8 Talent Attraction Assumptions That Could Sink Any Business Post-COVID-19

As the saying goes, “The hardest assumption to challenge is the one you don’t even know you’re making.”

In light of the COVID-19 crisis, many employers and talent acquisition leaders are consciously and unconsciously making assumptions about what the future will hold.

“Don’t worry, our top talent will return.”

“We’ve filled that position, so we don’t need to worry about it anymore.”

“There’s record unemployment, so it’s obviously a buyer’s market.”

While some of these assumptions may seem logical, if not even certain, you often have to look beyond the surface to accurately assess what’s really going on.

With access to multiple clients and senior stakeholders around the world, I’m in the fortunate position of being able to see – from the outside – the mistakes (and wins) that many employers are making during the COVID-19 crisis. In this article, we’ll explore some of the most common talent attraction assumptions that are being made right this very second.

Diving deeper, we’ll explore why many of these assumptions are ill-informed and provide you with practical tips, strategies and solutions to ensure you don’t fall on the wrong side of the trap.

Ready? Let’s go.

1.  Don’t assume your top talent will simply return

The COVID-19 crisis has thrown many organizations and industries into a time of pressing financial difficulty. Unfortunately, tough decisions have had to be made all around – whether that means furloughing staff or making redundancies.

While short term business survival might force your hand, don’t assume that top talent will simply return to your organization. In many cases, re-hiring laid-off talent will not be as easy as simply offering them their old job back.

Top talent may not return to your organization for a variety of reasons, some of which might include:

·  Getting a better job offer somewhere else

·  Not being impressed with how they were treated before being laid-off

·  Your brand reputation has taken a hit in the media since they left

For others, timing may be a key issue. Laid-off employees need to face reality quickly and find a job that pays the bills, so if you’re hoping to re-hire these individuals months down the line, then you’re likely in for a rude awakening.

2.  Don’t assume that filling a position is the end of the story

When the re-hiring phase inevitably begins, don’t assume that filling a position will be the end of the story. Much more work needs to be done.

Initially, people may be in a position of necessity that forces them to take any role they can get to protect the wellbeing of themselves and their family. However, to keep them engaged and happy, you need to make sure you craft a personalised and tailored onboarding experience that addresses the impact, purpose and belonging that these individuals crave.

Building an authentic and attractive proposition while onboarding new talent has never been more important, especially for organizations that want to fight against early attrition. You can prepare for this by communicating a clear, two-way value proposition to new hires. Start by illustrating, in real terms, what it’s actually like to work at your organization, how they’re likely to feel and what they must overcome. Then, highlight the impact, purpose and belonging that follows when all of these challenges are effectively met.

This will help reduce early turnover by setting clear expectations and showing that your organization lives up to its promises.

3.  Don’t assume that your retained top talent will stay

If you’ve managed to hold on to a good portion of your existing top talent, then well done. But that doesn’t mean the job is over – far from it.

If the COVID-19 crisis has exposed some of the less than desirable aspects of your employee experience, or even if your employee experience has just been a little nondescript, then your best talent may well be poised to jump ship. If competitors, for example, display more empathy, humanity and support for their employees, then your talent will surely take notice – even if that competitor organization has also had to make redundancies.

In this sense, it’s less about what you do (being forced to let people go) and more about how you handle the situation. Did you do it with grace, empathy and decorum? Or was it done without thought and care for those who were let go?

In a strange version of reality, we could see a trend where talent leaves organizations that are financially strong to join companies that are, ostensibly, struggling more. Why? Well, if these organizations demonstrate more vulnerability, a greater sense of purpose to rebuild and clearly articulate the impact that a single contributor could make to the journey ahead, then it wouldn’t be surprising to see some top talent defect.

Obviously, we’re assuming that there will be a certain level of stability and security in this new role, but at the end of the day, everyone wants to feel like they matter. What better way to feel a heightened sense of self-worth than to join a company that clearly needs what you have to offer.

4.  Don’t assume that finding new talent will be easy

Don’t assume that finding the new talent you want to hire will be easy; in fact, there’s every chance that those individuals you’ve earmarked won’t even be available. The marketplace is set to become more competitive than we’ve ever seen, at a timescale and pace that has never been experienced before.

Hiring talent faster than your current plans or comfort levels may well be the only way to save the future of your business, especially if you will depend on those new hires to fulfil the demands you need to meet

If you feel it’s warranted, then escalate the importance of this discussion - seek buy-in from senior leadership, lay out the options and talk through the risks and safeguards of acting before quickly - before your competition has time to get organized in the marketplace.

