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Leveraging talent data is crucial to transform candidate interactions into
meaningful and memorable experiences — which extends beyond external candidates
to include internal mobility connections that drive valuable performance.
Data-driven insights provide the foundation for informed decision-making,
improved business performance, and higher-quality hires.
Symphony Talent’s panel of experts discussed how talent data can drive a
personal approach and create a healthy talent acquisition ecosystem.
WATCH THE FULL, ON-DEMAND SESSION:
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
Is the talent funnel still relevant?
The talent funnel remains relevant but has evolved into a non-linear path.
Candidates now seek a relationship with their employer, emphasizing alignment
with values and ways of working. Employers must focus on elevating their
employer brand messages and employee value propositions (EVP) throughout the
entire recruitment process. By broadening the perspective of the talent funnel
and emphasizing alignment and experiences, organizations can deliver on
candidate expectations.
How does data impact the talent acquisition lifecycle?
Data influences the talent acquisition lifecycle across four key stages:
awareness, connection, qualification, and conversion. Technology solutions, such
as adtech and martech, address awareness, connection, and conversion challenges.
Leveraging data to fuel awareness and connection outcomes depends on a robust
EVP built on constant interaction insights. Fueling better touchpoint
experiences by revisiting and fine-tuning the talent marketing strategy based on
data-driven insights is crucial.
What role will data privacy play in the future?
Data privacy is evolving, with users demanding more control over their data.
Compliance with data privacy regulations will require organizations to
transition to a first-party data approach. At Symphony Talent, we use
first-party cookie data, which means your campaigns won’t miss a beat. Today,
individuals willingly share information with brands when doing so translates
into better digital experiences. By promising responsible data handling and
delivering personalized content, organizations can leverage data to build trust
and enhance digital experiences.
How do talent teams avoid data pitfalls?
Understanding available data and what is meaningful to your organization is
crucial. By evaluating the entire talent funnel, including reach, awareness, and
conversion, talent teams can not only identify what’s working well, but also
areas for improvement. Additionally, focusing solely on the channel for outreach
can limit your organization’s ability to form meaningful connections with
right-fit talent. Instead, we recommend adopting a candidate strategy that
leverages data to connect employers with talent as individuals, not just another
data point. This level of personalization helps employers attract and engage
with candidates on a deeper, more meaningful level, which translates to stronger
relationships and higher-quality hires.
How does talent acquisition data build candidate relationships at scale?
Data plays a significant role in humanizing recruitment marketing and building
strong relationships at scale. Data helps talent teams better understand
candidates and employees, enabling a more personal connection. However,
authenticity cannot be manufactured. Automation and technology assist in
delivering personalized messaging at critical touchpoints, but investing in a
genuine employer brand is vital. Data-driven strategies grounded in humanization
and authenticity differentiate organizations and drive positive results.
Organizations can build better relationships and optimize their recruitment
process by utilizing technology, establishing a robust EVP, respecting data
privacy, and creating a healthy talent acquisition ecosystem.
Ready to learn more about harnessing the power of your talent acquisition data
across the talent lifecycle? Let’s talk!
A well-executed recruitment process ensures the right fit between candidates and
organizations, leading to long-term success. Today, many organizations are
turning to automation and technology to streamline their recruitment processes
and attract and retain high-quality hires to address these challenges.
Symphony Talent’s Kara Polk, Program Director, Assessments, and Perry Steinberg,
Chief Product Officer, delved deeper into the role data and automation play in
streamlining processes, improving resource allocation, and driving greater
results.
WATCH THE FULL, ON-DEMAND SESSION:
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
1. Understanding and taking action on evolving candidate expectations:
Candidates now have higher expectations, and many of their preferences have
changed in recent years. Factors like location, remote work opportunities,
and a streamlined application process have become crucial considerations for
job seekers.
A recent study revealed that candidates are likely to drop off if an
application process takes more than 15 minutes. Talent teams must minimize
friction and provide transparency throughout the hiring process, enabling
candidates to “see” themselves working with the organization as early in the
process as possible.
Building strong relationships with candidates has become even more important
today than ever before, but doing so at scale, with support from
purpose-built technology and smart automation, is nearly possible.
2. Focusing on strategic automation: Strategic automation plays a vital role in
streamlining recruitment processes. By leveraging technology and automation,
recruiters can focus on building relationships with candidates and providing
a personalized experience. Automation can handle repetitive tasks like
scheduling interviews, sending emails, and conducting initial screenings. It
allows recruiters to more effectively gather data, make data-driven
decisions, and prioritize candidate selection.
3. Activating smart automation without losing human interaction: While
automation is crucial, it should not replace human interaction entirely.
Striking a balance between automation and personal touch is essential for
creating a relational hiring experience. Candidates value transparency and
clear communication throughout the process. Incorporating talent assessments
and on-demand interviews within the process, as well as leveraging a CRM to
manage and engage with candidates enhances the experience for both talent
professionals and the candidates they engage with, promoting even stronger
relationships.
4. Gathering unbiased candidate data via talent assessments: Talent assessments
offer significant value in the recruitment process. They provide an unbiased
and objective way to measure a candidate's skills, aptitudes, and behaviors
relevant to the job. Organizations can reduce biases, improve diversity, and
make informed decisions by incorporating talent assessments into the hiring
process. Assessments also help predict future job performance, contributing
to better organizational performance.
5. Looking beyond initial hire to internal talent mobility and career
development: Internal talent mobility and career development are critical
for organizations to retain and upskill their existing workforce. By
leveraging AI/machine learning and a data-rich CRM, organizations can
identify skill gaps, develop their employees, and align their future talent
needs. Encouraging continuous learning and growth within the organization
improves employee engagement and reduces turnover.
Ready to dig in even deeper and explore how your organization can enhance its
candidate experience, remove bias, improve diversity, and make data-driven
hiring decisions? Let’s talk!
Artificial intelligence (AI) may conjure up images of robots overtaking society
– and while that makes for great science fiction, it’s not an accurate
representation of what’s actually happening. AI has been in our lives in some
capacity for decades. From AI-powered chess opponents to autonomous vehicles,
speech recognition software, face recognition technology, and myriad other
examples, AI has been in the background of our personal and professional lives,
offering support and making our lives easier (whether we realize it or not).
