Talent Strategy is the Right Approach

Candidate experience is actually one of the most important factors to attract and retain talent in your company; how candidates feel is part of a positive employer branding. Social media nowadays takes a stand, influences, and attracts top talent. To do a great job delivering an effective talent strategy, we share these key points to keep in mind to build a strong presence and a strong brand.

Talent Strategy: All You Need to Know

Keep in Mind the Stage of the Funnel in the Candidate Journey

1. Awareness
   The first step in the candidate journey is awareness. This stage makes potential collaborators aware of who your company is, what your organization does, and what it’s like to work there. Candidates are just getting to know your company and what it does. This is possible through social media like LinkedIn or through a reference from a current employee.

2. Consideration
   Candidates have experienced a few touchpoints with your company and enter the consideration stage, where they can determine if they are interested and align with your company values and philosophy. In this second stage, they have had additional points of contact through a career page or meeting an HR representative at a job fair. Keep in mind that potential candidates can return to a previous awareness stage; the process is not always linear, especially in the pre-application stage.

3. Interest
   At this specific stage, potential collaborators are genuinely interested in applying for a specific position in your company. A clear example could be a retargeting campaign ad or a mailing list that keeps their interest.

4. Application
   This stage starts when the applicant fills out the application form. From now on, the way you communicate with your potential collaborator is a crucial factor in determining their perception of your company. Even when they get rejected for not being a good fit, they need to be aware of the stage and the sequential steps they go through.

5. Selection
   The selection step takes place immediately after the interview. During this step, your talent acquisition department and HR managers take the time to evaluate potential candidates. For candidates, this stage often means a lot of waiting. While most companies don’t communicate too much during this stage, it is good practice to:

   • Send them a thank you email to let them know an estimated timeline for how long it will take before making a decision.
   • Take a proactive approach and send them study materials if they would like to know more about your company.
   • Nurture candidates and keep them posted, as this is part of your employer branding.

6. Hiring
   Finally, the last step in your candidate journey is when potential candidates are either hired or rejected—many recruiters consider this the final step. Nothing could be further from the truth for those companies seeking to create a great candidate experience. The touchpoints in this stage can be a call or an email. If you reject a candidate, make sure to give feedback and bring transparency about it, as this significantly improves the candidate experience.

7. Onboarding
   Onboarding is an essential part of the candidate journey; it has a significant impact on whether your candidate stays during the probation period. Establishing clear 30, 60, and 90-day expectations can be a great start and directly correlates to your retention rates. Best practices suggest that even before recruiting, you must keep the onboarding process in mind; after all, you don’t want to lose an employee after a month of investing so much time, effort, and resources in the recruitment process. Onboarding involves different stakeholders from various departments; the best practices involve at least one person from the new hire’s team and one from HR or the hiring team to give a proper introduction to the teams or department.

Talent Strategy: The Right Approach

Job Descriptions Show the Candidate the Impact on Your Company

A job description is a great opportunity to capture your potential collaborators’ imagination and show the impact within your company. Many candidates look for impact on a day-to-day basis; in terms of cumulative interest of impact, candidates strive to make an impact and look for opportunities to demonstrate their talents. A great example might be:

• What the new hire / collaborator is going to be responsible for.
• What your new collaborator is going to learn and apply in their new assignment.
• What the new hire is going to improve by joining your company.
• How your company will benefit from their talent.
• What you expect in the next 30, 60, 90 days and upcoming months.
• Define at least 12 months of expectations and impact on your company.

A Clear Interview Process is Key

Be clear about the interview process; many recruiters contact candidates, start a process, but never call back. A negative candidate experience can harm your employer branding more than you think. Company reputation/experience can be harmed by not following up, so ensure your HR department follows up on every single process, offer, or position. Many staffing companies agree and suggest that if you take the time with your hiring managers to make sure they ask the right questions, efficiently prepare before interviews, and evaluate the right candidates based on their skills, experience, and both soft and hard skills, the most important asset for your brand will be a positive candidate experience throughout their applicant journey.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Why is talent strategy important?
A: Talent is a key driver of an organization’s success, and a well-designed talent strategy can help ensure that the right people are in the right roles, and that they have the skills, knowledge, and support they need to perform at their best.

Q: What are some key elements of a talent strategy?
A: A talent strategy may include elements such as workforce planning, recruitment and selection, employee development and training, performance management, and succession planning.

Q: How do you develop a talent strategy?
A: Developing a talent strategy typically involves assessing the current state of your organization’s talent, identifying key gaps and opportunities, and then creating a plan to address those gaps and leverage those opportunities.

Q: How do you measure the success of a talent strategy?
A: Success measures for a talent strategy may vary depending on the specific goals of the strategy, but may include metrics such as employee retention, productivity, engagement, and development, as well as overall business performance.