Strategic Hiring for Better Talent Pooling

Aligning talents in the right place for the right position at the right time is now called “luck”. Organizations across the globe are replete with challenges for hiring candidates who fit their bill as talented job seekers are becoming obscure.

It is expected that by 2020, talent shortage in the US would be around 23 million employees. This does not mean that there is no talent, it means that that 21st-century problem requires 21st-century solutions. With fierce competition, it becomes overwhelming for recruiters to find the right talent to fit their requirements and to retain them. Today’s job seekers jump in and out of organizations many times and the responsibility of keeping them “engaged” and “motivated” falls on organizations. While this number seems glaring, employers who are able to catch the right fish to place them in the right pond champion in their endeavor of talent pooling.

Gallup.com, an analytics company recently estimated that millennial turnover costs the US economy 30.5 Billion Dollars annually. US Labor Department estimates, an average of a bad hiring decision can equal 30 percent of that individual's first-year potential earnings. What does this mean? It means, companies are not able to pool talent where it needs to be; leaving employees restless and ready to move on. However, this is not rocket sciences and simple steps can help in strategic hiring for better talent pooling.

• Strategic alignment of company goals in the recruitment process
• Geography and Demography: Their roles in the hiring process
• Identifying specific job roles and defining them right

Strategic alignment of company goals in the recruitment process

Talent alignment is a discipline that can accelerate hiring while also ensuring retention. However, the basis for all this would depend solely on the vision of the organizations and where it intends to be at a certain point in time.

Research shows that organizations that align talents to their own business goals see success. When human resource personnel is given clearly articulated company goals, they can translate that while hiring. Onboarding also becomes seamless.

Resource allocation plays a key role in aligning talents. When an organization allocates resources, aligned to the broader plan of the overall business, they can identify failures or success faster. This helps in re-strategizing faster too. Some organizations even use platforms to showcase org-level goals. This enables all teams to align their own plans and strategies towards the said goals including recruitments.

Geography and Demography: Their roles in the hiring process

In recent years, there are two very pertinent aspects that have become detrimental in the hiring process: Geography and Demography.

Hiring the right talents from the right geographical location means identifying the states/ districts where there is no dearth for talent. For example, if a company is looking for lawyers; using big data and analytics, they can find the best law schools in the country, their percentage of distinctions, and hire from those geographies.  This helps in identifying the candidates, reaching out to them, determining the right time to recruit them, shortens evaluation time, and aids in managing recruitment efforts.

Using various analytics and intelligence technologies, companies can identify areas best suited for the requirement. For example, if the company wants to hire at scale, or hire only in technical niche areas, big data can identify those geographies where such talents are available. “Region-wise-talent-hunt” for the right roles will be the future for recruitment teams.

Depending on the business goals, companies can hire candidates of the right age as well. From its leadership to its last employee, strategic demographic choices should be made to ensure that they align with the goals of the company.

Identifying specific job roles and defining them right

At times, defining jobs can be difficult. However, this strategy helps in long-term gains for companies. Formally defining job roles can help in setting expectations right at the very beginning. It streamlines the selection process. Candidates are able to identify if they fit the job or not even before they can apply for it. Clear role identification and role definitions lead to the effective management of the business.

Clear job descriptions with title, summary, educational and professional qualifications, core skills, soft skills, work environment, work location, employment conditions can eliminate ill-fitting candidates at the very beginning.

An important aspect of talent pooling is employee engagement. When employees are better engaged, it is easier to bucket them into the right teams. When this happens, employees naturally feel that their work is reaping expected results. As a ripple effect, they also feel that their work is being valued and the chances of their retention are higher.