Description of talent acquisition process

Talent acquisition is the strategic process used by organizations to analyze their talents needs, identify and develop the best talent then execute the strategy by recruiting, evaluating and onboarding candidates. 

This is mostly the work of HR working in conjunction with the talent acquisition specialist and the input of the executive management. The talent acquisition process is instrumental for any business willing to make an impact in the current market, for it is the epitome of getting the right candidates to occupy different positions.

Why is talent acquisition important?

Hiring employees who fit the available job is critical, since it affects the success of the business. Without the right set of employees, a business is likely to struggle with low productivity, poor decision making, and demoralized staff.

Talent acquisition is forward thinking. Instead of just hiring an employee simply because there is a vacant position, the acquisition team considers the career growth of the worker in the future. Eventually, the company employs people who can become future leaders or make important contributions.

Steps to follow to organize the best talent acquisition process

Creating a fruitful talent acquisition strategy is not a one-off thing, but a process which requires involvement of all parties within the workplace. It has to be understood that the involvement entails listening to the employees, to understand the challenges and strengths in regards to their daily work. This creates a baseline under which the future recruitments or training should focus on.

In order to have a meaningful talent acquisition process, the following steps should be followed to add a strategic perspective to the recruiting process.

Reviewing organizational strategies

Assessing the departmental goals and overall plan of the business can give an idea of future requirements. The management is able to come up with proper decisions that would inform sustainability in the market such as the need to merge or expand.

Gathering feedback

Departmental managers, HR, and senior executives are a good source of experience, since they understand the job roles of every employee. Since they review the performance appraisals of the workers, they are able to tell which skills are required in the workplace.

Defining the brand

Studying the public perception regarding the brand using surveys is the most effective way to establish areas of improvement. The company should therefore align the brand image with the goals, and the same is reflected in the recruitment.

Talent relationship management

Before the company starts active recruitment, it has to sell itself to talented individuals as a good place to work in. Top talents are focused on working in a place with a good reputation.

Recruitment

This is the process of bringing in new talents to fill vacant positions. It involves sourcing, lead nurturing, candidate selection, interviewing and onboarding.

Talent acquisition methods

There are different methods that can be adopted to nurture the best talents to be utilized by the company during the time of need. This is done so as to have an in-house team which understands the operations of the company, thus reducing training cost. 

Some of the methods are the following.

Creating an attractive internship program

This kind of program is created for graduate students who have completed school. They are incorporated within the company to learn from the experienced staff, and they are trained to serve as leaders. 

They are then employed in various roles upon completion of the grooming period. Remember that company culture attracts talent therefore that is always something to lean on. Internship is a promising beginning of a future employee. 

Attracting people from other cities and/or countries

Depending on the level and quality of education where the business is located, the management can consider allowing diversity through providing opportunities for other nationals. 

This achieves two objectives; diversity fulfillment, and tapping of highly skilled talent. This is common practice in knowledge-industries like IT and Customer Services.

Spotting internal talent and training them for future roles

In the large organization where “look from within” staffing policy is operational; this strategy is predominant. The strategy encourages the junior employees to take additional responsibilities, with the intention of preparing them for leadership positions.

Attracting previous employees

Organizations lose the most experienced employees all the time. This can happen due to retirement, or intentional exit. However, not all get satisfied with the exit, and the management can consider to re-engage them to leverage on their skills.

Talent acquisition should be a continuous thing, to deal with mass exit of experienced employees, and also to address the new changes in the market environment. A proper composition of a talent acquisition team is the root for success of any organization.

Learn more in our other articles such as What is the difference: recruiter vs talent acquisition.