How to Get Job Seekers to Join Talent Networks—And Why It's So Important

Current talent networks are kind of like the 2.0 version of the old talent pipeline. Now, technology enters the picture and provides electronic options for collecting and maintaining endless amounts of data about potential job candidates and job opportunities. Talent networks are not just a list of names and resumes. They are powerful communities that bring supply and demand together. (See our White Paper, Staffing Firms and Talent Pools: The Time Has Come to Sink or Swim.)

They are such a win-win for job seekers and employers that you’d be hard pressed not to have or join one.

Benefits to the Company
Here is a quick summary of advantages to creating a talent network for your company:

Getting your message heard – You are creating a space where you can share your vision, ideals and opportunities, and encourage likeminded people to connect and consider how they might fit.

Developing and strengthening your brand – Talent networks allow you to raise your profile among target audiences and increase recognition in order to attract a more highly skilled workforce.

Attracting and retaining top talent – Job candidates will have direct access to a broad range of opportunities, information and company employees so they can develop a real relationship with your company over time.

Filling job vacancies much faster – When you’ve already got a pipeline of skilled workers categorized according to experience, skills, interests and so on, the recruitment process gets whittled down substantially.

Tracking trends – As you collect more and more data based on the way people within your talent network interact and respond to information, you can leverage this to market your company and your job opportunities more effectively.

So, how do you populate your network with talent? Start by creating awareness and making people understand the value it brings to them.

Create Awareness

-On your careers page or agency site, you want to make the opportunity to join your talent network front and center. It needs to be easy to join and navigate.

-It’s also important that you optimize your page so search engines find it. (Search engine optimization is a huge topic in and of itself, so if you aren’t already on top of that, be sure to get help from a good SEO firm.) You will want to have a lot of relevant content on the page. In addition to current job openings, you should, at the very least, include things like comprehensive and interesting job descriptions for all the positions you fill regularly, news and city guides for the locations of your jobs and offices, and a few good company-branding YouTube videos.

-Advertising your talent network is also important for creating awareness. Use these places to actively and engagingly advertise your talent network.

Social media sites

Job boards

Job fairs

College career services offices

Freelance marketplaces

Your corporate website

Ads on search engines like Google and YouTube

Messaging apps like Twitter, Snapchat and Periscope

And don’t just follow, friend and connect. Actively engage with people who show some interest. Stream events, showcase what it’s like to work at the company, and provide them with significant information and resources they could find valuable.

-Get your employees to actively invite friends and acquaintances to come and join them in your company’s talent network.

-Old school phone calls and emails that offer the suggestion to just check out your talent networks page can still be effective too.

Benefits to Job Seekers

As you advertise and encourage candidates to join your talent network, be sure to point out how they’ll benefit. People who join can:

·       Stay connected with companies of interest

·       Have direct access to a broad range of opportunities and develop relationships with companies

·       Receive alerts with new job opportunities that match interests and capabilities

·       Share job opportunities with family and friends through Social Media or email

·       Create a living profile with things like video and a portfolio

·       Have a virtual community to discuss opportunities, goals and interests, as well as to ask questions and get information about career-related and other topics

·       Stay in the loop and receive prompt feedback about the result of their expressed interest

The scope of what Talent networks can offer will just continue to grow. The sooner you get started, the sooner you will have access to a wide array of great talent that will keep expanding as your business does. If you have questions about how to create a talent network for your organization, call us at 415-835-0202 or email us at sales@talentcircles.com.

Staffing Agencies Help Solve the Challenges of Hiring Good Seasonal Workers

For organizations with seasonal fluctuations in business, hiring temporary workers is often a necessity. Regardless of when they need additional help -- whether it’s over the holidays or during temperature-dictated cycles (think beaches and amusement parks in the summer and skiing and snowboarding in winter) – everyone needs employees they can rely on. “Temporary employee” should never be synonymous with “low-caliber employee.”

Of course, the nature of short-term job assignments can make it difficult to find available, committed, hard-working people who realize (and care) that their actions really do have an impact on the business’ bottom line. Difficult, but not impossible.

Luckily, there are staffing agencies that can help businesses and good seasonal workers connect. The key to that connection is information and communication.

What to look for in a staffing agency

One of the most important aspects to consider when working with a staffing agency is the strength of its database. You want to work with a firm that has a large pool of talent to draw from. And this talent needs to be well screened with complete profiles that are easily accessed and able to be organized according to specifications that matter to you. While you want the availability of a large number of potential candidates, the ability to search those large numbers with speed and precision will set the strongest agencies apart.