Today, the conversation has taken center stage for many professionals, leading
to questions about the differences between and value of AI compared with
Generative AI and smart automation. What are they? How are they being used in
talent acquisition today? What promise do they hold for the future of HR and
talent acquisition? How can my team and I leverage them to add value to the
organization?
WHAT IS AI?
Artificial intelligence refers to a machine’s ability to perform a specific
cognitive function, such as learning, reasoning, or problem solving. It is
actively used within every industry, around the world. For example, in
healthcare, AI can assist with diagnoses, treatment plans, and patient
engagement. In retail, AI has already shown its usefulness in demand
forecasting, supply chain optimization, and customer service.
In talent acquisition, AI can be used to deliver customized job recommendations
based on a person’s behaviors, preferences, and other key data points. It also
can be used to improve talent pipeline velocity, deliver relevant content to
nurture talent, engage with candidates, and more.
WHAT IS GENERATIVE AI?
Generative AI is a subset of artificial intelligence with the primary goal of
producing content based on a prompt. One of the most talked about generative AI
solutions today is ChatGPT. For talent teams, generative AI can generate job
descriptions, candidate communications, and more. It’s an exciting prospect for
many teams, offering a promise of scalability and improved efficiency.
Although the opportunity is considerable with generative AI, it should be used
with caution and appropriate discretion. McKinsey & Company highlighted some of
the risks associated with generative AI by saying, “Generative-AI models will
confidently produce inaccurate, plagiarized, or biased results, without any
indication that its outputs may be problematic. That’s because the models have
been trained on the internet, which is hardly a universally reliable source.
Leaders should be aware of these risks before turning to generative AI as a
business solution.”
WHAT IS SMART AUTOMATION?
Automation follows a specific set of rules to perform an action or a set of
actions within a workflow. For example, a candidate submits an application,
which triggers a confirmation notification to be sent to both the candidate and
the talent acquisition professional. This action happened based on pre-defined
if/then rules.
WHY IS AI OFTEN REFERRED TO AS AUTOMATION (AND VICE VERSA)?
Often, the terms automation and AI are used interchangeably, and while they have
similarities in the value they bring to talent professionals, the way they
operate and the level of human intervention needed is quite different.
Automation will perform a task, but will not provide reasoning or other
cognitive capabilities. Automation requires a person to define the parameters of
the action or workflow, which the program follows without deviation. This is
especially helpful for repetitive tasks. AI, including Generative AI, on the
other hand, requires a person to provide prompts to deliver the desired result.
A person also will need to review the output from AI to ensure accuracy and
infuse human empathy and personality.
Whether you’re looking at AI, Generative AI, or smart automation, human
intervention, intelligence, and authentic personality is still absolutely
necessary to achieve optimal results.
WHAT DOES SYMPHONY TALENT USE?
At Symphony Talent, we continually innovate for the future of talent
acquisition, which means incorporating smart automation, AI, and robust data
analytics and reporting into our full talent lifecycle solutions, from awareness
to retention. As the AI industry evolves to the next generation of AI
capabilities, Symphony Talent Artificial intelligence for HR helps connect the
right employees to the right jobs by leveraging our data to lead the way.
Data is a core tenet of a successful talent acquisition strategy, which means
it’s also a core tenet of Symphony Talent solutions as well. We continue to keep
an eye on the needs of our clients today (and into the future) so they always
have the solutions they need to stay ahead of the competition and secure the
best fit talent for their organization.
To explore how we incorporate AI and smart automation into Symphony Talent’s
ecosystem of solutions, simply reach out for a consultation … we’d love to show
you!
Time is the enemy of the personal attention it takes to create deeper, more
meaningful human connections. But that's what’s required to nurture and hire the
right people in today's competitive job market.
The impersonal approach just doesn't work, especially with Millennials and Gen
Z. Heck, even Gen Xers and Baby Boomers in the past year have cried out for
something better in a job. Applicants who are receiving multiple offers want to
be courted. They want to feel valued. Offering bigger salaries and better
benefits are great, but most people want to feel wanted, welcomed, and treated
as individuals.
That takes time that HR, recruiters, and hiring managers don’t have. They have
hundreds of other manual little things that are soaking up their time. And if
they can't automate those tasks, then they'll continue to lose prized applicants
to recruiters who have figured out how to free up most of their time to connect
personally with applicants.
HOW DO YOU LEVERAGE TECHNOLOGY TO FREE YOU UP FOR THE IMPORTANT STUFF?
Artificial intelligence (AI) has made headlines in recent months within the HR
and talent acquisition community. LinkedIn’s Future of Recruiting 2023 report
highlighted several predictions, including the role of AI in recruiting. Their
research shows that among hiring professionals, 74% anticipate generative AI
enabling them to automate repetitive tasks to prioritize more strategic work,
67% believe it will help them source candidates faster and easier, and 59%
believe it will have a positive impact on their ability to engage with
candidates.
It’s clear that many HR and talent acquisition professionals are taking the time
to consider the various uses for AI in their daily jobs. Many professionals have
shared optimism and excitement about the prospect of AI supporting certain
aspects of talent acquisition, with a healthy dose of caution. Generative AI can
be a powerful resource, but it should be viewed as such – a resource to support
talent acquisition, not a replacement for human empathy, consideration, and
skill.
The benefits of automation and AI are certainly echoed among the Symphony Talent
community with one client commenting, “If we didn’t have this automation, we
would be screwed. We have leveraged the technology from Symphony Talent to
automate the low value administrative work that was on their plate so they can
focus their time on the high-touch and human elements that are much more
valuable.”
And another client recently shared, “Prior to having Symphony Talent’s CRM, if I
had a list of 30 people that I was trying to contact, I would have to reach out
individually by phone and potentially leave messages and play phone tag. Now I
can use the bulk SMS messaging in the CRM to send a personalized text message to
all 30 people in 30 seconds.”
THE POWER OF AI IN RECRUITMENT MARKETING
Automation is rooted in AI. Simply put, AI mimics human thinking. It learns,
solves problems, predicts and reasons with a high degree of autonomy.
Empowering employers and employees to connect expertise with the right
opportunities makes for a mutually beneficial situation. In the hiring process,
HR and recruiters use it to match people with roles based on skills, abilities,
job aspirations, and values. It also enables internal talent mobility, linking
current employees with internal opportunities that align with their overarching
career goals.
And it does so quickly, efficiently, and accurately, freeing up HR professionals
to spend time on what really matters in this tight job market — building
relationships.
