Now more than ever, leaders are having difficulty persuading top talent to join their organisation. Many are struggling due to their current recruitment efforts not effectively attracting the right candidates and positioning the company as a leader in the new world of work. This can risk losing the battle for talent to competitors. 

These concerns were the focus of a recent LinkedIn Live session by People Matters in its Big Question series. Mervyn Dinnen, analyst, writer, author, and commentator on HR, talent, and work tech trends at Two Heads Consulting, and Deepak Dobriyal, senior vice president and global leader of talent management and corporate HR at Birlasoft, discussed how to hire exceptional employees with the right skills for various designations and departments.

Importance of top talent 

Having skilled workers can greatly benefit a business as they can provide a competitive advantage. With the right talent in place, a leader can increase productivity and drive profitability. Therefore, it is crucial to attract and hire the best employees possible. 

"In today's job market, not having the right talent at the right time has become a pressing issue. This scarcity is not just an HR concern, but a business issue. As a result, the search for top talent is at the forefront because they not only contribute to revenue generation, but also serve as a driving force in a company," said Deepak Dobriyal.

Retaining your top talent

Companies that succeed in achieving high skilled employee retention rates operate at an advantage both in meeting business goals and in recruiting new hires. According to Mervyn Dinnen, a well-established employee retention strategy is a key competitive differentiator. “While providing ongoing education and clearing paths for advancement will always be crucial for retention, another important factor is support,” he said. 

“If people don't feel that companies are supporting them, they're going to look around. Due to their intellectual curiosity, top talents constantly want to develop skills, learn new technologies and upgrade their knowledge. Mervyn added that in addition to flexibility, job security, and good wages, support is also important to retain employees.

Hiring the right person

When looking to hire the right person, many hiring managers tend to follow their gut. While relying on your instincts can help, banking on them solely and completely might not always be the best practice. Corporate HR of Birlasoft suggested backing the hiring process with tools, such as “scientific research, statistical validation, psychometric standards, etc.

“It's really not about selecting people for the job. It's more about finding the right job for every person while developing your community,” he added. 

Leveraging next-gen tech in recruitment 

Be it a veteran or a newbie, technology has a lot to offer when it comes to the right tools to connect with top talents. However, in order to gain a competitive advantage, organisations need to start getting more creative with their recruitment process, suggested the experts. They also shared the latest technologies that recruiters can use to attract top talent:

• Big data analysis
• Applicant tracking systems (ATS)
• Artificial intelligence
• Targeted candidate searches
• Remote, video-based hiring

Watch the full video on LinkedIn.

To learn more from leaders about some of the burning questions in today’s world of work, stay tuned to People Matters' Big Question series on LinkedIn