It’s the time of year when managers start to look ahead to the future, thinking about goals and strategies for the new year and contemplating whether new team members will need to be added.
If your company is going to be hiring in 2024, now is when you need to start considering how you’ll bring in talented, qualified new employees to add to the strengths and abilities of your already solid, successful team.
If you want to make sure your new employees are just as skilled, here are five ways to gain the attention of the top talent currently on the job market (or maybe just passively considering their options — those candidates might be easier to lure away to your company than you’d think!).
Tips to Find Top Talent in the New Year (and Beyond)!
Talk about the Future from the Start
Employees want to know they can continue to grow, add skills, and stay sharp and relevant in their field when they agree to join a company. To make your company enticing, talk about the training and skills programs you offer, or other ways in which your employees are encouraged and able to learn new things and stay relevant. Employees who are eager to learn will help nudge your company forward, breaking with old ways that might not be as useful or beneficial anymore and making your company more efficient, creative, nimble, and, ultimately, relevant and successful. Wanting to learn and having the opportunity to continue their training helps your company as much as it does your employees. Be sure to also talk about your company’s practice of promoting from within, offering examples of people who have been on the job for a number of years and how they’ve been promoted or risen up through the ranks based on their excellence.
Be Flexible
Managers learned during the pandemic that flexibility, both in hours worked and in where someone does their job, is becoming more important to employees. Many job candidates, especially younger ones, are interested in working for a company that offers remote or hybrid working options or are at least willing to consider and allow remote work occasionally in order to help address emergencies like an unexpected illness or medical situation. If your company does not or cannot offer out-of-office working environments, consider flexible schedules, where all work is completed on time but maybe not within the confines of a traditional 8 a.m. – 4 p.m. or 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. workday. Some people would rather come in earlier to beat the commute and rush in order to leave early to get their kids from school; others are more productive later in the day and would like to work a schedule that reflects those hours.
Prioritize Diversity
A company where everyone has the same background, interests, training, education, and experiences might sound like one in which there will be no tension, everyone will get along, and things will be conflict-free. That’s nowhere near true. A company that embraces diversity, that welcomes with open arms people who think differently and grew up with a variety of experiences and backgrounds, is one in which there’s more creativity, more insight, more flexibility, and a better understanding of the world, allowing the company to reach new audiences and bring in new customers. Diversity is a priority for younger employees especially, because they’ve grown up in a world where they’ve had access to stories and information from around the world, and they have a passion for working in an environment that reflects the community and world in which they live.
Work on Your Reputation
How is your company viewed by competitors? What do online reviews about your company say? Do you know? A stray negative comment here or there can be chalked up to a bad day or an angry customer; a series of complaints or repetitive issues mentioned on pages like Glassdoor, LinkedIn, or other websites and platforms can wreck a reputation that you’ve worked so hard to build. It can also drive away talented candidates who don’t want to work for a company that is perceived in too negative a light. Make sure the comments about your company online are positive ones and, if they’re not glowing reviews, make note of the complaints and issues raised and set about fixing them quickly.
Tell a Great Story
People want to be excited about where they work. They want to work for a company that has a great story to tell, a vibrant history, and a bright future. They want to buy in and be committed to the company, especially if they’re looking to make a change or if they’re being tempted to consider an offer when they’re happy where they are today. When talking with candidates, make sure you’re presenting exciting, interesting, and encouraging information about your company, talking about why you love working there and how bright the future looks, weaving into the story how this particular job plays a part in that bright future. Make it sound like your company holds a key to their future success and help paint a great picture of how wonderful your company is now and how it’ll be even better going forward.
Find the Best Candidates for Your Organization Today
Searching for job candidates also requires casting a wide net to reach talented people you might have missed or overlooked previously, so don’t forget to use all the tools at your disposal — including working with a staffing company like ABLE Associates!
At ABLE, we’re happy to help you adjust your job descriptions to make your open positions sound as attractive as possible to top talent, plus we can help review resumes and conduct early interviews to make sure you’re seeing the candidates most likely to meet your needs. We also work with candidates looking to make a change and can pass along resumes quickly that will suit your company’s expectations. When you’re ready to bring on new talent, call ABLE Associates, and let’s get to work!