Meet IGA Talent Solutions' Chairman, James Caan CBE

How is your recruitment business dealing with the challenges of talent attraction in a candidate short market? Is the ongoing race for talent having an impact on growth opportunities for your business?

We caught up with IGA Talent Solutions Chairman and recruitment industry expert, James Caan CBE , to get his unique insights into the current recruitment market and obtain some invaluable advice on developing successful talent attraction strategies to help you stay ahead of the competition.

Firstly, James please can you explain to our readers your role within IGA Talent Solutions?

As Chairman of the IGA board, I aim to provide the expertise of the market, industry knowledge, and bespoke mentoring to Managing Directors James and Peter throughout their business journey.

I’m a firm believer that mentoring is essential regardless of how many years of experience you have – even specialists require guidance and a like-minded individual who they can bounce ideas and concepts with.

My main responsibility is to support the strategic planning of IGA Talent Solutions whilst making sure that the thought process before making real-time decisions is comprehensively reviewed and discussed collectively with the rest of the board.

With the current developments and success of IGA, our strategy incorporates the steady expansion internationally. I am able to provide James and Peter with the key advantage of utilising my current network to identify opportunities that can help IGA make the right steps towards its global initiative.

What advice would you give to organisations that are looking to expand internationally?

The key line of advice I would tell business owners is to be consistent in their approach. Ensure you thoroughly do your research. But what’s proven valuable to me is to speak to professionals who would be able to provide you with a more well-rounded perspective of markets.

With my current venture, Recruitment Entrepreneur International, which is built on the success of our UK model, our unique proposition includes the opportunity to connect and be introduced to talents and experienced professionals across the world. Our portfolio now includes businesses in more than 30+ countries, meaning that all business owners within our network can collaborate or identify key opportunities together.

Given the current race for talent and unprecedented vacancy levels, what’s your advice to companies that are looking to hire in this current climate?

I always advise business owners to stay away from ‘seasonal hiring’. Pre-empt what talent you will need within the business and continue your hiring process throughout the year. You shouldn’t just hire at the start or end of the business year as you’ll be limiting your candidate selection within that timeframe. Keep your ear to the ground all the time – there are so many instances where real talent doesn’t come across through traditional processes and is sourced by a conversation with a peer or someone within your network.

In terms of talent attraction, make sure that from the outside perspective, your brand and business offering illustrates what your business is all about. Dedicate time to developing your internal hiring processes, resources, benefits, incentivisation, and most importantly professional development. Everyone wants progression within their career. Your aim should be to identify who is your ideal talent, what do they look like, and what do I need to change or alter to ensure I’m relating to the talent I want to attract. It doesn’t stop you from hiring as your next objective is to ensure you retain them.

In light of the economic and geopolitical environment, what is your prediction for the recruitment market over the next 12 months?

I foresee the shortage of talent within the recruitment sector will not be changing anytime soon. Sprint hiring will be a key buzzword and companies will need to move really quickly in talent acquisition. We will see companies changing their mindset from numerous interview stages and getting closer to candidates within the initial stages of conversations. We will see the concept that ‘people buy into people’ becoming ever more important in the hiring process.

The battle for talent is going to be even more competitive – which goes back to my question to you, how can you stand out from the rest?

Former Dragons’ Den star and serial entrepreneur, James Caan CBE plays a pivotal role in shaping the strategy and growth of IGA Talent Solutions, in his role as Chairman of the Board.

IGA Talent Solutions are proud to be part of the Hamilton Bradshaw private equity group, a collective of private equity backed recruitment brands. This portfolio spans more than 20 market sectors, has transacted in more than 75 countries and now has a combined turnover of more than ￡150 million per annum.

James was recently interviewed by journalist, Georgina Maric, for Your Business Magazine (UK) where he discusses further plans for the international expansion of the Recruitment Entrepreneur business and the plan to open offices in an additional 20 countries this year.

Below is the link to this really interesting article where James and the team share learnings of expanding globally at scale in a post-Brexit environment.