Perhaps the most important step of any hiring process is one that begins long before the employer ever starts looking for candidates; one which employers, if they are to have any chance of rooting out the very best talent available to them, must be conducting at all times, day in and day out, year round. In order for employers have any real success in finding talented candidates then they need to start work early on building the most expansive networks they can. To do this they will need to apply a strategy which spans old and new techniques alike in order to reach out and encompass as many high quality, talented individuals as possible.
As the hiring professionals at executive search firms have a wealth of experience in developing networks and sourcing candidates, here are a few tips from the professionals on how to do the same.
To begin with, employers should always be on the lookout for new networking opportunities of all kinds. While the growth of the internet over the past decade has created remarkable innovations for employers to take advantage of in the form of social media and far reaching job posting sites, it is still essential that employers still make sure to make use of traditional networking opportunities as well. One of the best methods of making connections is by sending employees to conferences and similar events based both on their position and the industry within which the company operates. This provides the opportunity for employees, on the company’s behalf, to make contact with individuals who can later be tapped in the executive search and candidate sourcing process.
Also, as important as it may be for employers to continue to make use of these more customary networking strategies, as was mentioned before, the internet has opened up countless new strategies to this purpose. To begin with, where social media is concerned, employers will need to begin educating themselves on how best to incorporate the various social media sites into their networking strategies. For example, LinkedIn has demonstrated itself to be the superior mode for connecting with individuals on a purely professional basis and can allow the user to search for and reach out to individuals within a given field or industry encompassed within a certain degree of separation from their current contacts. Facebook too allows for a certain degree of one-on-one professional connection but can also be used more readily as a means to accrue likes to a company’s page and share information thusly. Twitter presents a far less personal touch but can allow for the wide spread of information being shared by accumulation of followers. Employers will understandably need to learn the pros and cons of each of these systems and how to use them to the advantage of their sourcing strategies.
However, even as they strive to build and expand their networks, the work does not end there. To make these efforts as effective as possible employers should be on the lookout for talent at all times, everywhere they go. Stories abound of employers finding talented individuals in the most random of places. Even if such a discovery sometimes means that an individual will need to be trained, raw talent is not something that can be taught and must be sought out whenever and wherever possible.
Published by Conselium Executive Search, the global leader in compliance search.
