Key insights
- Recruiting has been incredibly challenging recently and comes with a new slate of obstacles.
- Many recruiters prefer pursing top talent who are currently employed. Passive talent needs to be prompted to reply to recruiters, requiring technique, strategy, and technology.
- Talent is often hiding in plain sight, so you may need to employ creativity to catch their attention. In some cases, talent is truly hiding, due to recruitment fatigue.
Need help attracting top talent?
Do you remember playing hide and seek or flashlight tag as child? Have you ever compared those nostalgic memories to finding top talent in today’s business atmosphere? They’re quite similar —requiring technique, technology, and strategy.
Recruiting over the past few years has been incredibly challenging and comes with a new slate of obstacles. Where has all the top talent gone, where are they hiding, and why — when found — is it so difficult to get their attention?
Where has all the top talent gone?
With countless workplace changes over the last few years, many professionals are reimagining their ideal work scenarios, settings, and arrangements. A lot of this can be attributed to the increased acceptance of hybrid and remote work arrangements.
This could make recruitment especially challenging in industries where remote options remain impossible, such as construction and health care. The reasons are both obvious (the need to do construction and health care on-site) as well as not so obvious (cultural alignment often requires roles that could be done remotely to be performed from an office).
Top talent that is currently employed is often preferred. Many candidates who are looking for new roles wake up that morning not knowing they are looking for a new opportunity. Sometimes it can be one bad day at work or one compelling email from a recruiter that piques their interest.
Consider how technology — like sponsored social media posts — could help you connect with your ideal candidates, even if they’re not looking. Passive talent may also need to be prompted to reply to recruiters, requiring technique, strategy, and technology.
For many industries, top talent may not be gone — it’s just harder to find.
Recruiting tip
Engage your internal talent acquisition team or external recruiters. These professionals have the time to remain active in the market and understand strategies and technology opportunities to help hook talented candidates.
Where are job recruits hiding?
Sometimes recruiting can feel like an adult game of hide and seek. Talent is often hiding in plain sight, and the recruiter must search hard for candidates with the right skills and qualifications for the job.
In some cases, talent is truly hiding due to recruitment fatigue. The onslaught of job opportunities stemming from The Great Resignation caused many people to make themselves more difficult to find, even going as far as deleting the LinkedIn app from their phones.
This leaves hiring organizations wondering, “Do they even check their social media or personal email?” You may need to use creative techniques to catch their attention.
Recruiting tip
Send concise messages. Include just enough detail to pique someone’s interest. Consider adding a compensation range to save both yourself and the candidate time. Be sure to add a personal touch to the message to distinguish yourself in today’s world of artificial intelligence-generated content.
Why is it so difficult to get job recruits’ attention?
Some candidates are just not interested in making a move. No matter what you say, they are not changing jobs because — like many of us — the COVID-19 pandemic upended their world. Many candidates also grew closer to their employer after living through the shared trauma.
In countless cases, working professionals are held captive by “golden handcuffs.” They are compensated handsomely and when testing the market discovered they would take a substantial step backward financially if they change jobs. Be strategic. For these professionals, consider what other elements of the job could be enticing.
Recruiting tip
Stand out! Don’t be afraid to brag. Be open about your culture, what makes you great, and offerings such as benefits, insurance, flexible schedule, summer Fridays, and more.
How we can help
Identifying talent can be a time-consuming experience. CLA’s talent solutions team is comprised of consultants, recruiters, and sourcing professionals who can help your organization understand the market and how to boost your recruitment efforts.
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