The terms “recruiting” and “talent acquisition” are often used interchangeably, but there’s a fundamental difference between them. Although recruiting is a part of talent acquisition, it takes a more reactive approach to filling positions – that is, the focus is on filling current openings. Talent acquisition is more concerned with identifying future organizational needs and building a talent pool that targets the specific business segments, rather than filling an immediate need. It also involves going beyond recruiting in order to secure the right person for the job and the employer’s brand. The secret to finding high-performing employees lies in understanding the talent market and forming an acquisition strategy.
When done right, talent acquisition can help you find the most suitable person for the job and recruit for roles that didn’t exist before.
The skills gap continues to widen
There’s no shortage of people applying for jobs, but in virtually all industries, there’s a lack of workers with the skills needed to meet current and future business needs. For example, a 2015 survey by the Manufacturing Institute and Deloitte showed that over the next decade, almost 3.5 million manufacturing jobs likely will need to be filled and the skills gap is predicted to cause 2 million of those positions to go unfilled.
Closing the gap with a talent acquisition strategy
Finding high performers is no simple feat, so what’s needed is a strategy that will take you to them. You might:
- Examine the key skills needed to ensure business goals constantly are met. As your industry grows, so do the skills needed within your organization. Focus on hiring people whose expertise will remain relevant for a long time rather than becoming redundant within a few months.
- Conduct a skills gap analysis to gauge current talent trends and market conditions. By identifying the skills gap early on, you can determine the size of the potential candidate pool and devise a strategy for reaching the talent you seek.
- Create an integrated communications strategy to attract potential candidates. Applicants with in-demand skills have choices, so you must make it easy for them to interact with your company from the start. You can, for instance, communicate with candidates by leveraging the strengths of the internet and HCM technology.
- Evaluate and improve your candidate-screening practices. Conducting face-to-face interviews and reviewing résumés can help you narrow down candidates, but those methods also can be time consuming. There are more efficient ways to select strong candidates, such as searching within the walls of your organization. By sourcing positions from within, you help create a culture that promotes growth and development.
- Make talent acquisition a part of your HCM solution. New employees want to be engaged not only at the application stage, but also during hiring and onboarding. A single-platform system will make application, hiring, onboarding and relationship management processes go more smoothly while keeping you in compliance with employment laws.
Superstar employees are not a dime a dozen – they’re tough to come by. But, with a carefully planned and executed strategy, you can find the winning talent you need.
