recruiters, talent acquisition, hiring, talent pipeline

Be Proactive: Think about Future Hiring Needs

You already know how important it is to attract and recruit the best talent in the job market. Chances are, you’re focusing heavily on hiring for today’s needs. However, are you also proactively building out a talent pipeline for your future hiring needs? If not, it’s time to rethink your talent acquisition strategy. In today’s competitive job market, it’s essential to build relationships with new talent – even before you have a job opening. When the time comes, these relationships will allow you to quickly fill positions, preserve productivity levels, and everyone’s favorite: keep hiring costs down.

Are you ready to be proactive and plan for the future hiring needs of your team? Excellent! Here are five strategies to help build your talent pipeline and keep it filled with a steady stream of great candidates.

1. Engage in ongoing recruiting

As we alluded to already, recruiting should be an ongoing process. But how do you capture candidate info when you don’t have a role for them to apply to? Start by placing a form on your website, or career page, so people can apply for non-specific positions. Get the candidate to explain the type of role they are looking for and why they would be interested in joining your team. If a great candidate stumbles across your desk but you don’t have a position available for them, this is the perfect opportunity to build and nurture that relationship. You never know what next week, next month or next quarter will bring.

2. Show candidates you care about them

If you’re going to build out a talent pipeline, it’s important that you develop a strategy for how to engage with those candidates on an ongoing basis. It can be tempting to automate this entire process, however, make sure it’s clear to your candidates that you care about them as individuals. An occasional personal outreach to share an upcoming industry event, an interesting article, or to congratulate them on a work-anniversary will go a long way. Remember, no one wants to feel like they are part of an automated process, defined by a number. A little personalization can go a long way.

3. Network, network, network!

We know, going to a networking event is the last thing you want to do at the end of a long day. But networking pays off big when it comes to building out a talent pipeline, especially when you have a referral program in place. It’s important to note that networking shouldn’t rest solely on the shoulders of recruiters. Encourage your entire company to make networking a priority. You can also consider hosting a quarterly event at your office or sponsoring an event in the community. This will give you the chance to build brand awareness, highlight your employer branding specifically, and engage with passive candidates.

4. Highlight your company’s values

According to one study, a company’s values are one of the top factors candidates consider before they accept a job. That presents a huge opportunity to connect with passive candidates and draw them into your talent pipeline. Do you offer a company-wide service day? Do you match employee donations to local non-profits? Is your organization working towards diversity and inclusion goals? Be sure to highlight those things on your career page and on your social media channels. Your values, which should be a key part of your employer branding strategy, will attract talent that shares those same values and encourage them to engage with your company.

5. Use social media to your advantage

Social media is a proactive way to attract candidates you might not have otherwise identified. To engage potential candidates, be sure to keep an active, interesting, and entertaining presence on social networks.

  • Focus recruiting efforts beyond LinkedIn. Be sure to routinely interact in other online spaces, such as Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest.
  • Keep things interesting. Social media isn’t just about thought leadership articles or sharing the latest news about your company. Share fun facts, infographics, employment tips, interesting statistics, and employee success stories.
  • Don’t be afraid to be light-hearted. Companies, like Slack, have great engagement on social media because they aren’t stuffy or boring. Be authentic to your brand and people will tune in.

 

Fun fact: Did you know 66 percent of candidates say interactions with employers are a great way to get insight into a company? Also, candidates are twice more willing to accept cold emails from organizations they’ve interacted with before.

Now that we’ve shared some actionable steps you can take to build out your talent pipeline, we’d love to hear from you! What has worked for your company in the past? What ideas are you implementing going forward? Tweet us at @Cloutera or send us a message.

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