MORE BENEFITS OF AUTOMATION AND AI IN TALENT ACQUISITION
An automated HR strategy that leverages AI also can help HR leaders and
practitioners retain talent within their organization.
Smart automation infused with AI analytics can help employers find existing
employees with skill sets they might have overlooked, reducing their need to
source talent externally. Analytics deliver the insights that hone in on skill
gaps or opportunities for upward talent mobility, something most employees want.
And it does so without all the manual labor involved in searching and courting
outside applicants.
Additionally, AI optimizes the workforce. The Great Resignation morphed into the
Great Reimagination, causing organizations to rethink the meaning of jobs and
employees and their ways of working. With the help of AI, HR can empower them
with timely strategies and tools.
AI also can help talent teams more accurately predict when and where employees’
skill-sets will become antiquated or obsolete. That way, talent managers can get
ahead of skills gaps, providing training and adjusting hiring as they account
for what’s to come.
All of this reduces time searching for external applicants, resulting in more
time for personal attention.
AI IN RECRUITMENT MARKETING
HR and recruiters use marketing techniques to find and attract candidates to
their jobs and even brand. AI and automation are the resource extensions of the
talent team, helping them be more efficient at these tasks.
Symphony Talent’s suite of talent acquisition solutions leverage built-in AI and
automated workflows, enabling our clients to take back control of their
processes across the entire talent lifecycle, from awareness to retention, while
building strong candidate and employee relationships. We all know the power of
data to drive smarter, faster decisions, and that’s exactly what Symphony Talent
aims to do with our client partnerships.
The bottom line is, technology continues to transform the workplace. Without AI
in recruitment marketing, we’d be in a very different place, one that we’d argue
is out-of-date and out-of-tune with today’s job seekers.
Once upon a time, the search for top talent was limited by geographic
boundaries. Recruiters and employers were limited to finding the best candidates
within their city, state, or country. But a remarkable transformation occurred
as the world faced unprecedented challenges amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The
concept of “work from anywhere” became a reality, and even as the pandemic has
come to a close, remote work and hybrid options continue to gain greater
traction. This newfound freedom shattered the chains keeping candidates pinned
to certain locations and opened up a world of possibilities for both job seekers
and employers — one that neither side is ready to give up.
Although today’s talent acquisition professionals can choose the best talent
from anywhere in the world, they are now faced with a new challenge to consider:
How do we attract, hire, and retain best-fit talent in a non-traditional hiring
environment?
Talent acquisition technology offers a solution to enhance the candidate
experience, simplify scheduling challenges, and uncover deep insights to better
understand talent skills, competencies, behaviors, and more: talent assessments
and virtual, on-demand interviews.
HOW TALENT ASSESSMENTS REVOLUTIONIZE RECRUITMENT
By utilizing talent assessments, recruiters can go beyond the limitations of
traditional interviews and surface a comprehensive understanding of a
candidate’s potential fit within the organization. Talent assessments —
conducted virtually and demanding only minutes, in most cases — provide valuable
data and insights that help recruiters make more informed decisions regarding
talent selection, faster and with greater confidence.
5 BENEFITS OF TALENT ASSESSMENTS FOR CANDIDATE SELECTION
1. Embracing asynchronous interviewing tools:
First, to alleviate scheduling challenges, asynchronous interviewing tools such
as video interviewing allow recruiters and hiring managers to evaluate
candidates’ recorded responses to interview questions, effectively replicating
the experience of an in-person interview. By embracing such tools, organizations
can maintain connections — from anywhere in the world — and say goodbye to
logistical calendar mayhem.
Discover how to rethink hiring with on-demand interviews here.
2. Expressing employee value proposition and branding:
Talent assessments present an excellent opportunity for organizations to express
their unique employee value proposition (EVP) and branding throughout the talent
journey. By showcasing their company culture, values, and mission through
assessments, organizations can evaluate candidates’ ethos and understanding of
company goals, advancing talent through the funnel faster. This ensures that
candidates align with the organization’s vision early in the recruitment process
and can contribute positively to the company’s growth as an employee, if hired.
Learn more about an organization’s EVP and its connection to assessments here.
3. Expanding the talent pool:
Talent assessments and on-demand interviews break down geographical barriers and
enable organizations to tap into a wider talent pool. Organizations can access
talent from across the globe by eliminating the need for candidates to travel
for interviews or assessments. This expansion of the talent pool increases the
likelihood of finding best-fit candidates with the right skills, experience, and
cultural fit for the organization, regardless of their location.
Learn more about ways assessments can help talent teams predict employee
engagement and performance here.
4. Harnessing multiple forms of assessment data:
Looking for data and talent analytics that offer insights into a candidate’s
future success? Talent assessments encompass various components, such as
behavioral and cognitive ability assessments, simulations, and job knowledge
tests. By leveraging these different assessment methods, organizations can gain
comprehensive insights into a candidate’s capabilities, enabling them to make
more informed hiring decisions and reduce the risk of a poor fit.
Dive into how to assess the ROI of talent assessments here.
5. Mitigating bias in hiring decisions:
Bias in hiring decisions has long been a concern for organizations. Talent
assessments mitigate unconscious bias by focusing on objective data and
standardized assessment criteria and eliminating visual cues and personal biases
often associated with face-to-face interviews. Talent assessments level the
playing field and ensure a fair evaluation process based on merit and
qualifications.
Read more about how talent assessments remove bias here.
READY TO UNLOCK THE POTENTIAL OF TALENT ASSESSMENTS?
Talent assessments have emerged as a powerful tool for organizations seeking to
adapt and thrive in today’s new world of work. While transitioning to an
assessment process may be new for many, with the right focus and attention,
organizations can unlock the full potential of talent assessments and secure the
best-fit talent for a more successful future.
Speak to an expert today!
What constitutes a “good” hire? Although the question sounds simple, the answer
is more complex, taking into account cognitive abilities and aptitudes,
behavioral tendencies, personality attributes and job skills. According to
research conducted by the Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM), more than
half of employers use pre-employment assessments and 79% say that “scores on
skills assessments are just as or more important than traditional criteria in
hiring decisions.”
Today’s hiring landscape remains competitive, as businesses seek to evolve their
talent acquisition and retention strategies to meet the needs and expectations
of today’s candidates, support the growth and engagement of existing employees
and meet business goals. It’s a tall order.
