What Are The Benefits Of Recruiting External Talent?
A knowledge or skill gap within a company usually leads to one of two options: an internal promotion or transfer, or an external recruitment process. There are pros and cons to both approaches, but in this article, we will focus our attention on external recruitment. This strategy is used when business leaders recognize that a particular skillset is needed in their organization, but none of their current employees possess it. As a result, they turn to an external pool of candidates to identify the best fit for the role they have in mind. Let’s explore the different types of external recruitment along with the advantages and potential challenges it might bring.
What Is External Recruitment?
External recruitment describes the process of hiring outside one’s organization to fill an empty position. It is possibly the first hiring method that comes to mind when we think of talent acquisition, as well as the most common one in organizations. There is a simple reason behind the popularity of this strategy, and it is that there are only so many people in a company. It’s not possible for your existing workforce to cover every position that opens or every skill gap that arises, despite the recent rise in employee upskilling initiatives.
8 Ways To Hire Externally
Let’s explore the different ways a company can find external talent:
- Advertising – The most common external recruitment method, this involves posting your job ad on career sites, social media platforms, or your company website to attract candidates.
- Recruitment through social media – This method has gained popularity recently, as job seekers regularly review the social media of companies they are interested in. Consequently, it is a great environment to post your job opening and guide candidates to your website to apply for it.
- Employee referrals – This internal process connects you with external talent and enables you to reward employees if the referral leads to a hire. Using their knowledge of the company and the position, employees can effectively screen their acquaintances and make informed recommendations.
- Job boards – These are websites where companies can post their job ads across a wide range of sectors. Their main advantage is that they give you access to a wide talent pool, increasing the number of applications you receive.
- Networking – Professional networks are essential for identifying new talent for your organization. This might include online groups, professional events, job fairs, and other opportunities to connect with new talent.
- College recruiting – You can also collaborate with educational institutions to source and evaluate college students who might want to kick off their career in your company. Aspiring professionals are a great choice for internship and entry-level positions which are not easy to fill otherwise.
- Recruitment agencies – You can always outsource recruitment to a third-party company which will take on the time-consuming task of sourcing and interviewing the bulk of candidates before sending the best choices to you.
5 Advantages Of Recruiting Outside Your Company
Provides Access To A Wider Talent Pool
The most valuable advantage of external recruitment, and the main reason behind its popularity, is the fact that it enables you to tap into the global talent pool, unlike the limited options you have with internal recruitment. While your current workforce is finite, the choices outside your organization are, in theory, endless. If you effectively advertise your job vacancy, you can reach talented candidates from every region of the world until you find the best fit in terms of skills and culture.
Brings New Ideas And Perspectives
Companies that don’t make any personnel changes for extended periods of time may find themselves lacking in creativity. However, when new people enter an organization, they bring their unique perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences. They may also provide feedback regarding your practices and techniques, helping you optimize them and ultimately make your business more efficient. At the same time, newcomers can drive innovation within your company by introducing fresh ideas, challenging long-standing or outdated strategies, and offering different perspectives on problem solving, product development, client management, and more.
Decreases Internal Tensions
While it might not be immediately obvious, external recruitment can have a positive impact on employee relationships. The reason is that internal recruitment processes for higher-level positions might spark increased competition and tension, especially if they involve leading former team members. Apart from that, when many employees apply for a particular position at any level, those who end up not being chosen may feel overlooked and underappreciated. This could impact their productivity, morale, and rapport with their colleagues. By opting for external recruitment, companies can prevent tensions and maintain healthy team dynamics.
Promotes Diversity
The modern workforce is taking a turn towards diversity and enjoying a multitude of benefits because of it. Diverse employees bring to their companies distinct skills, perspectives, and experiences, thus leading to increased innovation, productivity, and efficiency. On top of that, businesses that employ people from diverse backgrounds have stronger DE&I policies in place, meaning that they strive to create a work environment that is more accepting, open, and positive. To achieve this, you must expand your pool of candidates by leveraging various external recruitment strategies.
Drives Company Growth
External recruitment is an excellent opportunity for businesses looking to grow. As you take steps to scale your organization and expand into new markets and locations, you will have to complement internal recruitment and mobility practices with external hiring. By doing so, you will not only prevent current employees from feeling overwhelmed but also reduce the risk of stress and burnout. By seeking and welcoming outside talent, you will be able to enhance your workforce’s level of knowledge and expertise and drive organizational success.
Potential Challenges Of External Recruitment
There is no doubt that the benefits of external recruitment are numerous, but there are also some potential challenges you will need to keep in mind.
The one that immediately comes to mind is that external hiring can be costly. Expenses such as higher salaries to attract highly skilled candidates, fees for recruitment websites and agencies, extra work hours for the HR department, etc., can quickly add up. Moreover, there is no way to guarantee how long it will take to find the right candidate. A few weeks can easily turn into a few months, impacting your organization’s productivity and efficiency in the meantime. Even after the hiring process is complete, there remains a risk that the new hire may not stick around for long. They might not be a good cultural fit, or they may not perform to the desired standard, forcing you to restart the recruitment process.
Another thing to keep in mind is that external talent typically requires more onboarding and training compared to existing employees. They might, of course, come with a set of skills that you currently lack, but they will still need to learn your company’s internal processes and tools. Not to mention that they will need time to get accustomed to their new colleagues and figure out how to work together effectively. Finally, it is important to opt for external talent only after confirming that there are no suitable options within your current workforce. Relying exclusively on external recruitment, even when there are talented individuals available internally, can lead to employee frustration and disengagement.
Conclusion
External recruitment is a great way to attract talented candidates and pave the way for success. The various methods used when hiring externally not only increase your chances of finding the right people for each position but also minimize the costs associated with it. Simultaneously, bringing in external candidates introduces new perspectives and ideas into your organization, helping it drive innovation and become more efficient. Take the time to explore the pros and cons of hiring externally so that you can make the right decisions when a skill gap emerges in your organization.