During these unprecedented times, you may want to expedite certain positions, re-imagine a fast-tracked candidate experience or even remove blanket hiring freezes to allow for key roles. Inaction, in an attempt to save money, could be a decision employers regret for many years to come.

As an alternative, evidence the typical time and cost it takes to hire someone versus the expected speed and cost of acting now. If leadership is willing to talk to top talent, then this can keep candidates close and show them how valued and important they would be at your organization.

But remember - if you do decide to take action, consider the internal employer brand message. If key new hires will add value and help safeguard the business, then this could be a great way to demonstrate effective, assertive leadership and offer peace of mind with confidence and certainty.

5.  Don’t assume that this is a buyer’s market

 While this is an unprecedented time in which thousands of talented individuals are free that may not otherwise be available, don’t make the mistake of thinking that this is a buyer’s market.

It’s true that, in a matter of weeks, the pendulum has swung from record low unemployment (candidate-driven market) to extremely high unemployment (buyer’s market). But this merely a perception, so don’t be fooled.

As we come out of COVID-19, every organization will be looking to hire talent – all at the same time. This means the marketplace will be more competitive than ever before, so you can’t afford to mistake volume of availability with competitiveness to hire talent. 

To prepare for this rush, start by looking at how you can evidence real change and create a competitive advantage by offering a real sense of purpose, impact and belonging to new recruits. Showing that your organization has depth will be key at a time when companies are scrambling to attract the very best candidates.

Remember, making preparations to account for this surge in activity isn’t simply a “nice to have”. If your organization doesn’t take action now, then your competitors will.

6.  Don’t assume that things will settle down quickly

After this hiring frenzy ensues, don’t assume that things will settle down quickly or that you’ll be able to find top talent eventually (as you may have done in the past).

Modern humanity has never lived through such global upset at the same time and at such an unprecedented scale. Over the past few weeks and months, many people have been re-evaluating their lives and pulling closer together as a community.

There’s a very high likelihood that talent will either want to make a fresh start or double down on the loyalty and bonding taking place within their current organization. Staying power, commitment and a much higher desire for stability and certainty could prevent people from being open to change as much as we’ve seen in recent years.

Putting short-term moves made from necessity aside, this reality is something that could have a massive impact on any business that takes too long to engage with the valuable talent that is open to exploring your opportunities – especially if this window will be short-lived.

7.  Don’t assume your current proposition is still relevant

A lot has changed since the start of 2020, so don’t assume that your current proposition is still relevant or competitive enough to attract the people you want. Just because it worked a couple of months ago, doesn’t mean it’s relevant or effective in this new world.

Forget radical change - even If your organization has changed slightly, there’s a good chance the employee experience and the ‘ask’ from leadership has evolved, too. This means there are new opportunities for inspiration and aspiration, as well new elements of adversity to position and explain.

According to recent research from RallyFwd, only 26% of companies are being transparent about the harsh realities of their employee experience. Even if you’re in that minority, don’t assume that what challenged employees three months ago is what challenges them today.

Listen, investigate and engage with your people to quickly assess whether your current EVP still holds water. Find out what’s missing, what needs to be dialed up or down, and what is entirely new about the company that reflects employees’ new outlook and experience.

Talk to recent leavers and, if it was their choice, ask, “Why did you leave?”. Then, talk to the teammates of recent leavers to get a real insight into why they left - this is a great segue into the challenges people are facing themselves.

Speak with top performers, rising stars and new starters - identify what’s unexpectedly positive, consistent and bright about the employee experience that people love, cling to, admire or have become proud and passionate about.

Finally, listen to what candidates are asking about and use those questions to research your employee experience further. This can add depth to persona research and allows your EVP to be tailored to each talent segment. In doing so, you’ll reveal the authentic truth about your employee experience and discover what people care about most.

8.  Don’t assume your candidate experience will be maintained

As the rush to attract top talent ensues, don’t assume that the candidate experience you offered a few months ago will be maintained at a blistering scale and pace with the same processes, collateral, training and technology.

Individual experiences aren’t something you can quickly scale up. After all, they’re not processes or technologies. If your hiring managers or recruiters become inundated with applications, then how will your employer brand stand up to never before seen levels of activity? Will you be able to deliver the same level of experience to each candidate that you’ve offered in the past?

If the answer is no, then you need to take practical steps today to prepare for such a scenario. Remember, how you make people feel during the application process can have serious lasting consequences on your employer brand and consumer brand.

The calibre of talent, the volume, cost and time of hiring people and the legacy of your brand reputation are all on the line. It’s an area you simply cannot afford to overlook.

If you’re interested in learning more about how to attract top talent post-COVID-19, then you can pick up a copy of my new book, ‘Give & Get Employer Branding’, available now on Amazon and at all major book retailers.