By leveraging targeted talent assessments, teams can gain unbiased and objective
insights into their talent pool and employee base, enabling them to make smarter
hiring decisions and retain more top talent … which is a big deal amid any
hiring climate.
WHAT’S THE BENEFIT OF SKILLS-BASED ASSESSMENTS IN HIRING DECISIONS?
Skills-based assessments enable talent teams to effectively evaluate a candidate
or existing employee based on the skills required to competently perform the
job. They allow individuals to showcase tangible accomplishments that have been
acquired over time. This is important because a candidate or employee may have
acquired high-value skills while on the job, but those skills may not be
appropriately reflected in their educational background or certifications.
Requiring a specific degree may exclude qualified candidates from progressing
through the hiring process, or lead to unnecessary turnover.
Skills-based assessments focus on the needed skills, giving a more accurate
picture of what the candidate or employee can bring to the organization.
According to a recent analysis conducted by LinkedIn, there’s a notable shift
happening in hiring today with one in five job postings in the U.S. (19%) not
requiring a college degree. The report also indicates that businesses can expect
their talent pool to expand by 20x when focusing on skills versus job titles or
degrees.
Further, a recent Deloitte study found that 66% of workers would be “more likely
to be attracted to and remain at an organization that values and makes decisions
based on their skills and potential rather than on jobs and degrees.”
Some key benefits of skills-based hiring include:
* Improved candidate and workforce diversity
* Reduced turnover
* Increased job performance reliability
* Greater volume of qualified talent
* Increased candidate access to right-fit opportunities
WHAT DOES SKILLS-BASED HIRING MEAN FOR CANDIDATES?
By focusing on job skills and competencies, candidates have greater access to
career opportunities that align with their skill set. Talent assessments,
including skills-based assessments, remove bias from the hiring process by
providing talent teams with objective data that helps illuminate a candidate's
ability to perform the job.
In this way, talent teams and candidates become partners in the hiring
processes, aligning business needs with candidate skills to find the right
match.
When candidates feel “seen” in the hiring process and evaluated fairly, they are
more likely to view the company in a positive light, regardless of the hiring
outcome. If the candidate converts to an employee, that partnership and positive
experience translates into higher engagement and increased likelihood of
retention.
WHAT DOES SKILLS-BASED HIRING MEAN FOR TALENT TEAMS?
Finding and securing right-fit talent is challenging. Teams must sift through
hundreds or even thousands of potential candidates for any number of open
positions. By outlining the desired skills for an open position, assessing
available talent based on their skills, and then matching the two, talent teams
can significantly reduce their time to fill, improve diversity, and better
predict job performance and engagement. The key is leveraging targeted
skills-based assessments that provide the right level of detail and objective
data to support the hiring decision.
Beyond initial hire, many organizations are leveraging skills-based assessments
to evaluate existing skills, identify skills gaps, and re-skill or upskill their
existing workforce. By investing in their existing workforce, businesses can
improve team morale, performance, engagement, and retention.
WHAT’S THE BOTTOM LINE ON SKILLS-BASED ASSESSMENTS FOR HIRING (AND RETENTION)?
Skills-based assessments are an effective tool in the talent acquisition tool
box. Not only do they provide critical insights into an individual’s ability to
perform a specific job, they enable businesses to identify and resolve skills
gaps within their workforce. These assessments provide tremendous value with
little effort on either side of the table.
Skills-based hiring, powered by skills-based assessments, just makes sense.
To learn more about Symphony Talent’s robust library of talent assessments,
including skills-based, cognitive, behavioral, and others, visit Symphony Talent
Assessments.
Employer marketing has evolved from help-wanted signs, static career sites, and
word-of-mouth promotions into today’s more complex tactics and strategies,
requiring robust audience insights, strategic proposition development, and
activations from targeted programmatic job advertising to experiential
interactions.
Unfortunately, the momentum spurring new employer branding strategies is often
reactionary to current events and economic challenges, and HR departments
struggle to keep up.
As a result, we often see organizations interchange their employer marketing
strategies with consumer marketing.
But employer marketing is not consumer marketing.
EMPLOYER MARKETING VS. CONSUMER MARKETING
Marketing is a multifaceted field encompassing various strategies and techniques
tailored to target specific audiences. Two essential branches of marketing are
employer marketing and consumer marketing.
While employer and consumer marketing share common ground, their objectives,
target audiences, messaging, and channels make them uniquely different.
Consumer marketing drives brand awareness, loyalty and product or service
sales. Employer marketing helps you attract and retain the top talent you need
to achieve your consumer marketing goals. By recognizing the nuances of each,
talent teams can optimize their marketing efforts and achieve greater success in
both areas.
Employer marketing refers to the strategies and activities undertaken by an
organization to meet their talent acquisition and retention goals. It involves
promoting and driving perceptions of the organization as an 'employer of
choice,’ highlighting the most relevant and distinguishing characteristics the
organization offers employees (often referred to as its employer value
proposition or EVP) to job candidates and current employees.
Consumer marketing also aims to attract people to its brand to encourage people
to buy its products and/or services, not hire them. Consumer marketing focuses
on highlighting the most relevant and distinguishing characteristics of their
products and services to current or potential customers to buy or buy more of
them.
While both branches leverage marketing techniques and principles to create
awareness and generate interest, it is crucial to understand that they have
different goals and objectives.
UNIQUE CONSIDERATIONS AND STRATEGIES
AUDIENCE SEGMENTATION
Employer marketing: Employer marketing focuses on attracting and engaging
potential employees and engaging with current employees for retention. Employers
must segment these talent audiences, and understand potential and/or current
employees’ needs, aspirations, and career goals, to create tailored messaging to
engage and attract the right candidates.
Messaging should reflect the candidate’s career motivations and personal needs.
According to the Talent Board’s 2022 North American Candidate Experience
Benchmark Research Report, 29% of candidates said they wanted even more
information about company culture, and 27% wanted more information on why
current employees want to work for an employer. By delivering targeted, relevant
content, employers can meet candidate expectations for that information and
support candidate self-selection early in the process, ensuring more right-fit
talent remain in the talent pool.
Consumer marketing: Conversely, consumer marketing appeals to a consumer base.
Like employer branding, consumer marketing audience segmentation involves
segmenting based on demographic, geographic, psychographic, or behavioral
factors. While the segmentation practice may be similar, the types of audiences
and goals will differ. Consumer marketers aim to understand consumer
preferences, purchase behavior, and motivations to develop effective marketing
campaigns that drive product or service sales, not employment.