The best agencies should gain a good understanding of your job requirements and your company’s values. They should learn which skills and traits typically work best in your industry and environment and help match you with people from their database who possess them. You will want the agency to share your job postings with their entire talent pool, but also have technology at work that narrows that pool to the very best possible options for you—with thorough data available on each person.

It's also important that the whole system is easy to navigate for both you and potential candidates. People need to be able to apply, connect and interview quickly and easily. Ideally, there will be a variety of options for communicating, sharing information, referring friends and staying in touch. Your goal should be to create your own specific, ever-expanding and up-to-date talent pool within the agency’s vast database so you’re always prepared for your seasonal hiring.

Overall, you want to look for agencies who understand your company’s needs, values and requirements, and have access to technology that makes the hiring process as smooth and reliable as possible. 

To learn more, visit our website at www.talentcircles.com, contact us via email at sales@TalentCircles.com or call 888-280-0808 for more information.

Diversity and Skills: The Importance of Hiring Military Veterans

While the unemployment rate for veterans has been declining over the last few years, many are still struggling to find civilian jobs. This seems to stem from both the veterans themselves not feeling adequately prepared to make the transition from military to mainstream, and from employers thinking that many of the skills acquired during military service don’t translate to the civilian labor force.

Thankfully, new Veterans assistance programs, like Joining Forces, are continuing to be created to help with the transition and to connect veterans with employers committed to hiring returning military personnel. (Here is a list of employers who’ve made a public commitment to hiring Veterans.)

For employers, hiring Veterans goes beyond just doing the right thing for the people who have served our country. It’s actually a good business decision. In the Military Times last week, Michelle Obama was quoted during an event that announced more than 50 companies have committed to hire and train at least 110,000 veterans and military spouses over the next five years. She said, “They made these commitments because time and again they saw for themselves that our veterans and military spouses are simply the best employees around. And they realized that training and hiring these folks isn’t just the right thing to do — it’s the smart thing to do for their bottom lines.”

The skills and strengths former military personnel can bring to your company are numerous and varied. If you’re uncertain how some of their experiences relate to civilian job needs, here are some things to keep in mind as read the resumes of job-seeking Veterans.

Skills and attributes

·       Look past specifics of their roles in the military to see instances of creativity, leadership, independence, initiative and technical expertise. Veterans, by the nature of their jobs in the military, are often good at creatively solving complex problems and quickly develop confidence in their abilities to lead others early in their careers.

·       Many Veterans have developed strong planning abilities and good competitive analysis skills.

·       Performance coaching occurs regularly in the military. Those who have performed the coaching, as well as those who’ve received it, can bring both a positive attitude toward coaching as well as excellent insights into performance improvement ideas for your company.

·       Military personnel regularly need to learn new skills quickly in very stressful environments. This encourages the ability to think on their feet and make quick decisions under pressure, which are great skills to have at your disposal in all kinds of civilian jobs.

·       With the wide variety of personalities in the military, Veterans have had the experience of learning to work well as part of a team with all levels of personnel. They often develop strong interpersonal skills that enable them to work with many types of people to meet desired goals.

·       Veterans develop a strong work ethic and can be counted on for their loyalty and dedication.

When you come from an environment where your life may literally depend on doing your job well, you quickly develop a good work ethic. Most Veterans are hard-working, detail-oriented, have a strong sense of integrity and are driven by a sense of service to their team and country.

Specific military roles and how they relate to civilian jobs

-Ranks like Private, Seaman and Airman usually have the least number of years in the military but have still picked up some solid experience. They’ve learned how to listen and pick up new skills, how to become part of a team who works toward a shared goal and may even gain some project management experience.

-Titles like Corporal, Sergeant, and Petty Officer are those who’ve been promoted to supervisory roles. Many received formal leadership training and are good at both working together with their teams as well as being able to take charge and lead them. As these non-commissioned officers advance in rank, they can go from overseeing one team to many teams, involving responsibility for anywhere from 10 to 500 people, and deal with more and more complicated plans and missions. They can perform very well in a variety of project management, personnel management and supervisory roles.

-Ranks such as Lieutenant, Captain, Major, Commander, Colonel, and General often get a college degree before joining the military. These Commissioned officers can use their strong leadership skills for high level organizational planning and developing business strategy. They can often do well in C-suite roles and positions in operations, communications, logistics and human resources.

As you consider former military personnel, remember that Veterans may have some difficulty communicating how their skills from their military service will translate to civilian jobs. Try writing job descriptions where the requirements align somewhat with military equivalents, and learn to read into how the experiences they’ve had really can relate to the work you need done. The more aware you are of how to decipher the information you’re given and relate it to the jobs you need to fill, the more opportunities you have for tapping into some great talent that other, less informed employers are overlooking.

