How to Identify and Hire the Best HR Talent

We’ve all been there. We find human resources job seekers who check all of the boxes and who prove to be the best candidate for the role we’re looking to fill. They have the right skills and work experience. Great attitude and energy. They fit-in. And then we lose him/her to another organization. When this happens, do you ask yourself what went wrong? Was it:

1. Your office culture or the hiring manager?
2. An unrealistic compensation range or a failure to identify your business need?
3. Did the interview process not move quickly enough or did you neglect to follow-up to ensure they understand what the process looks like?

Any of these missteps can lead to losing the best human resources candidates.

Plus, if you work for mid-size and smaller organizations, you also have to compete for landing the best talent with large corporations like Amazon and Google who have large recruiting teams on a constant look-out for that same talent.

We get it. Over the years we have seen organizations fail to land the best human resources candidates many times. It’s a lot to manage and there’s no silver bullet. However, we’ve learned how to prevent your frustration and implement steps to land the best human resources hires.

To help you land the best human resources candidates, we put together key actions you can take to succeed.

We’ll review . . .

1. How do we define Top Talent? And what are they looking for in a new job?
   The qualities, personality traits and desires of the top talent
   • What they look for in a career
   • The importance of corporate culture
   • How they will support your organization
2. Challenges most recruiters face
   Typical challenges/reasons why organizations struggle to attract top talent
3. Steps to overcome the challenges
   The steps it takes to land Top Human Resources Talent:
   • How to identify the “best” job seeker
   • How to make your organization attractive to the “best” job seeker
   • How to go above and beyond to make the “best” job seeker believe they can’t not take the job
   • Trends that impress the “best” job seeker

What Does Top Human Resources Talent Look For?

Seeking to understand human resources job seekers’ motivations for exploring new opportunities helps you identify the top talent. With human resources professionals, you want to remember that they are looking for new opportunities that:

1. Offer a strategic role. Human resources has shifted beyond payroll and benefits, the best candidates want to play a strategic role at the leadership-level of the organizations they work for.
2. Have defined opportunities for growth. They want to know there is a path for growth in these roles, where these paths are going and what that looks like.
3. Provide flexibility on the job. This may include the option to work from home or flex-time.

You also want to remember that the top human resources candidates are also those who have proven track records and promotions within an organization.

Challenges to Landing the Top Human Resources Talent

The challenges to landing the top human resources talent vary, but they focus primarily on:

1. Engaging candidates who tend to stay with their current jobs and so may be open to opportunities, but are generally more passive about the job search.
2. Recognizing that those candidates who are actively searching for new opportunities tend to have multiple offers.
3. Selling candidates on the benefits of a smaller company, when many want to go to larger organizations.

Overcoming the Challenges to Landing the Top Best Human Resources Talent

While the challenges may feel like a lot to take on, there are ways to overcome them.

Highlight the Exposure at Smaller Organizations

The top human resources candidates may want to go to larger organizations, but you can show them the exposure they’ll receive to the range of different opportunities at smaller ones where there is a greater need for their skills.

Offer Candidates Insight Into the Market

You are available to offer them guidance on whether opportunities are good or bad, and when an organization is not an ideal fit. You can play this role even when it’s not a placement you’re working on. You’re there to help.

Show the Opportunities for Growth

Do your homework, human resources professionals want to know that if they look at new opportunities there is a path for career growth, that what they need to accomplish along that path is defined.

Know the Full Package

The top human resources candidates care about flexibility on the job, working from home, as well as time-off and other benefits, this is important to them, and key for you to be able to define what’s available.

For more guidance, you may be interested in the following. . .

• How to Discover a Company’s True Culture
• How to Define Your Criteria for Hiring the Right Candidate

Final Thoughts

When it comes to landing the top human resources talent, we see where recruiters don’t always come clean with them about when they’re no longer in the running for a position.

But this is where you can focus on ensuring they know that you are there to be their guide and that you will be transparent and provide them with accurate information.

You can focus on engaging passive candidates by showing them what the market looks like and the benefits that are available to them.

You can also show them where the opportunities for growth lie and the path for getting there.

And when they tell you that they prefer to work for a big organization, you can illustrate for them how smaller organizations offer them more opportunities to build their skills.

Hirewell is Your Partner to Help You Make The Best Hires for Your Organization

We’re here to provide you with the guidance you need to land the top human resources talent.

Want guides to other specialties? View our guides to landing the top Technology, Marketing and Sales hires, too.

Rosanna Snediker