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7 Ways to Attract Top Talent to Your Startup

by Innov8tiv.com
7 Ways to Attract Top Talent to Your Startup

As an entrepreneur, you’ve probably put your lifeblood into your fledgling company and to you, it’s everything you’ve ever dreamed of. You are finally able to take your vision to a whole new level and your excitement is mounting by the day. However, you aren’t quite sure how to build that same level of excitement in others and are at a point where you need key players if you hope to succeed. So then, how do you attract these key players, the top talent in your field? Here are 7 suggestions you can, and should, explore.

1. Networking at Industry Events

There are few industries, if any, where industry events and trade shows aren’t hugely attended. This is not only where interested people get the latest information on products and concepts but also where they build relationships with others in the field. Also, you will find that the top talent just may be looking to broaden their horizons and by reaching out to them at functions like these, you might be surprised at the interest you can generate!

2. Social Media

On a similar note, many professionals keep an active social media account for the very same reasons. Many are dissatisfied with their current positions and are seeking new avenues to explore. Why not set up a social site or two and use it to attract key players in your industry. You just might build relationships with talent you didn’t know existed – on that level anyway!

3. Enticing Employment Package with Perks

Have you ever wondered what the major corporations offer prospective employees to get them to sign on? One of the things you will find that they offer which many smaller companies don’t would be an attractive employment package with perks. Offer to pay all, or part, of their tuition for advanced degrees like this one in finance and see just how quickly they become interested in your startup. Who wouldn’t be with an opportunity for personal growth like that?

4. Offer Them Creative Expression

One of the missing elements so many employers regret later on is the fact that they don’t really get a feel for what job applicants are looking for. In most fields, the top talent is looking for creative expression within the realm of their positions. For example, line foremen in production often want to be more than drill sergeants. They take their jobs very seriously and are always researching ways to improve productivity. If you express a willingness to allow them the freedom to help explore newer and more productive ways of getting things done, you’ll see just how quickly the best people will jump at the chance of working for you. In other words, everyone wants to be appreciated by upper management, and what better way to show them just how valuable they truly are?

5. Opportunity for Growth from Within

Now that you’ve seen to giving them the opportunity for personal growth, why not talk to them about advancement from within? You are a startup and are seeking key players to grow with your company. By giving recruits the understanding that you are seeking key players who are in it for the long haul an opportunity to grow with the company, you just might find those people looking to strive towards management. They don’t reach that level of success in their field without a will to succeed. Perhaps it will take giving them an opportunity to further their degree by paying all or part of their tuition for staff development courses or maybe it would give them a chance to continue rising in the ranks as their performance substantiates. In either case, if you want to attract the top talent, those truly ready to grow with the company will be evidenced by their desire for growth with you.

6. Incentive for Referrals

Some companies sweeten the deal by offering incentives for recruitment. Most professionals know others in their line of work and many know people who are totally disenchanted with their current employers. It could be the hours they work, the rate of pay they receive, the lack of benefits or as mentioned above, the lack of appreciation for all their efforts. Some employers offer monetary bonuses for each recruitment hired who stays there a predetermined length of time and others offer different perks like days off with pay, mini vacations and so much more. In fact, you might even consider offering progressive bonuses or incentives that accumulate with each employee hired and retained!

7. Contract a Recruitment Agency

If all else fails, you can always contract a recruitment agency that specializes in weeding out interested candidates who just don’t have what you are looking for. These agencies run the gambit of recruiting techniques from personality testing to skills assessment. Many will also contact previous employers to vet prospects so that you can choose to check references or not, based on the findings of the agency. This may save time and money for your HR team and will sometimes more than compensate the cost of contracting a recruitment firm. Also, as mentioned, it can’t be said enough that recruitment agencies really are specialists in the field and are expert in finding the ‘right fit.’ Even so, you always hold the final veto so why not let them do what they do best? That would be, finding the top talent of course!

As you have probably discovered by now, the key element throughout is the growth factor, both personal and business. Most of the top talent got there by striving to be the best that they can be and always looking for the chance to climb the ladder one rung at a time. If you want to grow your company by attracting the best of the best, show them that you are giving them a ground floor position that will eventually lead to the penthouse within your company. Show them that they will be given the tools to grow with you and watch how quickly those key positions get filled.

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