Talent is rare, but when you find it, you can dramatically increase the effectiveness of your business. But how do you get it?
Talented people often know that they’re good at what they do. They soon learn that they can canvas different companies for the best pay, regularly playing one off against another.
As an employer, you still want these people, but you know that there are a dozen companies just like yours all vying for their attention. So how do you get them to work for you? Take a look at some of these tried and tested principles for attracting talent.
Create A Space For Innovation
Talented people want opportunities to put their creativity to use. But many businesses like to compartmentalise roles, and this severely limits the appeal of working for them.
Rather than trying to shoehorn talented people into specific job functions, look for ways to give them scope to try other things.
Some companies set up innovation labs which allow employees to explore new ideas related to their products in the hope of creating something of high value that customers want.
You could expand on this idea but focus it inward on your company and challenge your most talented people to develop new internal processes that will improve efficiency or worker satisfaction.
Ensure Your Employees Are Engaged
Engagement is a significant problem for today’s employers. Surveys consistently reveal that about half of all workers are not engaged in what they’re doing, lowering productivity and harming job satisfaction.
Talented people need to be fully immersed in their work to derive satisfaction. They don’t enjoy merely turning up to make money. The best way to get people to engage in their work fully is to allow them to be creative in some way.
Creative thinking is a particular type of brain activity in which people can get lost in what psychologists call “flow.” Flow is a specific state of mind where the individual focuses purely on the task in hand, often losing all track of time and the people around them in the process.
By diverting the mind, flow creates a sense of wellbeing and ensures that talented people aren’t just watching the clock.
Look In The Right Places
Some talented people use popular recruitment channels to find suitable employers, but they are just as likely to find you as they are your competitors.
Savvy companies use a job distribution tool to better target the people they want and get an edge on other businesses. The way you find potential people can have a dramatic impact on the average level of talent at your firm.
Give Them Leadership Opportunities
Today’s talented employees want to be the leaders of tomorrow, right at the forefront of business. As a result, they want opportunities for personal development so that they can become the managers, executives and founders of tomorrow.
Companies that offer leadership programmes are more likely to get the best people because they can promise a brighter, more exciting future to candidates.