Learn more about committing to Joining Forces here. And for more information about adding military Veterans to your talent pool, visit our website at www.talentcircles.com, contact us at sales@TalentCircles.com or call 888-280-0808 for more information.

Convincing Top Candidates to Consider and Accept Your Job Offer

With the lower unemployment rate allowing job seekers to be in the driver’s seat and technology enabling companies and recruiters to reach more people than ever before, finding good talent is taking a backseat to winning over that talent. Here’s how to make the most of your efforts to convince top candidates to consider—and accept—your job offer. 

Make all of your recruiting activities accessible on the mobile platform

If you’ve ever lost, forgotten or neglected to charge your smart phone, you’re likely familiar with that immediate jolt of panic (possibly bordering on terror) that sets in. It’s as if part of you is missing. With these strong connections to our phones, we expect to be able to conduct anything of importance using them. And job seeking activities definitely fall within that category. If you want the best response rate from job applicants, anything you need to communicate about a job opportunity or your company should be readily and easily accessible via the mobile platform.  

Be sure people can find job opportunities, learn about your company, apply for jobs, ask questions, interview and accept job offers easily with their smart phones. If potential candidates don’t have the option to apply for jobs using a mobile platform, there’s a good chance many of them will just move on to a company that does provide that option. Make it easy for them to not only upload resumes and complete applications, but also schedule their own interviews based on hiring managers’ calendar availability. And, remember, responsiveness is paramount to keeping individuals engaged and interested.

Create videos about your company

People love video. It's high impact, engaging, and let's face it, much easier than reading. Use people's YouTube addiction to your advantage. You can create everything from corporate videos that describe the company (make it interesting!) to informal employee-created videos that provide enthusiastic, real-life insights into the personality of the company. Show why employees like it there and let them discuss their favorite perks. Videos can also be created for job opportunities, acting as a live job description or recruitment ad. They can even be individualized for specific recruits. The key is to be creative and compelling.

Make your job descriptions exciting

Don’t simply dust off the old job description and assume it’s going to be a) accurate or b) appealing. Many times the original job description for the now-open position has changed substantially over time, so it’s important to verify what the position really entails. You don’t want to mislead someone with a description that doesn’t really fit what you need the person to do, since that can often lead to the quick departure of your new hire. At the same time, you want to make the job posting interesting enough that people don’t glaze over while reading it. If possible, get feedback from the person leaving the role (if the individual was a strong performer) about the most important and interesting aspects of the position. Also ask coworkers and stakeholders what they find most valuable about the job. 

Create a job description that encompasses both facts and passion about the role. Compare your job description with similar jobs at other companies in your industry. Ask people to give their opinions of which descriptions are more interesting and why. Use that information to help tweak and improve what you’ve written. You can also ask potential candidates what terminology would make the job sound the most appealing. And, remember, with the popularity of video, you’ll want to include a video version of your exciting new job posting as well.

Be very quick in responding to candidates

We’ve come a long way from the days of getting resumes printed and sending them out via snail mail, waiting for weeks to even get acknowledgement that the resume was received. Now, we want things to be instantaneous (especially the millennials!) People want to apply quickly, connect quickly, interview quickly, and get employed quickly. If top candidates start the process but don’t receive an offer in a reasonable amount of time, which is often less than two weeks, they tend to drop out and move on to another opportunity.
 It might be helpful to look at past data to see how the quality of new hires correlates to the speed of the hiring process. Is the quality of personnel diminished when the hiring process was slow? In other words, did the good people move on and leave you with the 2^nd or 3^rd string? If so, make that information available to everyone involved in the hiring process so they realize the impact a delayed hire can have on business. If need be, single out the slowpokes and see if that helps kick start their efforts.

Present data to top candidates that shows how well matched they are to the job

Track hiring and performance data to see what works. If you have facts about the types of people who typically do well in your company and in specific roles, you create a win-win situation. First, you know what skills and attributes to look for, and you have a good idea of the type of personality that fits your culture and job needs. This will help you look for the right people to begin with. Then, once you find the best people, you can present them with measurable data showing how strongly they correlate to people who fit in with and do well in your company. Showing them how likely they are to succeed and enjoy working in this new job gives you great leverage and is an excellent selling point.

The bottom line is, you need to have a solid idea of the types of candidates who work most successfully in your company, and be innovative in the ways you attract, connect with and sell those kinds of candidates on working for you.

Visit our website at www.talentcircles.com, contact us at sales@TalentCircles.com or call 888-280-0808 for more information.