Hiring at the right level, quality and volume is, rightly, top of the agenda. The ability to meet and beat this challenge will dictate whether your business creates the right structure and environment to take advantage of the significant market demand we are experiencing.

We grow headcount via two routes: hiring experienced recruiters and/or growing our own talent via a robust onboarding and Learning & Development programme.  

The option to recruit experienced recruiters who will bring a wealth of experience of the sector, a specific niche market and a proven track record is a very welcome one – but I think we can all agree that the hunt for these elusive unicorns may take too long to satisfy the scale and rate of growth you seek. 

Therefore, giving your business the ability to hire those with little or no experience of the sector and developing them through skills training and a high-performance culture has become a no brainer. Many of us have entered the world of ‘growing our own’ with little or no success, and this tends to be, in my experience, because of flaws in the sourcing, screening and onboarding process. The talent is out there!

When it comes to sourcing inexperienced candidates for your business, in a noisy market there are several key things to be really aware of and on top of:

• Employee value proposition – does your business know its EVP, and is it being communicated regularly? During the pandemic, employees focused less on how the crisis developed and more on how their organisations responded to it.  
• Advertising – finesse your role descriptions wherever you may advertise. Ensure they are descriptive, showcase your differentiators, and be honest and human.
• Consider using a recruitment partner who can demonstrate their expertise in this area of the market.
• Use video technology – a fantastic way to speak authentically to your potential hires and communicate your coaching culture.
• Ensure that your in-house staff are well set up to process applications speedily, with an impressive turnaround time. Communicate what the process will look like, what the timelines are and what the candidate can expect next.
• It is entirely within your control to make sure that every applicant, whether they are progressed through the process or not, has a great experience of your brand.
• Brand – jobseekers are thinking about much more than just compensation and benefits. An employer’s brand and reputation make a huge difference as candidates assess their options. They want to feel connected, proud and aligned with the company’s mission.
• Direct sourcing – whilst you may have the luxury of a dedicated internal recruiter, it should be part of all the management team’s focus (and targets) to directly source talent for their teams and business. Recruit all the time!
• Culture – so important, and high on the list of any Gen Z candidate. This is a great opportunity to understand and potentially reboot culture in your business.
• Awards – hand-in-hand with enhancing your brand in the recruitment market, entering industry awards will boost your external (and internal) PR. Being able to showcase a win, or a shortlist, immediately becomes a beneficial differentiator that you can use extensively when communicating to the hiring market.
• Diversity & Inclusion – whether that be age, disability, gender, ethnicity or education level. The economic cost alone of not stamping out bias is evidenced in research.
• Flexibility – a byword for our times and surely present in all your businesses now. However, consider also work hours, style, tech employed, autonomy given.

Hiring successfully in today’s competitive market means building a culture that engages and entices your employees to stay around. As you plan your recruiting strategy for 2022, be sure to take an honest look at your current company culture and brand. Any time invested in improving these areas, if necessary, will reap rewards in attracting the talent you need. 

Tara Ricks is NED to the recruitment sector and also COO of Elite Leaders, an advisory and consultancy organisation.