The Talent Pool is Changing in Central NY and The Capital Region. Tips for Attracting New Talent

Today’s recruiting landscape Syracuse, Utica, Albany and everyone in between is more competitive than it has been in recent years. While H.R. professionals continue to work diligently to fill open positions, many are feeling the pressure of the current labor shortage, all while their hiring demands have accelerated following pandemic-induced lockdowns and malaise.

To help fill the gaps between the number of qualified candidates and their company’s open job requisitions, many H.R. professionals are looking to expand their talent pools, developing and maintaining long-term relationships with potential future employees, consultants, and contractors who they can tap when needed to keep the business fully staffed despite fluctuating market demands.

Creating and maintaining a successful talent pool requires time, attention, and the right engagement strategies to keep participants interested. Here are a few tips to follow to build a successful program:

Consider the Needs of Your Digitally Transformed Organization

According to commentary published by Personio, “A talent pool is a collection of potential candidates that help an organization grow and achieve its long-term goals.” From a local perspective, understanding the talent pool in the Capital Region maintaining a strong database of talent and leveraging it helps ensure you have potential top-talent on hand at all times.

The value of the talent pool continues to increase as workforce structures have become more distributed and the trend toward remote, work-from-home models has opened up employment and consulting opportunities across geographies anywhere in the country or even worldwide.

This is welcome news for busy New York H.R. professionals in the wake of the pandemic, reports Gartner. “The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated digital transformation initiatives for most organizations. Consequently, organizations have increasing needs for digital talent and will face intensified competition for such talent.”

Maintaining a database of suitable contacts for the many new positions involved in your company’s digital transformation initiatives is a best practice that can help you provide internal teams with the resources they need to drive innovation and bring new products to market in today’s digitally transformed economy.

Organize Your Talent Pool by Segments

Industry experts recommend against lumping “all your talent into a single category,” This is especially important as your talent pool grows in size and complexity. Attributes such as work experience, education and training, relation to company, and a candidate’s aspirations are all categories that can be segmented, helping streamline your internal talent searches as positions open up. Categorizing regionally can also help identify both the right talent and understand how they might view your company and the opportunity.

Consider also your H.R. department’s – and other stakeholders’ – experiences with talent pool candidates, especially those who have worked for the company before and those referred by employees, customers, or others associated with your firm. Those who already have experience working with your company often bring extra value to consulting and contractor roles.

Keep Candidates Informed and Engaged

Once candidates join your talent pool, make sure to communicate with them effectively and often. As a best practice, experts recommend going beyond simply distributing job postings to also sending out “rich and immersive content [via] email newsletters, social media updates, written content, and videos or imagery on good news stories associated with your organization.” Highlighting successful employees within your organization is another best practice that tells talent pool candidates you value your employees and recognize their contributions.

Ultimately, regular touchpoints with talent pool participants will keep your organization front and center in their minds and help deepen both their knowledge of your organization and affinity for your mission, values, and culture.

Cultivate Diversity

Embracing diversity is good for your hiring practices – and good for business. In fact, Glassdoor data published by LinkedIn reveals that 67% of job seekers “said that a diverse workforce is an important factor when evaluating companies and job offers.” A recent Boston Consulting Group (BCG) study identified diversity as a key driver of innovation, finding that “diverse teams produce 19% more revenue.”

Increasingly, companies are focused on developing diverse workforces, implementing diversity, equity, and inclusion policies and initiatives to foster inclusiveness within the workplace and ensure that the voices of all individual employees are heard. One of the best ways to cultivate diversity within your organization is to develop a diverse talent pool that effectively reflects all your company stakeholders, including customers, suppliers, and the broader communities your organization serves.

Seek Outside Guidance

With all the many new responsibilities shouldered by your H.R. team today, it may make sense to bring in an outside firm to grow, maintain, and engage with your talent pool. M3 Placement and Partnership is there to help.

Located right here in Albany, but connected to top talent pools throughout the country, our experienced recruiters are there for you every step of the way, providing the comprehensive services you need to fill open requisitions and transform your workforce. Our experienced H.R. professionals can help you construct a talent pool program that attracts top professionals across skillsets and disciplines, and that grows this valuable resource with proven strategies and outreach initiatives that work.

M3’s vast network of established contacts is yours to tap as well, further helping your team build the kind of networks that deliver results and move businesses forward. To ensure your success, we fully immerse ourselves in your business, providing expert coaching while helping you implement best practices and long-term process improvements to take your talent pool program to the next level.

Let us help you build a successful talent pool program, one that works as well for you as it does for those who join it. Contact M3 Placement and Partnership today for your free consultation.