Look First to Internal Talent to Fill Positions

Over the course of my career, I reveled at the ingenuity of those charged with finding external talent with very unique skills. Usually it involved dissecting data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics to identify the best markets, reviewing population demographics, looking at competitors in the market, searching social sites, developing relationships with different associations and institutions, and more. shutterstock_552220405

However, in my opinion, in order to have a fully optimized, high-performing organization, it is important to first provide career and development opportunities to employees, and then, if needed, look externally for talent to fill those positions.

We’ll discuss the challenges and keys to success for filling key positions internally during our Jan. 17 webinar with SumTotal, Flipping the External and Internal Fill Rate, at 1pm Eastern.  Come join Bill Docherty, Vice President/Product Management at SumTotal, and myself as we discuss this topic.

We’ll look at how to overcome the many challenges to this process, including giving employees visibility into internal career opportunities, development, the organization’s culture, giving employees time to adjust to the new position, and the technology used to scale this process. Meeting these challenges can be a real win-win situation for the organization and the employees. Here are just a couple of the benefits:

  • Strengthening EVP: According to Brandon Hall Group’s Employee Value Proposition Survey, the top three practices that have the greatest impact on an organization’s EVP are: improving manager coaching capabilities (57%), focusing on developing and retaining high-potential talent (57%), and enhancing learning and development opportunities (49%). By providing career and development opportunities, your organization is saying to employees that we value your contribution, you can make an impact, and we are investing in your future at this organization. That is an extremely powerful motivator that fuels engagement, retention, and business performance.
  • Achieving Greater Alignment: Your best employees are already aligned and engaged with your organization’s goals, values, and culture and are more likely than new hires to continue to pursue their career at your organization. To achieve this same type of alignment with new hires, and reduce the risk of new hire attrition, there needs to be an extensive assessment, assimilation, and onboarding process.

Daria Friedman, Principal Analyst, Talent Acquisition, Brandon Hall Group

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