PRO TIP: From the first moment you interact with talent, the experience should
be positive, affirming, and relevant. That engagement then needs to become
increasingly relevant based on the stage and behavior of the prospect for
conversion to occur. Once it does, you must hold their interest and maintain a
relationship to keep them warm to your brand. Learn more on how to build and
maintain your talent pipeline.
OBJECTIVES AND CONVERSION METRICS
Employer marketing: The core objective of employer marketing is to build and
enhance an organization’s employer brand to attract, recruit, and retain top
talent. Success is measured through metrics such as the number of qualified
applicants, employee retention rates, and overall employer reputation.
Conversion in employer marketing refers to candidates accepting job offers and
becoming valuable employees.
High recruitment marketing ROI that results in high-quality employees hired and
retained within the company positively contributes to the company’s bottom line.
Finding, connecting, qualifying, and hiring the right talent for your
organization — and filling those open positions effectively — has numerous
benefits, including:
* Less productivity downtime through vacancy
* Greater resource allocation
* Improved team engagement
Measuring these key data points allows you to gain insight into the holistic
recruitment process, from the candidate’s first impression to the hiring stage
and beyond.
Consumer marketing: Consumer marketing seeks to drive consumer engagement,
increase brand awareness, and boost product or service sales. Conversion metrics
in consumer marketing often revolve around sales figures, conversion rates,
customer acquisition, loyalty, and brand affinity.
PRO TIP: HR analytics can be a game-changer when adequately employed, lending
visibility to your efforts by tracking and measuring meaningful HR initiatives
and goals. The tracking of KPIs can include everything from turnover rates to
employee retention and the cost of benefits versus the utilization of benefits.
Learn more about HR analytics.
MESSAGING AND VALUE PROPOSITION
Employer marketing: Effective employer marketing involves communicating their
unique employer value proposition (EVP). The EVP showcases what you have to
offer an employee and, just as important, what you expect in return. It will
highlight factors such as:
* Company culture
* Career growth opportunities
* Employee benefits
* Work-life balance
Messaging should appeal to a prospective employee's emptions, expectations,
needs, and career aspirations.
Unfortunately, according to the 2023 HR Trends Report, only 22% of organizations
report they have an EVP, with 24% saying they are currently working on one. This
indicates a significant area for growth among organizations as they compete for
top talent.
Consumer Marketing: Consumer marketing messages revolve around a product or
service’s benefits, features, and unique selling points. Marketers aim to
highlight how their offering solves a consumer problem, fulfills a desire, or
enhances their lives. The messaging is crafted to resonate with the consumer’s
emotions, needs, and aspirations.
PRO TIP: Every touchpoint impacts your employer brand, whether good, bad or
indifferent. Defining your EVP is the framework used to create and manage
experiences from the first interaction a candidate has to when that person
converts to a valued employee throughout their whole time working for you to
when they’re an alumnus. Learn more about EVP and your employer brand.
CHANNELS AND PLATFORMS
Employer marketing: Employer marketing utilizes channels that reach potential
candidates actively seeking employment. These may include online job boards,
professional networking platforms like LinkedIn, career fairs, campus
recruitment, and targeted advertising on industry-specific websites. It also
leverages employer branding efforts on social media platforms and showcases the
organization’s workplace culture through employer review platforms like
Glassdoor.
Consumer marketing: Consumer marketing leverages channels and platforms where
the target audience spends their time. This can include television, radio, print
media, social media platforms, search engine marketing, influencer
collaborations, email marketing, and more. The objective is to meet consumers
where they are and engage with them effectively.
PRO TIP: Candidates expect employers to try to reach them where they are,
meaning employers must leverage the right channels to communicate with
prospective employees. From social media and online job boards to in-person
hiring events and other avenues, finding the right talent has become a two-way
street. Learn more about shifting candidate expectations and the tactics to
attract them today.
EMPLOYER MARKETING TO ATTRACT, HIRE, AND RETAIN TOP TALENT
It’s no secret that marketing helps companies build awareness and drive
conversions. Still, the audience they are targeting and the methods they use to
convert that audience differs depending on the overarching goal. Talent teams
must embrace employer marketing to attract, hire, and retain top talent. With
the right blend of EVP, employer branding, targeted messaging and content
through relevant channels, and other strategies. Employers can strike the right
note and expand their talent network of right-fit candidates.
Do you need help figuring out where to start, or do you need a partner with
expertise in this area to help? We’d love to support you! Grab some time with
one of our experts to get the conversation started.
Encouraging internal talent mobility is becoming more of a priority for
companies than ever before, and talent teams are finding assessments — now used
throughout the talent funnel — are key when advancing candidates … even
post-hire.
If a recruiter fills a job opening, and it’s open again in three months, is that
really filling it?
That’s the question Symphony Talent’s Kara Polk, Program Director, Assessments,
asked in a recent Symphony Talent fireside chat on how talent teams can employ
assessments with a company’s employee value proposition to better compete for
job candidates. She quickly followed it with another question: “And, are we
thinking about this in a way that is driving the bottom line, as an
organization?”
These are core questions facing talent acquisition teams today. Recruitment of
external candidates will always be an important part of talent acquisition.
However, as Polk implies, retention can and should have a much greater focus
within comprehensive talent recruitment strategies — especially in today’s
competitive labor market.
CONNECTION BETWEEN INTERNAL MOBILITY AND ASSESSMENTS
Retention goes hand in hand with internal mobility, the practice of moving
current employees to different roles in the same company. Successful companies
deeply value their talent and prioritize retention and internal talent mobility
to drive growth rather than depending on recruiting alone.
At Symphony Talent, we are seeing organizations that demonstrate successful
recruitment marketing right now are not relying on hiring alone to acquire
in-demand skills. After they’ve gained an accurate understanding of the skills
they have in-house and the skills they will soon need, they prioritize ways to
acquire those skills for the long run — mainly through retention and upskilling,
with the help of targeted assessments.
“Employees want to know how organizations are investing in them,” Polk says.
“And, employees want that investment, they want to be developed.” Study after
study, she says, shows candidates-turned-employees are looking for genuine
internal opportunities for career growth.
“They are asking, ‘Where am I at today, and where do I need to be to get to the
next level within my company?’”
