How to Poach the Best Talent the Great Resignation

The Great Resignation has begun. Here is how the smart employers are using it to capture the best talent for their teams. 

The Great Resignation has begun. This is also a prime opportunity for smart companies to capture the best talent because most people are looking. This unprecedented time also creates an unprecedented opportunity to connect with people that would otherwise not be interested in making a change.

What is the "Great Resignation?" That's what most pundits are calling the current talent market. The US Department of Labor reported that over 4 Million people resigned from their jobs in April 2021 without another position lined up. There were even more resignations in May and June of 2021. Why? There are as many reasons out there as there are candidates, but the key theme has been that people are tired. They are tired of doing more for less in their current organizations, tired of the same old same old, and tired of not feeling connected with their company's mission. Many people are also reporting that they are in no way interested in being forced back into the office after being remote for over a year. This unique combination of circumstances and the rampant return to hiring has created a special opportunity for smart employers to capture the best people out there that would never have been interested in making a change pre-COVID.  

Here are the ways your company can make the most of this time in building out your team.

Build a Strong Employer Brand

The global pandemic has changed everything. This includes how people look at work and what they want out of their careers. People are now looking at companies with a completely different perspective. Building a strong brand as an employer is essential to attracting the right types of candidates in a competitive market. Here are things to think about in creating that image:

• Put thought into your message. Create a clear, compelling vision for your company and what it means to work there.

• Use social media to connect with and engage the best talent.

• Communicate your company culture, mission, and values on your job board and wherever you publish jobs.

• Keep the message simple and easy to connect with at every level of your organization.

Leverage Your Existing Talent

The people that put the work in every day at your company are also great resources in building your team. Your employees know people that would love to work at your company. But, your employees are busy and may not be thinking about the open jobs. Many of the people in your organization may also not be looking at or aware of exactly what jobs are open at the company. Here are ways to make the most of your existing employees in attracting the right talent for the open jobs:

• Have a formal employee referral program that incentivizes people to make those introductions.

• Ask people on your team who they know could be a good fit. If appropriate, ask your staff to make introductions to their clients, vendors, or other industry resources for assistance in the process.

• Involve employees in the process and encourage their role in the recruiting online, in person, or in any other way that your organization typically recruits people.

• Listen to your team. They may have valuable feedback or creative suggestions in overcoming the barriers to filling open jobs.

Be Creative.

The current talent market is like none before it. People are now looking at jobs for the whole package - that includes how and where they would do the work. Keep this in mind when trying to recruit people to the hard-to-fill roles or when trying to attract people already in the industry. The way to stand out from your competitors is to be creative not just in how you recruit, but also in what you offer as an employer to the people that you hire.

This means thinking above and beyond the standards benefits package.  For example, places that did not have remote work arrangements previously are now offering, at a minimum, a hybrid option for their team. Others are offering matching donations for social justice or reward/recognition programs that encourage their teams to give back to their communities.

The key to making these programs work is to communicate them early in the hiring process and to apply them consistently to your staff. Employers need to write out the rules and programs to make it clear how they work. Then, they need to make sure that their employees take advantage of them so that they can communicate the value to the candidates they meet in the hiring process.

Work with Partners

Sometimes, the only way to effectively connect with the talent you really want to talk to is through a partner. This could be an external recruiting agency or some other vendor/partner that you work with. These resources can approach candidates that you or your team simply can't.

The other big value of working with a third party is that they can have these conversations with the passive candidates (people not actively looking) without disclosing who you are too early in the conversation. In doing this, the recruiting firm can gauge the interest of the potential candidate and give you real feedback on your reputation as an employer. This insight can be essential to overcoming the challenges that your talent acquisition team will never even know about.

Recruiting talent isn't easy in the current market. But, your organization can leverage this unique opportunity to approach the best people out there. You can only do that effectively if you have a strong foundation in place as a recruiter and you are smart about how you proceed. Want help in capitalizing on the Great Resignation? Schedule a free consultation with our recruiting team to see how we can help.