Are you a hiring manager? - 5 reasons why you are likely NOT seeing the best candidates

1. Lack of focus on a deep search for the role.

This one is HUGE and see it so often. Many TA strategies are just focused on 'getting a role filled fast'.....Some factors to consider;

·     How busy is the HR/TA/Agent that is tasked with filling your role?

·     How much of a focus is your role for them?

·     What is their strategy to ensure you see the best candidates whatever it takes?

·     Is there the time/budget to really get to know the highly sought after ‘passive’ candidates and understand deeply what it may take to attract them away from their current ‘comfortable’ position?

2. The initial approach to candidates is ‘weak’ or ‘cold’.

Many companies assume a candidate is ‘not interested’ if they haven’t replied to an email/InMail campaign within a certain period. What often then happens is that the hiring manager is only presented with the ‘best’ of talent that was easiest to engage (i.e. that did reply).

If (as in Japan) that only 8% of the talent pool is considered ‘active’, 15% is ‘passive’ and 77% ‘out-of-the-market’; https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/importance-employer-branding-japan-murray-clarke ……….what are you doing to engage the 92%?

3. The supply of talent from wide variety (and/or external) of channels and sources may be restricted……

…..effectively, the net is not cast very wide or very deep into the talent pool.

Examples of this include;

·     limited social media involvement & engagement,

·     ineffective marketing & branding to the talent pool,

·     restrictive vendor management tools & policies such that the price or terms of vendor use may be locked in artificially high and/or it becomes an administrative challenge to take advantage of higher value solutions.

4. Search parameters are too narrow.

Are you just looking to hire the person that is most ‘comfortable’ to manage or with the experience that you recognize?

Are you aware of where your bias is (whether positive or negative) with respect to age? Gender? Ethnicity? Previous employers? Experience? Employment gaps? Redundancy?. .as in this note by Ruby Lee: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6316050746253070336 ).

5. Hiring manager is not up to date with the talent market

·     Do you regularly network outside of your company and keep an eye on new talent coming into your sector?

Traditional style interviewing an engagement only.

·     Is your perspective still the same as 20 years ago?