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5 Best Practices for an Effective Talent Acquisition Strategy to Recruit Right-Fit Employees

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Every organisation knows that having the right talents in the right jobs is crucial for the business to grow. But every business owner knows too well that these talents do not usually appear on their own accord, requesting for jobs. These talents have to be proactively brought onboard with a Talent Acquisition Strategy.

WHAT is a Talent Acquisition Strategy?
Talent Acquisition is a strategy that focuses on sourcing, attracting, selecting, hiring, growing and retaining talents that fulfill the organisation’s needs. Such a strategy does not consider only the best talents in the market as they may not fit into the organisation’s culture. Rather, it aims to line up the right people, either now or in the future, who have the capability to move the organisation forward.

WHY is Talent Acquisition crucial now?
In 2022Q1, the unemployment rate in Singapore fell to 2.2%, the lowest level since 2019Q3, according to data from the Ministry of Manpower. At the same time, total employment grew by 42,000, as border restrictions eased. The number of job vacancies also rose to a new high, indicating the creation and availability of more jobs in the local job market.

Given the present tightening talent market against the rising number of jobs, a talent acquisition strategy is more important than ever. However, bringing about an effective talent acquisition strategy that fits an organisation’s culture and business can be complex and much planning is needed.

HOW to execute an effective talent acquisition strategy?

1. Project Strong Employer Branding & Value Proposition

Corporate branding is one of the pillars of a successful Talent Acquisition strategy. It brings to the attention of prospective candidates: who the organization is, and what it has to offer. By cultivating a positive employer value proposition, the organisation can attract better talent and have a sustainable pipeline of talents to tap on. To maximise employer branding in your talent acquisition strategy:

Create Awareness: Project the company as a place where talented people love to work. Talented candidates typically consider organisation values, culture, and work-life balance when comparing companies.

To attract the talents you want, focus on the best aspects of your company’s values and culture. Highlight work options, flexible work arrangements, work-life balance perks, and your company’s emphasis on growth opportunities. Don’t forget to spotlight your company’s corporate social responsibilities (CSR); they are a valuable tool for attracting top candidates who are aligned with your organisation’s values and beliefs.

41%-52% of people prefer flexible work arrangements (FWA)
20% to 35% want work-from-home (WFH) on most days
~ Source: Institute of Policy Studies (IPS) report, April 2022

Create Opportunities: Along with creating awareness of your company, make job openings and career opportunities known to talents in the market, so that they will consider your organisation as a prospective employer. To do this, participate in job fairs, engage in social media marketing, and offer career consultations both off-line and online to send strong signals of opportunities available.

2. Be Clear of the Requirements

Talents are typically required for 2 types of positions: replacement functions and newly created roles. Before starting a talent acquisition programme for any position, be clear of what is required. Nail down the job description and skills needed and be specific about the job title.

Replacement Functions: Hiring managers generally have a good idea of what to look out for in replacement roles as they would have the job scope and work experiences of previous hires as references.

But this is not the case for newly created roles!

Newly Created Roles: From our 30-over years in the recruitment industry, we have noticed that Hiring Managers tend to start off with sketchy ideas of candidates for newly created roles. In the course of meeting prospective candidates, the requirements and even the job scope would often be refined as the Hiring Manager and Department Head have greater clarity of what they are looking for.

To ensure the right talent is recruited for any newly created role, set aside a longer recruitment period and be open to the types of candidates. Meet more candidates, particularly those who possess qualities or experience that can contribute to the newly created role. You may just be surprised at the talents you attract!

Apart from the requisite knowledge, skills and competencies needed, consider personality traits too. These matters—tremendously!

Attitude is just as important as aptitude. Every job requires a certain kind of personality, else the relationship between the talent and the management can sour quickly, especially when they do not fit in well with the organisation’s culture.

3. Respond Fast to Candidates 

If you can see the potential in the shortlisted talent, so can other firms that the candidate applied to. So act fast to avoid losing sight of the candidate you want.

