In the current employment market, identifying, attracting and hiring qualified talent has become very challenging. Amongst most business leaders talent acquisition is a top priority. Hence it should not surprise anyone to see organisations rise above their competitors in order to secure top talent in an ever-growing candidate-driven market.

Talent acquisition is an ongoing strategy to find professionals, leaders, or future executives for your company. Talent acquisition tends to focus on long-term planning and finding appropriate candidates for positions that require a very specific skill set; while recruitment is about filling vacancies. Talent acquisition takes a long-term view while recruitment focuses on here and now. Hence, one of the major differences between acquiring talent and simply recruiting is focus.

For acquiring talent employees are not just stop-gap measures; they’re in for the long haul. You have to consider everything from skills to future development to cultural fit when a candidate is acquired rather than recruited. Talent acquisition should be a long-term HR strategy aimed at fulfilling organisational needs by finding and convincing top talent to bring their unique skills to your company. Here I mention some of the most effective talent acquisition strategies

Brand Marketing 

A candidate would want to know what to expect when she joins your organisation and your brand should convey to her exactly that. You must demonstrate that your company is a fantastic place to work. Acquiring highly-qualified candidates is no way different from prospecting for clients. Brand Marketing has to be an essential component of your acquisition strategy.

Candidate experience 

Candidate experience is now a prominent factor in the recruiting process. Quite a few factors can create dissatisfaction with the recruitment process but two of the most oft repeated factors on the job boards are the long delays in communications and non-provision of feedback to unsuccessful candidates. The key to providing an outstanding candidate experience is to design the recruitment journey from the candidate’s point of view with constant flow of communication at each stage of the recruitment stage.

Offer updated work options

The pandemic has reshaped the work model. Talent acquisition specialists have adapted their work models to conduct online onboarding versus meeting candidates face-to-face. As the workforce evolves with more technological advances, workers will strive for more work/life balance. Majority of the employees want to work from home. An organisation needs to adjust and consider incorporating remote or hybrid work models while also cutting costs. This money could be used to upgrade technology for better talent acquisitions.

Leverage technology

Talent acquisition is a very time and resource-intensive activity. As per a recent industry report recruiters spend up to 13 hours weekly, on average, recruiting for a single role. organisation need to use technology to help automate the process, dispose of mechanical duties, and leave recruiters with more time to engage with candidates. Technology can also streamline workflows to make them faster and more effective, so the right candidates are never overlooked. An applicant tracking system (ATS) is software that helps keep track of your whole talent acquisition process. As a result, it aids in the management of candidates and the reduction of time-to-fill and thus helps reduce time-to-hire. Recruiting technologies, digital platforms, and automation are allowing for a more technology centric talent-seeking process

Employee referrals and Silver Medalists

Employee referrals can be a treasure trove of impressive talent leads. Several large and small companies equally considered employee referrals a significant source of top talent. Encourage your people to refer job openings to candidates they believe are perfect for the role. For a better response to your call for employee referrals you may look at incentivizing employees who refer candidates that emerge as successful hires. Consider nurturing candidates who did well in your recruitment process but were unsuccessful by engaging with these candidates and keeping the conversation going so your company remains top-of-mind when future positions open.

DISCLAIMER: The views expressed are solely of the author and People Matters does not necessarily subscribe to them.