No matter how your organisation is defined, attracting and engaging top talent is most likely critical. For many organisations, discussions relating to attracting the right people will occur regularly, whether you’re patting yourself on the back for recruiting a high performer or lamenting organisational capability. So why does it feel so challenging?

The last five years have proven unpredictable. While there have been consistent pockets of skill shortages in trades, education, health and care services to name a few, availability of other disciplines and work types have fluctuated. Yet, many online forums show that the experiences of job seekers come from a different perspective – they feel constantly targeted by recruiters or face endless rejection. It is important to understand the experiences of job seekers when attempting to attract and engage talent.

As a specialist recruiter with a focus on engineering, technical, scientific, education and administration, we asked Bayside Group consultants for insights into the key actions to engage top talent, emphasising candidate feedback.

Below are five key considerations to guide your talent management journey.

1. Develop a compelling employer brand

Your employer brand shapes how potential and current employees perceive your business. For some organisations this is simple, while others struggle to articulate it. Remember, it needs to align with your brand but focus on the employee experience first and foremost. When recruiting, your employer value proposition will need to be succinct to fit within job summaries and advertisements.

Here are a few tips:

• Share what makes your company unique. Focus on why employees should care, using authentic stories. This may be linked to your purpose (NGOs or environmental companies in particular do this well), how employees are able to contribute (whether this is through exposure to projects, innovation, continuous improvement or autonomy) and/or why employees like working there (what is it about their experience that will resonate with potential employees?).
• Highlight growth opportunities. Potential employees want to see a future with you—promote career paths and development options, even in circumstances where this may not be a forever job. For example, Bayside Group’s two General Managers started with the company in their first recruitment role, but we have also developed a generation of recruiters who have had fantastic careers in HR, HSE, Account and Project Management and Senior Leadership.
• Be consistent. Keep your messaging uniform across all channels—website, social media, and job postings. More importantly, check in with employees to ensure that this is in fact their experience, and look for ways to continuously improve.

A valuable resource to kickstart your employer branding is the Employer Branding Hub by Indeed.

2. Reach passive and active candidates

The best talent may not be actively seeking a new job. And even if they are actively looking for a change, candidates who don’t know who you are or connect immediately with your employer brand may not read the job advertisement.

It is therefore crucial to widen your reach:

• Utilise relevant digital platforms effectively. Posting jobs on mainstream sites (e.g., Seek, LinkedIn) is essential, but depending on your organisation, niche boards specific to your industry or geographical location can also be helpful. To be effective, you need to understand your audience and the benefits you offer that might appeal to them.
• Engage your network. Whether employee referrals, meeting people at industry events or speaking to former colleagues, you will need to utilise your network to uncover the best talent.
• Use a specialist recruiter. If you’re under resourced or require specialist skills, the best way to secure top talent is through a recruitment partner. Recruiters speak to candidates every day and have access to databases and search tools that many businesses do not. A recruiter also provides an independent voice to the candidate, to talk through any concerns they may have about your organisation and how it aligns with their career goals.

Seek’s Laws of Attraction can help you achieve better responses to your advertisements.



3. Prioritise the candidate experience

A positive recruitment experience leaves a lasting impression—whether a candidate gets the job or not. This also improves the acceptance rate on job offers.

Consider the following:

• Communicate promptly and transparently. Keep candidates informed at every stage and explain why you are asking them to undertake the specific steps required.
• Streamline your hiring process. Avoid unnecessary delays or hoops and be respectful of the candidates’ time. Establishing a clear decision-making process and avoiding delays will ensure you don’t miss out on quality candidates.
• Offer constructive feedback. When possible, provide valuable feedback to unsuccessful applicants. However, those providing feedback should be trained to do so, keeping in mind the goal is to be constructive.

Bayside Group’s Employer Interview Guide provides detailed advice on interviews, along with the broader recruitment process, to help you improve the candidate experience.

4. Offer competitive compensation

While purpose and culture matters, compensation remains a key factor for most candidates. In this economic environment with many companies struggling, this advice may make employers feel helpless. However, the cost-of-living increases are real for candidates and employees.

• Benchmark salaries. Firstly, it’s essential to understand how you compare with the market. You may be surprised to learn your salary structures fit within the market average or above. However, if they don’t and you are finding it hard to attract and retain staff, you may need a different approach.
• Think beyond salary. Benefits such as health care, paid leave, wellness programs, flexible work and professional development can make a big difference. However, these can also prove expensive as they are often applied universally.
• Consider performance-based rewards. For many companies, performance-based salary structures work more effectively to secure high performance and manage budgets. In the right circumstances, this can positively impact on employee motivation and organisational success.

Seek’s Explore Salaries function can be useful to at least set expectations, or see what candidates are looking up. Seek itself is also a good way to look at salary offerings for similar jobs you are competing against right now. Bayside Group can assist with talent mapping services to help you understand availability and salary expectations.

5. Support ongoing development and career growth

Top talent wants to learn and advance. Yet for most, how and what they learn should align with individual preferences and needs. Demonstrating your commitment to their growth can prove to be a strong return on investment.

• Provide learning opportunities. Use independent development plans to provide relevant opportunities to learn. This may include on-the-job training, exposure to different teams or functions within the organisation and online learning as well as specific workshops and courses.
• ·Map out career paths. Help employees see their future within your organisation. Understanding where they are now, where they might want to go, and what they need to do to achieve their goals is essential to their development and growth.
• Encourage internal mobility. Promote from within when possible and support lateral moves to broaden skill sets.
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Most organisations have tools in place for training and development; they’re just not used effectively. If you’re organisation doesn’t have what you need, there are many resources available online. If you don’t have a plan template, the Victorian Government provides free basic professional development plan templates and other performance related templates here.

Attracting and engaging the best people is about building trust, nurturing growth, and creating a place people want to be part of. If you’re looking for talent or want to understand the current market more, contact us today.