Assessments, often underused post-hire, can be a great tool to help answer those
questions, Polk says. “You can give employees assessments, go over the results
with them, and then the next step in their professional growth. That sets them
on a path to grow and also empowers their managers to provide responsible and
effective coaching to get employees to the next level.”
HR research shows that it is not only more cost effective overall to develop
internal talent to fill new roles, but internal mobility also:
* Promotes greater employee loyalty and engagement
* Nurtures diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI)
* Supports a company’s organizational health
Just as critical, a company that is willing to identify skill gaps and then
develop and reposition people into emerging roles will become a much stronger
talent magnet when it is necessary to hire from the outside.
INTERNAL MOBILITY'S ROLE IN EMPLOYEE RETENTION
Although it seems counterintuitive, companies that are the most successful at
attracting and retaining talent know the value of giving internal candidates
priority for job openings.
That’s because job mobility is at an all-time high. Employees are more empowered
than ever. This has forced talent teams to identify the journeys and experiences
that make employees happy.
Recent research from McKinsey & Company shows that 60% of those who have
recently reentered the workforce following the Great Resignation would leave if
there were a lack of career opportunities within their company.
“We learned from the pandemic that we can move people around inside the company
pretty quickly, and they adapt pretty fast,” HR analyst Josh Bersin has said in
a podcast when talking about top trends in the industry. “The workforce is a lot
more resilient than we maybe ever thought.”
Understanding this, Bersin says, “really turns companies into internal talent
marketplaces. And in a talent marketplace, you as a recruiter are recruiting
inside as well as outside.”
Internal talent mobility may be a buzzword right now, but rarely is it discussed
alongside the use of assessments.
“My feeling is that recruitment marketing never really connected with
assessments, even though, to me, they are very connected,” Polk says.
“Connecting them has always been Symphony Talent’s vision.”
Because of today’s challenging market conditions and the cost to fill skilled
jobs, companies are beginning to view their employees and the skills they bring
— both known skills and unknown skills unveiled during assessments — in a
different light.
INTERNAL MOBILITY CAREER SITES
Loren Nelson, Vice President, Solutions Engineer, for Symphony Talent, has seen
clients recently “light up” with interest about creating internal mobility
career sites, but he still thinks the movement to promote internal mobility
within the industry lags. Symphony Talent clients that have focused on internal
mobility sites, and have done an exceptional job with them, he says, include
Edward Jones, Hilton Grand Vacations, and Moody’s.
“I often say to clients who have beautiful, wonderful career sites for external
candidates, ‘Why wouldn't you want to give your own employees the same great
experience that you're giving to outside people?’ More clients are really
thinking about that,” he says.
Most organizations, of course, do have internal job databases, fed by their
applicant tracking systems, and they make use of intranet sites. But often those
sites are meager, stark, less attended to and, in general, less than
encouraging.
It’s estimated that only one out of three companies actively encourages internal
promotion and cross-departmental movement among workers, which means a vast
majority are losing out on many of the undisputed benefits that come from
promoting within.
Talent mobility has been proven to have a positive impact on company culture and
the fulfillment of career goals — two of the top factors that cause employees to
leave.
“We have some clients that have always thought about internal mobility and have
made it a part of their brand,” Polk says. “Molson Coors is that way — they
really want to promote from within. Union Pacific is that way, too. But I think
other companies are slow to promote from within, even though the benefits are
well-known.”
SUPPORTING DEI INITIATIVES
A focus on internal mobility not only saves companies thousands of dollars when
replacing employees who leave for other opportunities, but it also greatly
supports DEI efforts — a major culture focus of more and more organizations.
Candidates from under-represented backgrounds, for example, have much to gain in
a company encouraging internal mobility and using assessments to aid in career
growth. Historically, Polk says, those in marginalized groups might be slower to
raise their hands, thinking they are not ready for that internal move. “But if
they are able to go through an assessment and see they did well, they might
think, ‘Maybe I am ready. I don’t know why I thought I wasn’t!’”
Sometimes the most-skilled or best-fit candidate for an emerging role is already
working at your company. And assessments — in a matter of minutes — help
companies find them.
TIPS TO INSTITUTE A CULTURE OF INTERNAL MOBILITY, AIDED BY ASSESSMENTS
Here are some tips for instituting a culture of internal mobility, aided by
assessments, within your organization:
* Communicate your policy on internal mobility throughout the company,
encouraging lateral moves and cross-department projects.
* Give internal applicants the same, if not more, credence as external
candidates.
* Make sure your internal career website is attractive and accessible. A
high-quality internal mobility site demonstrates your commitment to employees
and their growth.
* Map the skills of your current employee base for future reference.
* Use assessments to ensure right-fit for growth post-hire and as a guide to
track career growth.
* Ensure people leaders are having regular career development conversations
with their direct reports.
Above all, if you want your internal mobility programs to thrive, your company
has to be transparent and upfront about promoting it. As challenging as it is to
find the right talent, it’s even more important to retain and develop them once
they’re on the job.
Symphony Talent offers a complete internal mobility solution that extends your
recruiting strategy and efforts to your internal talent pool. With all the tools
you use to recruit external talent at your fingertips, we can help make your
internal mobility strategy come to life quickly and easily.
Check out Symphony Talent’s assessments, powered by SkillCheck, and be sure
to reach out to an expert for an even deeper dive.
Predicting employee engagement and performance is the holy grail of talent
acquisition. Getting it right means talent teams have done their due diligence
and properly vetted candidates using multivariate analysis that includes talent
assessments, interviews, resume reviews, reference checks, and other touch
points.
Today, talent assessments have risen as the “hidden gem” of talent acquisition,
offering an unbiased and objective assessment of a candidate’s skills,
behaviors, cognitive aptitudes, and more.
We all know that selecting right-fit candidates is essential to business
success, especially in a volatile or uncertain economy and job market where
competition is high and resources are tight. But therein lies the challenge.
Talent acquisition professionals must utilize the right blend of technology,
talent assessments, employer branding and value propositions, and a structured
process to screen candidates and select the individuals who show the most
potential for high performance and engagement.
According to Talent Board’s 2022 North American Candidate Experience Benchmark
Research Report, “in 2022, 45% of organizations said they used pre-employment
assessment and selection tests prior to the interview, and only 19% did so
post-interview.” Among those who employed talent assessments, 54% did so with
the goal of making better candidate selections, 33% aimed to improve new hire
performance, and 27% sought to increase early retention.
