June 16th, 2016 | Sterling

Four Ways to Attract Top Talent to Your Business

You’ve probably heard this many times before, but people really are your organisation’s most valuable asset. Hiring the right people with the right skills is crucial if your business is to be a success, so it’s essential you have a robust and effective recruitment strategy in place to attract the best candidates.

Yet finding talented staff can be an extremely challenging and daunting task these days, with intense competition from other companies and a shrinking talent pool.

According to Randstad’s 2016 talent trends report, 72% of employers believe that talent shortages have negatively impacted their business, while 41% admit they don’t have adequate resources in place to address talent shortages. Meanwhile, a 2014 talent management report by Towers Watson found that 65% of employers were experiencing problems attracting top performers, and a recent survey conducted by The Telegraph revealed that just one in four found it easy to hire suitably skilled staff.

So how can you make sure you hire the best talent?

1. Ensure your hiring process is top notch

The way your hiring process is perceived by potential recruits can mean the difference between attracting top talent or not. The first thing you need to do is implement a process that is efficient, flexible and focuses on quality, not quantity, of hires. The speed in which you recruit is also important – too slow and candidates will think all your decisions are made at this pace or, worse still, they’ll be snapped up by a competitor; too fast and you risk making a bad hire. One way to minimise the risk of recruiting the wrong person is to perform background checks so be sure to include this in your recruitment plan. Remember too that you are effectively ‘selling’ your company to a candidate, just as much as they are selling themselves to you, so you must present – and market – yourselves in a way that entices top talent to work for you.

2. Provide opportunities for career progression and work-life balance

Talented workers are normally ambitious and career driven, so if you’re going to attract them, you need to demonstrate that there will be opportunities for them to progress and climb the ladder within your organisation. While salary is important, they’ll also want to know whether they can achieve a good work-life balance, so ensure you offer a great benefits package that enhances their lifestyle, and shows them you care about their personal development too. Many employers are creating an employee value proposition (EVP), which describes the opportunities, rewards, benefits and ways of working offered in a company. An EVP gives people reasons why they would want to work for you, and can be used to differentiate your business from the competition, as well as help you become a magnet for the best candidates, so it’s well worth promoting this to potential employees.

3. Create a thriving, inclusive company culture and promote your employer brand

To draw top quality candidates into your organisation, you need to create a work environment that makes it impossible for them to say no to working for you. A rich, thriving and unique culture will attract the best people, as well as retain them, as they will enjoy working there, be more loyal and strive to be the best they can be. Promote the values that make up your company culture and look for like-minded candidates who share those same values. Similarly, you need to clearly define your employer brand, as this differentiates your organisation from others. Employer branding is used as a way to promote your company’s reputation as a great place to work. Your brand message can be targeted at the right people with the right skills, giving you a better chance of recruiting the best person for the job.

4. Take advantage of social media

Whilst it’s true that top talent will flock to an organisation simply because it has an outstanding reputation as a great place to work – such as Google – most employers need to proactively search for the best candidates. Yet this doesn’t mean just posting job ads. The majority of workers aren’t actively looking for a new job, so they may not even hear about the great role available in your company. You therefore need to find out where the talent is hanging out and go there too – and this is where social media comes in handy. Networks such as LinkedIn or Twitter can connect you with top talent who would otherwise have been off your radar. Develop a social presence, as an employer, so that you can engage with potential candidates, start a conversation and develop relationships; showcase the great things happening in your organisation to further promote your employer brand; and get existing employees to join in and share their thoughts on the benefits of working there.

Join us for 5 Tips to Improve Your Hiring Efficiency, a complimentary webinar at 2:00PM BST, on Thursday, September 22 to learn how to improve each stage of the hiring process and find the right candidate sooner, significantly reducing the costs associated with vacant position days.

This publication is for informational purposes only and nothing contained in it should be construed as legal advice. We expressly disclaim any warranty or responsibility for damages arising out this information. We encourage you to consult with legal counsel regarding your specific needs. We do not undertake any duty to update previously posted materials.