inefficient hiring process can cost you the talent you want, particularly when it comes to senior and specialist recruitment. This is important, not only in hiring specialist skills but also top performers where competition is tough. These individuals also know their worth and are not going to waste their time on lengthy processes where companies can’t make decisions quickly.
Here are our top tips for getting the talent you really want on board – quickly!
Have a clear business strategy – with clear objectives and deliverables. Top talent want to know that there is a clear vision and strategy in place and that it is executable.
Know the skills required to deliver on your business strategy and define key roles. Do you need people on a permanent basis or do you need specialist skills on an interim basis or a mixture of both?
Stop chasing the "perfect person" and hire the "right person"? The perfect candidate is a myth. Look at essential requirements versus nice-to-haves and be willing to flex on requirements for the right attitude and potential. Gems are often lost due to lengthy searches for the "perfect candidate". These individuals are keen to prove themselves, want to learn, have something to prove and generally give more. The “perfect” candidate is often harder to retain, is going to want “more” sooner than later and creates all sorts of expectations that could lead to disappointment. Aim for 75% fit – this allows for growth and opportunity for both parties and know that there's got to be something in it for them.
Define your resourcing strategy to attract the talent you want by ensuring you have a strong value proposition, that you can afford the talent you want, are realistic around market conditions and have an efficient engagement process in place.
Create a sense of urgency with all stakeholders involved in the process. Top talent is not attracted to lengthy processes and they can lose interest quickly. Having to salvage or constantly keep somebody interested in your business takes time and energy and you may lose them based purely on that.
Whether you’re doing permanent recruitment or needing an interim manager, work with a trusted recruitment partner – in true partnership. In essence, your recruitment partner is representing your organization in the market place. Be prepared to spend time with them to understand your business – business drivers, business objectives, key players, the role and culture. Give your recruitment partner, whether internally or externally, access to decision makers. There is nothing worse than engaging with the market and you haven’t even met the decision makers. By doing this, it shows that your organization is serious about hiring and everybody is on the same page.
In a partnership, your recruitment partner will provide you with better service, advise you on market insights that can assist you in attracting the right talent for your business and most importantly, prioritize you as a client. Should you work with recruiters based on fees and speed, I can almost guarantee that the quality hires you make are more luck based. And your company will be prioritized accordingly. Taking a gun-shot approach by working with many recruiters can impact your brand, especially when it comes to senior and specialist recruitment.
Be transparent and realistic with all involved in the process – stakeholders, recruitment partners and candidates. Be prepared to give the good, the bad and the ugly. Business is constantly changing, and change is an opportunity for growth and learning. The cost of losing great candidates is not worth withholding or not being straight up with people in the interview process, specifically when it comes to challenging aspects of the role. If there’s restructuring or downscaling on the cards – share that. If systems are having an impact on business performance, let them know. Share how you are dealing with or plan to deal with these challenges so that they feel some level of comfort that they are not walking into a s*&^* storm, no matter how temporary. Tell them about some of the exciting things happening in the business - it doesn't have to be all covert. Candidates don’t want to feel that they’ve taken on something that wasn’t fully disclosed in the interview process. This will just leave a bad taste in their mouth - and mouths talk, which will have a direct impact on your brand. People want challenges and perform better when they can anticipate challenges ahead of them as well as know there are good things on the cards that they can be part of.
Make them want to work for you. When they have made up their minds to work for you the risk of counter offers is significantly reduced, resignations are handled more easily and they're on board before they've even started.
We are a people business and therefore connecting people and building relationships is critical to the success or our business. We strive to deliver exceptional services and make a difference in the lives of both our clients and candidates. We would welcome the opportunity to connect with you to assess whether we’re the right recruitment partner for you.
