[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2020\/10\/01\/how-to-recruit-retain-top-talent\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2020\/10\/01\/how-to-recruit-retain-top-talent\/","headline":"How to recruit + retain top talent: Put people and their experiences first","name":"How to recruit + retain top talent: Put people and their experiences first","description":"From how we engage and draw candidates to our open roles to providing a positive candidate and interview experience, we must consistently work toward building stronger connections and relationships with candidates.","datePublished":"2020-10-01","dateModified":"2021-11-10","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/contributor\/laurie-ruettimann\/#Person","name":"Laurie Ruettimann","url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/contributor\/laurie-ruettimann\/","identifier":460,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/29057434eb12993625044c37714336f1f5e443ad81a89fa02d764ed13ec90c14?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/29057434eb12993625044c37714336f1f5e443ad81a89fa02d764ed13ec90c14?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"The Future of Commerce","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/logo-foc-schema-app-1.png","url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/logo-foc-schema-app-1.png","width":172,"height":60}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Recruit-and-Retain-Top-Talent-1.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/Recruit-and-Retain-Top-Talent-1.jpg","height":375,"width":1200},"url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2020\/10\/01\/how-to-recruit-retain-top-talent\/","about":[{"@type":"Thing","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/customer-experience\/","name":"Customer Experience","sameAs":["https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Customer_experience","http:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/entity\/Q984142"]},{"@type":"Thing","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/customer-experience\/employee-engagement\/","name":"Employee Engagement","sameAs":["https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Employee_engagement","http:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/entity\/Q14937678"]},"Employee Experience & Engagement","HXM: Human Experience Management","HXM: Human Experience Management",{"@type":"Thing","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/commerce\/intelligent-enterprise\/","name":"Intelligent Enterprise","sameAs":["https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Intelligent_enterprise","http:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/entity\/Q6044119"]},{"@type":"Thing","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/hxm-human-experience-management-solution\/human-resources\/","name":"The Future of Human Resources","sameAs":["https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Human_resources"]}],"wordCount":1150,"keywords":["Employee Experience","Talent Management"],"articleBody":"Sometimes recruiters and HR professionals forget what it\u2019s like to be a job seeker. We default to hiring systems that collect and sort thousands of resumes instead of thinking about how to recruit and retain top talent, and that’s accomplished by focusing on the true human experience.Let\u2019s face it: looking for a job is frustrating.I know we can do better as HR professionals, and an industry as a whole.From how we engage and draw candidates to our open roles to providing a positive candidate and interview experience, we must consistently work toward building stronger connections and relationships with candidates.How to recruit and retain top talent: Enter HXMThe shift from traditional HR to human experience management (HXM) can help retain and recruit top talent by delivering HR systems and tools specifically designed around what people need to feel supported and be engaged.Modern HR tools:\u00a0Are more accessible and user-friendly, available across all touchpointsAre more intelligent, delivering personalized experiences to help recruit the best talent, while motivating and retaining top employeesIncorporate AI to match traits and abilities to potential jobsMake onboarding more transparentWhere do we begin?First, stop thinking of hiring as a war for talent.\u201cIf you\u2019re looking to recruit a DevOps person that can operate a massively scalable system, you\u2019ll probably try to get someone from Amazon or a similar business,\u201d explains Hung Lee, co-founder and CEO of Workshape.io. \u201cIn banking, if you need a trader, you\u2019ll try to get someone working the front desk at JPMorgan Chase. In those cases, the competition for talent could be described as a war. For everyone else, that term doesn\u2019t make sense.\u201dThe marketplace is highly competitive, but it\u2019s not a war.\u201cThe notion that we\u2019re all in competition with each other is a little damaging to our industry,\u201d agrees Lars Schmidt, founder of Amplify and cofounder of HR Open Source. \u201cIt suggests there is no room to collaborate or cooperate or share ideas. And that offends my open source sensibilities.\u201dThe real battle may be helping HR executives understand the need to broaden their recruiting efforts.Recently the CEO of Wells Fargo blamed a limited pool of black talent for the company\u2019s lack of diversity. (He later apologized.)