From the ‘Great Resignation’ to the ‘Great Reshuffle’, to what’s now being referred to as ‘the Late Resignation’, the labor market has been on a rollercoaster of changes in the past couple of years. Throughout this upheaval, one constant has remained: businesses are grappling to find and retain high-quality talent. Amid mass layoffs and budget cuts, the overall labor market has witnessed a contraction, with global unemployment rates persistently lower than long-term averages. This pronounced skills shortage has heightened the competition among organizations, each now vying to attract and retain the best talent for their roles.
What does this mean for talent teams? Let’s unpack the driving forces behind this critical skills shortage and share actionable strategies to help your talent acquisition efforts thrive in tight talent market.
The driving forces behind a tight talent market
A skills shortage is not just an abstract term, but a tangible issue rooted in a complex interplay of factors. Historically low unemployment levels mean more roles, and fewer jobseekers, leading many to explore their options and seek out better working conditions or benefits, compounding the shortage. Rising burnout has triggered a wave of employees to explore new careers, turn to part-time work, or take career breaks. What’s more, the impending retirement of the Baby Boomer generation means an urgent need for upskilling the younger generations, succession planning and future-proofing to prepare as this generation exits the workforce.
Effective Strategies for Talent Attraction
A persistent skills shortage has a huge business impact —from productivity to profitability, without the right people, organizations cannot thrive. Now, talent teams are left asking: how can engage the best candidates for our organization —and convince them to say ‘yes’ to us? Here are our top strategies to navigate the tumultuous tides of today’s skills shortage:
1. Optimize your career site
64% of jobseeker research starts on a company career site. It’s your chance to make a great first impression on candidates, provide them with vital information, and capture their interest. It’s crucial to provide an organized, user-friendly, and accessible site experience. Showcase the company’s mission, organizational values, and give prospective applicants a taste of what life at your company is really like. Share employee stories and testimonials and highlight ‘days-in-the-life’: candidates should be able to envision themselves as a part of the team. The visual and user experience are important: authentic pictures and videos play a pivotal role in emphasizing the company’s employer brand, while targeted microsites and custom CTAs will help give jobseekers that extra ‘push’ to hit apply.
2. Revamp your employee value proposition (EVP)
To attract talent in a tight market, you need to show candidates what sets your company apart from the rest —a strong EVP is essential. Take the time to review your EVP: what do you offer your employees? With employees increasingly seeking work-life balance, consider showcasing your flexible working policies, employee well-being initiatives and mental health support services. Show a meaningful commitment to DE&I, and highlight any perks that make your company unique. Once your EVP is updated, make sure you’re showcasing it front and centre on your career site, to drive more applicant interest.
3. Leverage referrals, talent pipelines and internal mobility
In a tight market, it’s vital to look at your sourcing channels. Gone are the days where you can post an ad on a job board, and call it day. Now, recruiters and talent teams need a more proactive approach —and diving into some alternative sourcing channels is a great place to start. Use talent pipelining to speed up the hiring process —with a strong talent network, you’ll have a ready pool of candidates to approach, instead of having to go out to market with each new role. Your current employees too, can be a highly effective source of talent, with internal mobility requiring just 4 applications to fill a role. In a similar vein, employee referral programs are highly effective, requiring just 8 applications to deliver a new hire. Consider incentivizing referrals to encourage your team to recommend qualified candidates.
4. Embrace text-recruiting
Applicants are busy people with full lives —it’s up to you to make it easy for them to engage with you. That’s where text recruiting is a game-changer. With the right tools, you can establish text-to-apply workflows, automate interview reminders, and nurture leads through to application —all via the candidate’s cellphone. This instant form of communication has a 98% open rate, as opposed to more traditional methods like email, with a 20% open rate. By reducing barriers to engage, you’re more likely to capitalise on the attention of on-the-go jobseekers.
5. Embrace technology, automation and AI
Recruitment marketing technology plays a pivotal role in attracting top talent by streamlining and enhancing the hiring process. With the right tools, companies can use automation to build talent communities, nurture candidates and expedite routine tasks. This not only saves valuable time but also improves the candidate experience. Artificial intelligence (AI) and chatbots can streamline initial candidate screening, or answer frequently asked questions, to improve the experience and speed up the hiring process.
6. Develop a robust onboarding process
20% of employee turnover occurs within the first 45 days of an employee’s tenure with a company, making this onboarding period a critical juncture in the employee journey. A well-structured and comprehensive onboarding process is an invaluable investment, especially during a skills shortage: you’ve worked so hard to secure a great new hire —you don’t want to lose them! A robust onboarding process not only fosters a strong sense of community but also substantially increases new hire productivity. Set clear goals and expectations, offer comprehensive training, and make an effort to immerse your new hire in the company’s culture, values, and mission. Use technology to streamline administrative tasks and support the process, to free up time for more valuable face-to-face interactions.
Conclusion
By understanding the current talent landscape and implementing effective attraction strategies, talent teams can adapt and thrive in this competitive talent environment. By prioritizing embracing technology-driven recruiting methods, your organization can navigate the challenges of hiring in a skills-short market and continue to thrive.
Clinch specializes in helping talent teams streamline their hiring, elevate their employer brands, and proactively attract the best talent. Are you ready to take control of your recruitment strategy? Get in touch with our team today to learn more.
