For the past year or so there has been somewhat of a dissonance between the jobs that are open and available and the individuals looking for jobs. This job-opening dissonance has been caused by a few different things. Largely, the COVID-19 pandemic put a series of events in motion that contributed to this issue in the economy. Because of that, many organizations, hiring managers, and HR professionals are trying to figure out how they can better attract high quality talent and how they can hold onto it well into the future as well.
When the COVID-19 pandemic started to spread across the globe, it forced many organizations to close their doors either temporarily or permanently. This alone put a lot of workers out of a job, meaning unemployment was high. Then, though, a massive sector of the professional workforce also decided to leave their positions on their own accord. This was for a variety of reasons, but two of the largest were to pursue early retirement or entrepreneurial ventures. This left employers at a loss, and put a ton of jobs back on the market.
The great resignation, as this work exodus has been coined, alongside the major layoffs and shutdowns that were caused by the COVID-19 pandemic created an extremely unique economic landscape, in which both unemployment numbers and open job positions were both high. However, there have been a variety of reasons that the jobs open aren’t suitable for the people actively looking for work or employment.
As such, the following strategies can help an organization both attract and retain top tier talent.
“Now a massive number of employees not only want to feel invested in the work they do, but they also want to see that their employer is invested in the same things they value and believe in.” – Michelle Mahony, Author, Harvard Business Review.
Why Company Culture Matters
One of the most important aspects in attracting modern talent is the company culture. Even so, a lot of organizational leaders are still struggling to understand what a positive company culture looks like and what is involved in creating one. Unfortunately, there’s not a single ingredient or formula that makes for a strong company culture. However, there are ongoing practices that organizational leaders, managers, and other decision makers can embody in order to bring them into the workplace.
For example, empathetic and transparent communication practices are crucial to establishing a positive and productive culture in which employees feel included and valued. Strong communication practices are also helpful in establishing regular collaboration and brainstorming amongst employees and team members.
“Communication is one of the three most important things that an organization needs to be successful; this should be present at every level. If the communication is poor at the top, it’ll be difficult to ever get the company going down the right path.” – Chris Gadek, Head of Growth, AdQuick.
There are a ton of other valuable elements that contribute to the overall company culture of an organization as well. Fair and competitive pay, diversity, equity, and inclusion, and the ability to be both autonomous and flexible are all positive contributors to a workplace culture.
“It makes a huge difference to employees when they’re able to make their own decisions and they can take more ownership over their individual role. It’s really empowering.” – Ryan Delk, CEO, Primer.
Sourcing Remote Talent
As the COVID-19 pandemic spread across the world, more and more organizations transitioned to a remote workforce. At the same time, new startup organizations were sprouting up with entirely remote structures from the get-go. While there were a few speed bumps at first, since it’s been established, the remote workforce has proven itself more than viable and valid now and as a staple moving forward in our society. This said, HR professionals, hiring managers, and organizational leaders would be wise to broaden their talent-sourcing-search, and to include a wider net through the remote work world.
“One of the pros of the remote workforce is that it opens up so many possibilities when it comes to recruiting. Your recruiting pool is no longer limited to only those who can make the commute to the office; you can hire the best candidate for the job, no matter where they’re located.” – Kyle Clements, CEO, Quipli.
Remote work has become popular with organizational leaders and employees alike for a number of reasons. Notably employee productivity and engagement during working hours is typically increased in a remote work setting. This has often been attributed to the elimination of a daily commute that could take up to four hours of someone’s day and up to 20 hours of their workweek.
“It is becoming more apparent that the remote work model is here to stay. Many employees are happier this way, and plenty of companies are even seeing increased productivity levels.” – Christy Pyrz, Chief Marketing Officer, Paradigm Peptides.
The Role That DEI Plays
Diversity, equity, and inclusion were mentioned slightly earlier, and are important enough to warrant discussing in further detail. Diversity, equity, and inclusion is a field of thought that focuses on proactively leveling the professional playing field. This means putting an emphasis on finding and hiring high-quality professionals of color, women workers, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and other underprivileged communities.
“Inclusion is finally becoming a more openly discussed topic in professional work environments. It shouldn’t come as a huge surprise, seeing as the value of diversity in the workforce has long been proven. Leaders who ignore that data are simply putting themselves at a disadvantage.” – Eric Elggren, Co-Founder, Andar.
Prioritizing diversity, equity, and inclusion can help create a more equal and open workplace in which people feel comfortable being themselves. When employees feel comfortable expressing themselves, they are often more engaged in their work and more loyal to their employers who empower them to be themselves.
“Think about it: would you want to work in a place that makes you feel uncomfortable for being who you are? Or, would you want to work for someone who wants you to be exactly who you are, as long as the work gets done? The choice seems pretty clear.” – Rachel Blank, Founder and CEO, Allara Health.
Flexibility and Autonomy
There are many ways that organizations can be flexible with their employees, especially in the remote-work culture that is so popular in today’s day and age. By allowing employees a little bit of a leash, and some flexibility in their scheduling, managers can effectively communicate how valuable their team members’ contributions are. This is seldom lost on employees, especially as many modern professionals are balancing a hectic life outside of work.
“The emergence of the remote work culture has been really good overall mental health. It has given professionals a chance to reclaim a more reasonable work-life balance.” – Karim Hachem, VP of eCommerce, Maxine of Hollywood.
Autonomy is helpful in attracting top-tier talent as well. This is because high-quality employees typically know what they’re doing, and don’t want their time, or their talents wasted through a micro managerial situation. By giving employees autonomy, you’ll see their engagement increase as well as their productivity in most cases.
“No professional wants to be treated like a child, and that’s exactly what micromanagement feels like. If you’re trying to bring in top-talent, you simply can’t have micromanagers on your roster.” – Dr. Michael Green, Chief Medical Officer, Winona.
Competitive, Fair, and Equal Compensation
Finally, one of the most important pieces of the talent-recruiting-puzzle is the compensation. No matter the industry, the employee, or the work itself, compensation is a top priority for most modern members of the workforce. If you’re looking to bring top caliber talent into your organization, you’re going to have to offer a competitive compensation package.
“High-quality candidates typically know how much they’re worth, and if you’re not willing to pay them that, they’ll find their compensation elsewhere.” – Liza Kirsh, CMO, Dymapak.
Competitive and fair compensation doesn’t stop with the salary, though. Benefits are extremely important as well and modern benefits packages are becoming more and more inclusive and offer employees even more coverage each year. Many modern benefits packages even come with mental health coverage as mental health has become a much more discussed topic in open conversation over the past few years and in the wake of the pandemic.
“Businesses that take care of their employees continue to profit and see success year after year. By offering employees competitive compensation packages, you can more effectively recruit highly talented employees.” – Brandon Adcock, Co-Founder and CEO, Nugenix.
A Few Final Thoughts
There are a ton of different recruitment strategies and tactics that HR professionals and hiring managers can look to in order to bring top-tier-talent into the organization. By prioritizing the company culture, offering fair and competitive compensation, and making use of the remote workforce, brands can proactively attract and retain top-tier talent for their organization.
“Shifting the mindset to finding quality hires involves assessing what the potential candidates can do for your company and what you can do for the candidate. Hiring the right person is a matchmaking opportunity and evaluating if it’s long term.” – Connor Barry, Author, SpectraForce.