\u201cIf you\u2019re going to the same places to recruit talent, you\u2019ll only get a certain percentage of the people you\u2019re looking for,\u201d says Minda Harts, Founder and CEO of The Memo, LLC, and Adjunct Assistant Professor at NYU. \u201cYou can\u2019t go to the same pool and expect a different wave. What would it look like to recruit at a historically black university? What if a company partnered with headhunters that focus on diverse talent?\u201dThe Rise of HXM: LinkedIn Live SeriesIf HR doesn\u2019t evolve, talent acquisition and retention is going to become more difficult as younger generations enter the workforce. Catch the insights, ideas, and comments from our experts HERE.\u00a0The employee experience begins with the candidate experienceCandidate interest and engagement begins with the first exposure to your company. Hart asks:\u201cDoes the job description signal an equitable environment?\u201d\u201cDoes it show that I would have a voice when I\u2019m hired?”“Is there transparency in this company?\u201dCompanies can take steps to nurture candidate relationships and foster a sense of connection and belonging. After all, by definition engagement is the action of engaging or being engaged. In other words, it simply does not happen automatically.Investing in solutions that make it easy to develop compelling career sites and execute personalized communications is key to an engagement strategy that keeps candidates interested and informed.\u201cThe ambiguity that happens at every job application is something companies can easily address,\u201d says Schmidt. \u201cAn application portal can show candidates where in the process their application is in real time. There are a variety of ways that recruiters can bring a little humanity to their processes.\u201dBe optimistic about recruiting tools and technology We need better ways to find out whether a candidate can do the job.A resume is crafted by prospects to describe themselves in response to how a company defines the job opening. \u201cIt\u2019s basically two sides of the marketplace trying to get a match between their non-validated data,\u201d says Lee. \u201cIt\u2019s very problematic and often we don\u2019t get it right.\u201dThe good news is that great technologies \u2013 like psychometric testing tools, game-based assessment tools, and others \u2013 can help companies make better decisions.Schmidt is bullish on the possibilities of artificial intelligence.\u201cSome case studies are using AI to identify people\u2019s traits and accomplishments and match them with those of your top performers,\u201d he explains. \u201cIt allows you to identify candidates that the traditional application process would never find \u2013 someone who doesn\u2019t have the job title, didn\u2019t attend the right school, or lacks the typical background. That drastically expands the talent pool you can tap into.\u201dHXM plays a role throughout the employee journeyIt\u2019s not just the recruiting processes that needs rethinking. Companies must also deliver an exceptional experience for employees \u2013 and that\u2019s where the practice of HXM and the right tools can help.Another LinkedIn Live viewer, Katie Augsburger, an employee experience strategist and founding partner of Future Work Design, says that consumer experiences have raised the stakes for employers.\u201cWe’ve moved to a consumer market that tailors experiences based on the individual’s needs. Candidates are expecting to see organizations that care for their unique employee experience, which includes the type of training they need to be successful and benefits that work for their lifestyle.\u201d\u00a0 This is where employee listening is critical, allowing companies to harness ideas and feedback that then drive ongoing experience improvements.Once hired, an employee\u2019s first 90 days are the most critical. Personalized onboarding can set up new hires to be productive from the start.HXM can create a better experience for employees by facilitating continuous feedback, helping employees know whether they\u2019re meeting expectations and requirements.I\u2019m passionate about the need to recognize and reward good work, as it\u2019s essential for attracting and retaining talent. Happily, many companies understand the need for recognition.\u201cFinancial compensation will not make an existing employee super motivated,\u201d says Lee. \u201cWhat they need is the ability to make a contribution \u2013 one that is recognized. It goes beyond policy. It needs to be at a cultural level. People need to feel empowered to praise their colleagues or managers. If you build the culture correctly, you don\u2019t even need the policy.\u201dListening to candidates and employees can go a long way in creating positive experiences that boost confidence, productivity, and engagement. Tools and technology are there to help.Employees are everything to an org.Give them the best possible experience.Join us online for SuccessConnect."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"2020","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2020\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"10","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2020\/\/10\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"01","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2020\/\/10\/\/01\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"How to recruit + retain top talent: Put people and their experiences first","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2020\/10\/01\/how-to-recruit-retain-top-talent\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]