Talent Acquisition Strategies for Your Business and Why Planning Matters

Talent acquisition is a critical component of long-term business planning especially when it comes to leadership and professional skillsets. Dozens of studies and surveys have predicted major talent shortfalls that will begin impacting businesses as early as 2020. Planning is key to getting ahead of the talent shortage. Whether it’s determining what positions you need to fill or developing a more effective sourcing strategy, putting the right talent plans in place is crucial for every business.

“Having a strong acquisition strategy for leadership talent has never been more important than it is today,” says Chris Schoettelkotte, CEO of Manhattan Resources.

However, hiring and retaining the best and most talented employees and leadership is a formidable task — especially when your HR team is already stretched. Putting a talent acquisition strategy in place will help eliminate worry and free up your team to focus on other business matters. While that may all sound like a smart move, how do you get started and what are the most important things to keep in mind when developing your unique talent acquisition strategy?

Outsourcing The Development of a Talent Acquisition Strategy

No doubt talent acquisition planning can be a challenge. For many reasons, it is a good business decision to reach out for assistance. Manhattan Resources has the experience to assist your team in examining the existing organizational structure of your business through the lens of culture and strategy.

“Our goal is a long-term resource approach to attract the best, most qualified people,” Schoettelkotte said. “We spend time on location with your team to experience first-hand what is required for success in your business environment. We then work with candidates to ensure fit and learn what they require to bring their unique skills to your company.”

What Makes Talent Acquisition Different from Traditional Recruiting

Unlike traditional retained recruitment to fill a specific job opening, talent acquisition attracts individuals for long-term planning. For that reason, it is ideal for succession planning. Of course, no planning can ever fully eliminate the need to recruit in times of rapid unexpected growth or when a critical leader or professional gives notice of departure. However, these can be covered with gap planning measures.

Talent acquisition strategic planning is a holistic, ongoing process.  Manhattan Resources goes deep into the complexities of your business and industry to ensure technical requirements are properly identified. This also allows the team to asses the ability of talent to meet and grow with your needs while flourishing in your culture. In addition, the Manhattan Resources team works to ensure talent is identified at the right stage of their career for the role. This combination of traits results in the selection and vetting of exceptional placements with significant “runway” or promotability within the organization. Strategic talent acquisition with Manhattan Resources helps organizations create talent pipelines and suitably forecast talent needs for the future.

The Benefits of Talent Acquisition

An effective Strategic Talent Acquisition program has a number of benefits. Most importantly, it helps organizations develop relationships with targeted talent, resulting in a critical professional network. Talent acquisition is a proactive approach with a long-term view that often leads to competitive advantage, lowered hiring costs, and improved quality of hires.

The benefits of talent acquisition can help your enterprise compete regionally and scale globally.

Whether your team operates in four counties or 40 countries, a global talent acquisition strategy can help you target top talent, regardless of where that talent is based. A flexible, border-fluid approach to talent acquisition enables the most creative enterprises to build and maintain position as market leaders.

As a talent executive or HR leader, you can add value by initiating a business conversation around this approach. To help spark the discussion, here are five key benefits of talent acquisition driven by a global focus.

Improved Operational Efficiency

Especially in the case of more than one location, you are using a single talent acquisition strategy and accessing a talent pipeline that extends throughout your organization. This allows for the promotion of existing employees that have been hired, trained and prepared to advance within the organization. On-boarding investment occurs in less critical roles. Similarly,  workplace morale benefits from the availability of career development opportunities.

Strong Candidate and Employee Experiences

Strategic talent acquisition enables a strong message for candidates as they learn about the employer brand. When all locations use the same strategic approach to talent acquisition, potential employees get consistent brand stories in social media. The message is also consistent when engaging with various company representatives. In addition, your existing employees hear the same messages going out to candidates as what they received when they were candidates. As a result, they feel like a valued member of the company and the professional community. These essential ideas make it much easier to recruit permanent and contingent workers even when entering new regions.

Workforce Diversity Allows for Tangible Business Gains

Advanced collaboration technologies allow for ongoing collaboration with team members in different locations whether your operations are domestic or global. With strategic talent acquisition, you can bring together unique talents from business locations that might otherwise be difficult to tap. This allows employees in your leadership pipeline to broaden their understanding of the organization without long trips disrupting local operations. Effective collaboration in a diverse environment can benefit the bottom line. It also helps promote cultural, ethnic and gender diversity throughout the organization.

Local Insights into Other Markets

According to McKinsey & Company, the number of Fortune 500 companies based in global emerging markets may exceed 45 percent by 2025. Therefore, when expanding into new markets, companies must understand the local culture. This includes the economic climate, business practices, and effective sales strategies of each region. Of course, these can vary greatly throughout the world. Hiring local talent allows your business to integrate into a community quickly and effectively. In addition, it helps you avoid cultural missteps that harm business.

Using Flexible Work Solutions to Win Key Skills

Flexible work incentives enhance competition for skilled workers. But a strong talent acquisition package lets you attract people who offer unique skills. A study released by International Workplace Group found 70% of employees work from home at least one day a week. In addition, more than 50% work remotely at least half the week.  Similarly, flexible work incentives can often be more enticing for candidates than a slight increase in pay.

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