Talent & Talent Acquisition

Since past few months I am actively looking for a full-time position and have yet to find something. However, this search effort has made me thinking as to what is happening in the world of HR specifically talent acquisition/recruitment/hiring or whatever is today’s word for this function.

My search takes me to LinkedIn religiously at least twice a day to check for new opportunities, carefully reviewing them and apply if it matches at least 80% with my experience and organization’s requirement, then wait for the result which is mostly grave silence.

Taking a break to what is happening with my job search and moving to the central idea of this article……….

From personnel to hiring, recruitment, talent acquisition to some more titles, the function has been re-named and branded several times in last few decades. Work places and practices are changing so are the names and functions along with job descriptions, candidate and employer expectations and everything related to these two elements; candidate & employer.

Many HR professionals associated with talent acquisition function post their experiences highlighting what candidates do, how difficult is to respond to each applicant, how many irrelevant applications they receive, potential salary discussions going haywire and sudden refusal of candidate to join after final offer acceptance.

On the other hand, potential candidates were also found complaining that they don’t receive any communication after application, are asked to produce previous salary documentary proofs, misleading job description & compensation commitments, bad experience of onboarding and overall negative recruitment experience.

On the face of it both sides are justified in their claims and we have all faced similar situations on either side of the table. My two cents:

Talent acquisition professionals may approach their function as providing service to internal & external customers.

-Must have KPIs and supporting processes along with systems to achieve their SLA

-Internal SLA to meet deadlines from request being received from functional team or once employee resigns to start the process.

-Job posts shall be carefully reviewed before posting with relevant and critical details including at least salary range and level without internal jargons, mentioning if internal candidates will be given preference, end date and whether any communication will follow or simply disclaimer that “if you do not receive communication within X days then you have been not successful this time”. Many posts are categorized as Mid Senior Level with just 1 year of experience and JD of call center agent. Go figure.

-Job posts should be visually attractive in brand colors and standard template, simple fonts, visible content and legible instead of loud colors, too much graphics and fancy fonts. Remember its similar to product positioning and branding. Talk to your marketing team!

-Hiring team should understand resume cannot be customized for every job post. Invest time in going through resume which will give you experience to understand candidates profile and at the same time you will develop smart screening skills. ATS is not your replacement but a support hence use technology to make life easier not because someone sold the software to your company. Work with your tech team to come up with technological solutions which can take care of automated responses pre & post evaluation, identifying potentials and meeting your targets within agreed SLA. Not necessary to use email for responses, you can easily use SMS and now even WhatsApp. Standard message drafts library will be helpful and ready to go when needed.

-Clear & well-defined job post will result in suitable applications; posts shall not allow comments but only links to apply or email address on which candidates need to apply. Allowing comments and then being unable to respond will produce negative experience. Remember it’s your brand!

-Take a continuous improvement approach for your function, the efficient process backed by technology and professional approach will reduce your work load, produce positive experience for your internal & external customers.

Candidates use your energy where it will make an impact.

-Do not comment, “interested” on all job posts. This is not a professional nor workable approach.

-Invest time to improve your resume by taking a look at various target Job descriptions and people who are performing at similar position you wish to achieve. Be realistic in your salary expectations. If you are serious to find the job invest time and make effort.

-You already know to be careful about spelling, grammar, use of words, formats, fonts and so on. Ask for help from friends or google whichever is convenient!

-You cannot customize resume for every job you wish to apply for however use target industry/level/function-based content in your resume and is suitable for near match jobs.

-Don’t just apply away, take a breath, review 100 times before you apply. This will help managing your expectation and hiring teams work load. One day you may be a recruiter!

-If offered and agreed don’t go AWOL. Do not use new job offer as negotiation tool with your existing employer.

The above is by no means comprehensive coverage of this topic but just what I was able to write as someone who has been on the both sides of the fence.