Recruiting & Candidate Development

The Forgotten Sourcing and Recruiting Method

Terry Hall Hits: 730

People often ask me, “What’s the best way to source talent for my open jobs?”

Clearly, there are many ways to source candidates. The online venues can be overwhelming to keep up with. You may ask: “Besides Linkedin, Twitter, Facebook, Plaxo, Pinterest, Instagram, Zoominfo and a plethora of other social media and social networking sites available, what else is there?”

My response: Recruiters and sourcers sometimes forget to network and source talent in-person.

So, what does that really mean?

Go where your target talent "physically" goes... where they spend their time away from work.

It sounds simple, but many recruiters are so focused on sourcing talent via the internet, they've forgotten that getting out and meeting people is as important as meeting them online.

How can you find your target talent? It may not be as quick as a Google search, but it’s possible to do your research and go where they are.

Think about this:

Where would you go if you were trying to source military talent? A military base.
Where would you go to source college grads? A local university.

Those are obvious source examples, but if you know your target talent's industry, you can use the same methodology to go where they are too.

For example, if you are sourcing Human Resource-specific talent, you could attend a Toastmasters meeting in the area you reside. You'd be surprised the types of talent you meet at these meetings. The clubs typically list the job-titles of each member and each meeting is usually free for guest attendance.

Other, less obvious, talent sources are the gym, the bus, the mall, a popular restaurant, a Meetup group, a career mixer... the list goes on.

How do you source these venues?

1. Talk about your company to everyone you meet.

2. Let them know how excited you are to work for your company.

3. Share your open jobs with everyone.

4. Have your contact information or business card available at all times because they’ll ask for it and want to connect with you via social media.

5. Ask for referrals!

My experience sourcing talent in random places is always positive and fruitful. I frequent public transit for my work commute and meet new people every day.

Without fail, I talk to the people sitting near me. I tell them about where I work, the jobs I’m recruiting for and ask them about what they do. It’s important to be engaging and that means being a good listener. People like to talk about what they do and if you’re a good listener, they will feel a sense of trust. Once you’ve gained their trust, they will feel compelled to share referrals with you.

Remember, sourcing talent is a constant effort and as a recruiter or sourcer, you must integrate in-person networking into your talent acquisition strategy. Be a brand zealot of yourself and your company and view every interaction as an opportunity to source and network for top talent!

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Biography

Terry Hall is currently a Contract Sourcing Recruiter for Finance/Payroll at Amazon. She has 15+ years of Staffing, Recruiting & Business Development Experience. Her diverse background consists of corporate recruiter, entrepreneur, social media manager, networking trainer & U.S. Marine Corps Veteran. . http://thejobspot.wordpress.com/ http://www.linkedin.com/in/terryjobs