Conclusion: What’s Next for Talent Acquisition?
Outside of the annual performance review, we’re not sure there’s any more dehumanizing event involved with work than the typical hiring process. If you’ve had the misfortune of applying for jobs the way that most people have to — with an online or in-person resume or by finding jobs through job boards — you know the pain of how poorly it can play out. The reliability of these hiring decisions is also seriously suspect, with hiring managers and talent acquisition professionals picking assessment tools and processes that align more with their personal preferences than simply choosing the best combination to find the right hire. Maybe it’s time to give the robots and their algorithms a chance.
However, that doesn’t mean the human element can be overlooked. Organizations still report having trouble finding the right people with the right skills at the right cost and at the right time. Building a sophisticated talent pipeline requires not only a deep understanding of the strengths and flaws of your talent management processes but also a mature understanding of workforce management. If we learned one thing from the recent American presidential election, it’s that too many people are being left behind and left out of talent evaluation and talent acquisition.
We expect that talent acquisition leaders will still be comfortable with a suitcase full of technology at their fingertips, but the hottest tools or the shiniest object often distract from fixing core issues.
Technology vendors that align themselves with doing the hard work and fixing widespread talent acquisition issues will find a long-term seat with those organizations. That will take more than an algorithm. It will require lots of people, organizations, and vendors to think differently about how they go about sourcing and hiring talent.
Those vendors who chase the trend of the week, who fail to develop brands that stand for something, and who fail to invest in those brands — especially brand spending that drives a high level of functional association — will risk falling by the wayside. If you’re looking to find the winner in today’s talent acquisition market, look for those who bet on brand. You can take that to the bank.
Upcoming Reports
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About This Report
© 2017 The Starr Conspiracy
Principal author: Lance Haun
Supporting authors and research: Roberta Gogos, Rob Cox, and Steve Smith
Editors: Steph Buchanan and Jonathan Goodman
Design: Bailey Blanchone and Nancy Crabb
Technology: Michael Mercer and Kyle Simmonds
Project management: Racheal Bates and Emily Byrne
About The Starr Conspiracy
The Starr Conspiracy embraces the humanity in business to build brands that have emotional resonance. More than a global business-to-business marketing agency, we’re a movement. We’re changing the way technology companies view themselves, their customers, and the world. Unlike conventional agencies, we fuse advertising, technology, and advisory services in completely new ways — ways that defy categorization and challenge the old-school agency structure.