Many of today’s candidates, especially millennials and Gen Z’s, look to the company culture when choosing a job. They want to see happy employees and a healthy work/life balance. Align with hiring managers early to learn what they expect in a candidate, such as must-have and nice-to-have qualifications. It will help you find effective sourcing channels and know where to tighten or lighten requirements for the role.  In this resource post we outline top strategies for effective talent sourcing.

Create a Checklist

Suitable candidates can be hard to find, especially when a company is in growth mode. Building a talent pipeline for each team can help ensure that strong candidates are ready to go when a position opens up. A positive brand image can also be essential to draw candidates towards your company, and regularly checking site reviews is an excellent way to keep your reputation in good shape. A strong talent sourcing strategy can help your recruiting and hiring processes function more efficiently and ensure you are ready when a job opening arises. To succeed, use the tips below and get everyone involved to create an effective sourcing process that will work for your organization.

Build a Talent Pipeline

A talent pipeline lets you track qualified candidates to fill future roles is critical in effective talent sourcing. It can help you meet hiring goals, close skills gaps, enhance diversity, and improve retention rates. Most of the job market consists of passive candidates, so it is essential to engage them even when you do not have an open position. Social media, networking events, and dedicated recruitment campaigns can help you reach passive candidates and nurture them over time. Ensure that your pipeline includes both internal and external candidates. Internal candidates help reduce the risk of attrition, especially for hard-to-fill roles that translate into high revenue loss while vacant (e.g., sales positions). External candidates can help fill critical roles, especially if you have a robust training and development program to groom candidates for critical leadership roles.

Create a Talent Pool

Putting candidates in a talent pool allows you to keep track of their profiles and easily access them when you have a vacancy. It’s a helpful way to save time and money on recruitment costs. However, it’s important to remember that not all your candidates will be interested in changing immediately. Some may be on a sabbatical, working abroad, or still in school. You must re-engage them with content to keep them engaged and interested. You can use meet and greets, employee referral programs, and social media to re-engage candidates and add them to your talent pool. It will ensure they’re ready to move when the opportunity presents itself. It will also help you avoid missing out on top talent.

Create a Positive Brand Image

When finding the best talent, creating a positive brand image is critical. You can do this by ensuring that all your communication with potential hires is professional and transparent. Use recruitment marketing to attract candidates and bring them into your talent community. It can help your team find the right people for the job and avoid hiring candidates that don’t fit. To do this, consider your company’s long-term goals and work to find employees who can support them. For example, if you want to expand into Latin America, you may want to target candidates with experience in this region. Similarly, if you’re looking for coders, consider attending industry or career-specific events where these professionals gather. These strategies can help you build a strong pipeline and achieve your hiring goals.

Use Referrals

Many companies use eye-catching referral bonuses and benefits to incentivize their employees to recruit top talent as a key part of the strategies for effective talent sourcing. But this isn’t the only way to get the best results from employee referral programs. Providing timely feedback to referred candidates can make all the difference, primarily when they’ve invested time and effort into the recruitment process and are disappointed that they weren’t selected for a role. Encourage your employees to engage with candidates throughout the recruiting process to keep them engaged and interested in your company. It will ensure they’re prepared to refer qualified candidates when a new position becomes available and keep them in your pipeline. Re-engaging declined candidates from your employee referral program is another excellent way to ensure no applicant goes to waste.