These goals reflect an increased need to not only fill open positions and
resolve staffing or skills gaps, but to do so in a way that better predicts
performance and engagement. After all, when an employee is engaged and valued,
their performance improves and they are more likely to stay and grow within the
organization.
Looking specifically at talent assessments, here are four ways talent teams can
leverage assessments to better predict job performance and employee
engagement.
#1: TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT A CANDIDATE’S UNIQUE BEHAVIORAL PATTERNS, TENDENCIES,
AND TEMPERAMENT WITH BEHAVIORAL ASSESSMENTS
Behavioral and personality assessments provide insight into a person’s unique
tendencies and temperament. For example, they can shine light on a person’s
openness to experience, leadership styles, organizational abilities,
interpersonal skills, and more. These qualitative data points can help talent
teams better gauge employee engagement and productivity, which are key
components of high job performance.
Studies show that 89% of hiring failures can be attributed to attitude and
behavior, and only 11% to technical skills. This emphasizes the importance of
behavioral and personality assessments in the hiring process to gain greater
visibility into and understanding of a potential candidate and how they will
assimilate into the organization.
#2: MEASURE YOUR CANDIDATE’S ABILITY TO LEARN, PROCESS INFORMATION, AND PERFORM
NECESSARY FUNCTIONS WITH COGNITIVE ASSESSMENTS
Talent acquisition isn’t just about finding the right person for the job, at
that specific moment. It’s about finding the right person who can not only
perform the job they were hired for, but who also exhibits cognitive
capabilities and aptitudes for growth within the company. With the help of
cognitive assessments, talent teams can evaluate skills such as reasoning,
perception, memory, and problem-solving.
Increased cognitive function has been linked to greater job satisfaction, lower
stress levels, and improved interpersonal relationships. According to a 2022
study published in Personality and Individual Differences, “higher cognitive
ability is associated with lower psychological distress (i.e., symptoms of
depression and anxiety) as well as with higher psychological well-being (i.e.,
positive affect and life satisfaction).”
#3 DETERMINE WHETHER A CANDIDATE IS A GOOD FIT FOR THE COMPANY CULTURE WITH
CULTURE-FIT ASSESSMENTS
Knowledge and skills are only part of the equation when determining company fit.
Alignment with the company’s core values and ways of working are equally
important. Culture-fit assessments can shed light on the seemingly unmeasurable
qualities that signal a candidate will fit in well with the team. When employees
are aligned with the company culture and core values, they are naturally more
engaged and productive, which leads to greater retention.
According to new research published in Organization Science, culture fit can be
viewed from two perspectives: value congruence and perceptual congruence. Value
congruence “refers to the match between an employee’s values and those of an
organization.” Perceptual congruence, on the other hand, refers to “the degree
to which employees are able to accurately perceive an organization’s culture and
adjust their behavior to fit in.” They are two sides of the same coin, and can
be qualitatively measured through the use of targeted culture-fit and behavioral
assessments.
#4 VERIFY CANDIDATES ARE COMPETENT IN THE SKILLS REQUIRED TO EFFECTIVELY PERFORM
THE JOB WITH SKILLS-BASED ASSESSMENTS
Skills-based assessments are a clear indicator of competency. Can the individual
competently perform the tasks needed for the position? It’s a simple question,
but one that carries a great deal of weight when every hire counts. Role-based
skills assessments, such as hourly, administrative, customer care, sales, or
management, can help employers further refine their selection process.
According to McKinsey & Company, “Through a skills-based approach, companies can
boost the number and quality of applicants who apply to open positions and can
assist workers to find more opportunities to advance internally, which can help
employers improve retention.”
ADOPTING TALENT ASSESSMENTS ACROSS THE FULL TALENT JOURNEY
Talent acquisition is a critical component of an organization’s success. Hiring
right-fit talent requires a multi-pronged approach, with talent assessments
riding in the sidecar along the way. From initial vetting and hiring to employee
engagement and retention, talent assessments hold the keys to better
understanding the health of your organization and addressing skills or staffing
gaps proactively.
Curious to see how talent assessments can maximize your talent pipeline and
drive better hires who remain with your organization? Check out Symphony
Talent’s assessments, powered by SkillCheck, and be sure to reach out to an
expert for an even deeper dive.
As threats of a recession loom and the talent landscape remain in flux, many
organizations are taking a closer look at their existing talent acquisition and
employee retention strategies with a keen eye toward opportunities for
optimization. Those who adopt an agile recruitment approach will garner
increased resilience amid economic turbulence, employee turnover, candidate
expectation shifts, or other influencing factors.
Agile hiring strategies are based on proven Lean methodologies used for years in
the manufacturing and software industries. The approach is simple: the
recruitment process is broken down into sprints with clearly defined goals. Each
sprint is typically one to two weeks in duration and includes daily check-in
meetings (commonly referred to as standups) and a collaborative task board to
visually move specific tasks through to completion. This approach aims to
increase the recruitment process's speed, improve collaboration, and deliver
better results.
THE TALENT ACQUISITION AGILE FRAMEWORK
The agile framework can be broken down into three main components: process,
team, and technology. Looking at this framework from a recruitment standpoint:
* Process: The recruitment process includes several distinct phases, from
prepping the job description, marketing the open position, and sourcing
candidates to screening, interviews, and final selection. If you consider an
open position as a project, the various stages and tasks associated therein
can be used to create sprints. For example, an initial sprint may be focused
on preparation and include tasks such as identifying responsibilities and
qualifications for the role, researching salary ranges, creating the job
description, and more.
* Team: The recruitment team may involve several stakeholders, but typically
the core team always includes the hiring manager or HR professional who
represents the needs of the team/company and a recruitment manager who takes
ownership of the process and helps to ensure everyone stays on track. The
recruitment manager is essentially the scrum master in agile terms.
* Technology: This may include an applicant tracking system, candidate
relationship management platform, video-conferencing solutions, and more.
Beyond the agile framework, teams should cultivate contingent hires, improve
employee retention, optimize the candidate journey, implement technology, and
leverage market insights.
STRATEGY 1: CULTIVATE CONTINGENT OR CONTRACT HIRES
Contingent workers (also known as “gig” workers) are expected to grow by more
than 10% over the next several years, as businesses seek to scale up or down
their workforce to meet market needs. In fact, some estimates suggest the number
of contingent or contract workers in the U.S. could reach 90.1 million by 2028.
