How to Find Talent
As the job market grows more competitive, so does the employer’s quest to find the best talent. Company leaders have begun to realize that elevated employee talent leads to increased levels of productivity and overall profit. Studies have shown that the most talented job candidates tend to display six characteristics that cause them to stand out in job performance:
• They show a record of having been at the top of the ladder in job performance.
• They are creative and inventive
• They are decision-makers who follow through
• They have the capacity to effectively motivate others
• They can adapt to change
• They are solution oriented
An abundance of helpful tools have been devised to assist in separating the real talent from employees or candidates who lack the qualities needed to make your company excel. Software has been developed to help HR professionals administer psychometric tests that examine such skills as verbal and numerical reasoning. Personality assessments look at individual traits relating to job habits and organizational skills. These types of evaluative tools can help company leaders make informed decisions about candidates quickly.
In the actual search for talented workers, it is prudent to turn first to your company’s own internal networks to ask for referrals to potential candidates. Question trusted shareholders, professional advisors, current employees, and vendors who might be able to help.
Concurrently, carefully construct a job description that delineates the primary responsibilities of a position and publish these criteria online. The rise of job-board aggregators like Indeed.com has made this an easy, painless process.
However, since job board postings rarely produce the A-player candidates most companies covet, utilize those social networking sites such as Linkedin, Twitter, and Facebook to find relevant talent. Social network participation has become an essential tool in this area.
Talent Assessment & Strategies in Retention
In order to conduct successful talent assessments in retention, you need to provide managers with essential information for talent management. Below are some of the facets of this essential information.
• Job-related traits necessary for superior performance – When the manager knows what the job entails, they are better placed to nurture such traits in the individual. Moreover, they are also able to match the best talent to the tasks they are required to perform.
• Job-based coaching and development – Managers are thereby able to identify the key factors which will enable them to successfully motivate, manage, and develop the talents of every individual.
• Individual’s strengths and challenges – By understanding the strengths and challenges faced by the individual, managers are able to assist them in finding the best ways to adapt within the organization or situation.
• Keys to management effectiveness – Effective managers will have fully understood what rewards and motivators drive the individual to do their job.
• Keys to team building – It is essential that all managers understand the keys to team building as these are what enable them to build teams which are able to work both effectively and profitably for the overall benefit of the company.
• Performance reviews – Regularly carrying out performance reviews on every individual ensures that talent is properly identified, developed, and afforded the opportunity to succeed on an ongoing basis.
• Career path building blocks – Help each person identify ways to grow within the company.
There are some simple steps that recruiters and managers can take to improve on both their selection and retention strategies. These include:
• Assess the current status – First, the recruiter/manager needs to assess the current status of the candidate. For this, they may consider the Cost of Employee Turnover, percentage of Employee Turnover, Retention percentage and Tenure Analysis.
• Benchmark job – This involves determining the key accountabilities of the candidate through the use of the multiple assessment tools available.
• Update selection process – Recruiters/managers must never forget about on-boarding, as well as ensuring that they utilize the Job and Candidate Portfolios.
• Update development program – This job benchmark allows for the creation of custom development plans, New Hire Orientation, & Current Employee Development Systems.
• Implementation – Ensuring that implementation is permanent and across the entire organization.