Before Recruitment Starts: Brief the decision makers and approving parties ahead of time. Get the necessary approvals in place so that the recruitment programme can carry out as planned and not be stalled by internal approval procedures after the talents have been shortlisted.

During Recruitment Process: Set up the interviews as soon as resumes with good track records are received so that strong candidates will not be kept wondering if they stand a chance.

Once the core group of shortlisted candidates has been established, keep the talents engaged. Before and after the final interview, give them a clear overview of what to expect and when they can expect a decision.

Inform the selected talents as soon as the decision has been made. Take the initiative to connect with them even before they are onboarded, and share tips on company culture so that the new hires will have a sense of familiarity and know that they have friendly colleagues to turn to.

During the recruitment process, the effort to reach out to and communicate with candidates can impact on their decision to join your company. From their perspective, it is an insight into how your company treats employees. So, always put your best foot forward on this front.

4. Utilise Data Analytics to Ensure Better Outcomes

A data-driven decision-making process can strengthen your talent acquisition strategy and even ensure better outcomes.

By using data, you can identify where the majority of your talents are from, so you can focus on the programmes or professional networking sites that are yielding results. For instance, if job fairs and recruitment events are not delivering results, it’s a clear indication to turn your attention to job boards, social forums or build agency partnerships.

Predictive analytics are also great in understanding candidate performance and decisions. Data can allow you to uncover interview questions that cause candidates to perform poorly and work requirements that are deterring candidates from accepting the offer. Additionally, using data will allow the monthly and yearly hiring load to be assessed, so the talent acquisition team can plan the recruitment programme ahead of time to meet organisational needs.

5. Expand Outreach with Multi-channel & Search and Selection Solutions

In any talent acquisition process, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Always employ a multi-channel approach to widen your search.

Employee Referral Programme: Referrals are one of the best ways to bring in interested, quality candidates. Your employees will know the skill sets that are needed, and the personality traits that can gel with the company culture. So encourage your staff to refer qualified candidates with a formal employee referral programme; this will give you a higher chance of getting talents who offer good culture- and job-fit.

Look Internally: This method often works when recruiting talents for newly created roles. As internal staff are already familiar with the organisation’s culture and existing processes, they can understand the direction the company wants to embark on and adapt to new roles much more easily than new hires.

Recommendations: Industry peers are some of the best go-to people. They will know of talents who are planning career transitions and they will understand the skill sets needed. Let them know of openings and ask for recommendations, and be ready with attractive packages to entice the recommended talents.

Networking: As in most things, knowing the right people is half the battle won. So take time to identify where most of your talents congregate – be it at conferences or online forums – then network with the right people. This can connect you with the talents you need as well as allow you to grow a pipeline for the future.

In today’s competitive environment, oftentimes, it is not sufficient to rely on internal and personal resources to get the right talents. Especially when acquiring talents for specialist roles, working with an experienced recruitment firm with specialist recruiters in your industry may be the most ideal approach.

Such recruiters can customise search and selection solutions to get talents with the requisite skill sets and experience. They can provide advisory on how to design attractive salary and benefits packages that will entice the talents you want.

On top of that, partnering with a recruitment professional who is a specialist in the field will ensure a productive talent acquisition process that is smoother, easier and much faster!

Should you require assistance in your talent acquisition strategy or in acquiring specialist talents who can facilitate your business goals, email us at enquiries.sg@achievegroup.asia.


 

An effective Talent Acquisition strategy is more important than ever now!

ACHIEVE Group can help businesses and jobseekers navigate the hiring scene by providing timely advisories and customised search and selection solutions that include permanent staffing, contract staffing and payroll outsourcing arrangements.
A recruitment consultancy in the Asia Pacific for over 30 years, ACHIEVE Group is a Human Capital Partner (HCP) and Singapore Prestige Brand Award (SPBA) winner, recognised for commitment to progressive employment practices and business transformation.
For any queries on hiring programmes, staffing arrangements or happenings in the job market, please reach out to us at enquiries.sg@achievegroup.asia or 63230050.