According to McKinsey & Company, 36% of the workforce in 2022 self-identified as
independent contractors, and researchers from MIT and Deloitte recently found
that “In some cases, we see upwards of 30%-50% of an organization composed of
contingent workers, and organizations increasingly relying on third parties to
deliver some of their most essential services.”
Diversifying your staff with a mix of full-time and contract workers will enable
your team to more easily scale up or down as needed. Contract workers may
support specific projects on a short-term basis, bringing in the necessary
skills to get a job done without the hefty overhead expenses. Or, contract
workers may serve a specific function over a longer-term arrangement. In either
scenario, the employer and individual have increased flexibility.
The needs of an organization can ebb and flow, so it's critical that employers
build long-term relationships with these "temporary" or contract-only
individuals.
But what do contingent or contract workers want and need to stay engaged? Above
all, they seek flexibility, competitive compensation, and opportunities.
Organizations can attract and retain the right talent by making these central to
the contingent worker experience.
Teams also should consider emphasizing:
* Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts
* Personalization in the candidate experience, courtesy of deep-learning AI
* Company culture
* Opportunities for growth
* Professional stability
STRATEGY 2: IMPROVE EMPLOYEE RETENTION
Nurturing your existing talent is foundational to a strong hiring strategy. Just
as new talent wants to be wooed, your internal team needs to feel valued, cared
for, and engaged. Your career site should clearly articulate your brand story,
company values, DEI initiatives, and what makes your company and team special.
Consider it an opportunity to lean into your work culture in an authentic and
aspirational way.
At the core of employee retention lies satisfaction. Employees are more likely
to remain with the organization when they are happy, engaged, and challenged.
According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), five key ways to
improve employee satisfaction include:
1. Respectful treatment of all employees at all levels.
2. Compensation/pay.
3. Trust between employees and senior management.
4. Job security.
5. Opportunities to use their skills and abilities at work.
Another opportunity to foster greater employee satisfaction is through promoting
team accomplishments and opportunities, both internally and externally. Be sure
to highlight your Employee Community Groups, presenting them as a resource for
your internal team as they continue down their career paths. Consider featuring
day-in-the-life videos and thoughtful testimonials from fellow colleagues,
letting them present your company values, goals and objectives in a way that
resonates with their colleagues and potential candidates.
When employees are happy, they are more likely to refer their friends and
professional network to your company.
STRATEGY 3: OPTIMIZE THE CANDIDATE JOURNEY
The talent acquisition landscape has transformed. Candidates today expect
seamless interactions supported by technology. They want better visibility into
the process and enhanced communication with potential employer organizations.
Employers need to up their game to attract the right talent for their open
positions.
Optimizing the all-important job description is a perfect place to start. While
often overlooked by busy functional managers who are deep in the weeds of
day-to-day responsibilities, talent acquisition leaders must partner with
respective hiring managers to develop a clear and accurate job description.
Getting this step right is essential to the success and speed of recruitment.
Poor job descriptions too often get in the way of a successful recruitment
process, especially if they are unclear about a role's responsibilities and
expectations. Successful job descriptions are not only clear and concise, they
are aligned with your hiring strategy and overarching company goals.
Good job descriptions are:
* Clear, concise, and free from non-role-related qualifications
* Focused on a specific role versus a catch-all position
* Free of bias, whether intentional or not
Moreover, successful job posts leverage data to target advertisements to the
right people. As they say, you can have the best job description and opportunity
at your company, but if no one sees it, it won't matter.
Once you've attracted talent to your doorstep, the next step is to employ
skills-based assessments to ensure you're hiring the right-fit talent with the
required skills and expertise. This is a win-win benefit for both employers and
candidates as it confirms a good match between the two. When there's a good
match, satisfaction and retention are more likely.
STRATEGY 4: IMPLEMENT TECHNOLOGY
According to our 2023 research study, while satisfaction with current
talent/employee acquisition efforts is generally high (75%), organizations lack
skilled candidates, old processes, and ineffective technologies that hinder
recruitment. Data also suggests an inability to create meaningful connections
with candidates, demonstrating a shift in the talent acquisition landscape and
candidate experience.
Other cited challenges included:
* Difficulty communicating with candidates
* Candidates ghosting/losing interest during the process
* Sorting/parsing through a high volume of candidates
Unfortunately, many recruiting technologies still lack the ability to integrate
smoothly into an organization's tech stack, which means hiring teams are forced
to continue using manual processes and workarounds to get their jobs done. That
leaves little time for the relationship-building crucial to successful hiring
and retention.
Teams must embrace advanced recruiting technologies, with a special emphasis on
integrated technology and automation. Not only can these solutions improve
efficiencies within the recruiting team, but they also provide much-needed
visibility and connection with prospective candidates.
Common technology solutions such as applicant tracking systems (ATS) and
candidate relationship management (CRM) systems may be siloed, causing
communication and collaboration challenges across the recruiting team and
slowing down the overall process.
The good news is teams can optimize their workflow with standard integrations
that:
* Enable recruiters to source search, pipeline, folder and campaign materials
from a single source
* Eliminate the need to send candidates away from the ATS to apply
* Allow candidates to view where they are in the application process
* Provide an accurate view of analytics across the apply flow
* Ensure compliance
* Inform business decisions
* Control conversion tracking for ATS vendors
The world of recruitment marketing and talent acquisition is filled with
critical nuances and expertise that not all software partners can offer.
Functionality, expertise, and strong integrations should always trump disparate
technology interfaces. The business cost of maintaining various recruitment
technology interfaces compared with the business value always ends up more
costly in terms of time and results.
Another challenge many organizations face? Not harnessing the power of
artificial intelligence (AI) in their recruitment efforts. Incorporating AI into
your tech stack enables your team to:
* Attract talent through employer branding
* Source and engage right-fit candidates
* Manage the entire recruitment process from marketing and assessments to
interviews, candidate screening, and job offers
* Onboard talent, making forms, tasks, and socialization into the culture a
cinch
Creating an agile hiring strategy starts with a clearly defined framework and
ends with smart hiring practices that improve the candidate and recruiter
experience. Talent acquisition today may have transformed, but there are some
tried-and-true principles that can help organizations build resilience and
encourage growth.
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