The Innumerable Advantages of Mapping the Talent Market

July 6, 2015 at 11:00 AM by Rob Stevenson

Being the ceaseless purveyors of recruiting software we are, the salubrious confines of Entelo HQ are perpetually abuzz with the real problems facing recruiters on a daily basis, and the best ways to alleviate those talent based migraines. In our own hiring, we try to involve the hiring managers as much as possible; before posting job reqs, during sourcing, before and after interviews, all in the interest of delivering them the most high quality, relevant candidates. It's important to remember that this is a two way street, and that sending feedback to the hiring manager can be just as crucial as receiving it.

That's why it's important to ensure your team leads have realistic expectations about what the reachable talent pool is like for each particular role. I'm talking of course about mapping the talent market to demonstrate just how many of those top candidates are actually out there. This topic recently came up on our podcast, as Loni has extensive experience with providing this sort of information from when she worked as an agency recruiter. Here's a brief snippet of the conversation: 

 

 

If hiring managers aren't duly impressed by the candidates they're meeting, sometimes the snap reaction is to simply request more volume. If you have taken the time to map the market, however, you can point out to your hiring manager that each candidate they talk to is a significant slice of the talent pie, and if it's not what they're looking for, it's time to revisit the job description.

The advantages of mapping the talent market should be obvious. But how do you get started? Glad you asked.

Begin by building a large list of candidates, split in to thirds according to those you believe to be A, B, and C candidates. This allows you to align with the hiring manager on your understanding of the requirements of the role and what the ideal candidate looks like. Once you've calibrated here, you can open up your search to include as many people as you can find who would fit in the top half of that list. 

Loni mentioned the two most obvious limiting factors: skillset and geography. Before opening the relocation can of worms, start by measuring the relevant candidates in your own area. The most actionable way to measure the market here is to start very specific and slowly crawl your way out, so begin in a small radius searching for a very specific set of skills.

From here, you can get as granular as you like, including such criteria as candidates with only direct experience, those who are more likely to be on the move, et cetera.

The point here is not so much to get going on hiring the perfect candidate as seeing how your company's needs translate into actual, real live human beings.  From here, you can present to your hiring manager exactly how many professionals are out there could be suitable, and what it means when you reach out to each one relative to the entire pool. 

If you want to hear more about mapping the talent market, including how it differs for various roles, you can listen to the full episode here.

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