How to Advance Talent Acquisition up the Maturity Curve

July 17, 2019

 

iCIMS Staff

3 min read

The recent spike in mergers and acquisitions, the Internet of things (IoT) and technology-centric business transformations have organizations moving faster than ever to achieve strategic initiatives. To keep pace and effectively execute against operational goals, a strong workforce is essential.

The Business Impact of a Mature Hiring Process

As one-third of human resource (HR) leaders note a worsening skills shortage within their organization, many are underway with plans to upskill their current workforce and retain key players. Although a look internally certainly benefits immediate skill gaps, higher rates of employee turnover and the competitive nature of the job market force attention toward the maturity of HR operations, specifically talent acquisition (TA).

When it comes to TA maturity, Deloitte found that only 6% of employers see their recruitment processes and technology as best-in-class. Taking into consideration that a single vacancy costs organizations and average of 680 dollars per day, advanced recruitment presents longer-term value.

How to Evaluate Talent Acquisition Maturity

Understanding the importance of talent acquisition enough to identify an outdated strategy is making progress on its own. However, to accurately pinpoint where talent acquisition strategies need to shift to scale with unique business goals, an understanding of what advances TA up the maturity curve must exist.

According to Deloitte, TA maturity is directly linked to high-performing organizations. Key traits that define the evolution from a routine to a strategic function include:

• Senior executives who value TA teams and see the value of TA on strategy execution
• Recruiters who partner regularly with hiring managers to anticipate upcoming business needs
• Soft skills guide talent evaluation to maintain desired work culture
• Candidate experiences that are highly personalized for strong, consistent employer branding
• Data-driven and cognitive sourcing and assessment tools to strengthen talent selection

Talent Acquisition as a Multi-Executive Priority

As retaining and attracting talent rises to the top internal concern for CEOs, more executives across the business will take an all hands-on-deck approach to support the talent acquisition process. The impact of tech on recruitment naturally elevates two specific roles to drive an impactful transformation.

The chief human resources officer (CHRO) and chief information officer (CIO), alongside TA leaders, will need to join forces to scope out and implement a sustainable tech stack. The value of their combined expertise will confirm solutions are proven to meet the rising requirements of recruitment, and work seamlessly with existing human capital management (HCM) systems to avoid disconnect.

Stay Ahead of the Curve with Forward-Thinking Technology

TA operations now expand beyond just an applicant tracking system (ATS) and include complimentary solutions specific to sourcing, engaging, screening and employing talent. For employers using a base-level recruitment solution, often included with their HCM, additional capabilities require costly third-party implementations and diminish the integrity of data being passed between tools. Increased IT support is also required, which can deter CIOs from signing off on the tools TA needs and hinders their ability to fill business-critical roles.

Best-in-class HR solutions for recruitment not only enable employers to use an ATS as their foundation, but encourage integration with a broad array of cutting-edge tools. The ability to establish a platform solely for TA with technologies that support personalized candidate experiences and unique compliance goals, while integrating that platform into a HCM system, satisfies all stakeholders:

• TA is prepared to flex and support evolving business needs by filling roles with talented individuals quickly
• CHROs rest assured that their resources are operating at full capacity, all data from job search to post-hire is stored securely and metrics are readily available to report back to senior executives on
• CIOs and IT leaders can take time previously invested in supporting complex integration projects and devote that into other tech-enabled growth initiatives for the business, knowing that TA teams are armed with mature and sustainable tech

Read more about the evolving relationship between IT and HR and how it can positively influence the introduction of scalable and mature talent acquisition technology strategies in The Strategic Role of IT in HR.