7 tips: How to land the best talents

7 tips: How to land the best talents

The struggle for talent has never been greater than it has been in the past years. Lars Holm Marcher, Partner at Free Agents™ and Marcher Markholt, guides you to what you as a company need to do to lure in the best talents.

"The market is completely overheated on pretty much every position."

This is what Lars says about the recruitment and talent crisis that is currently rumbling in the industries. On top of that, economists are sounding the alarm bells about rough waters ahead. Nobody knows how grim it will be, but we know the downturn will hit sooner or later. 
 
The talent market itself is still adapting to a new reality that was unveiled by the pandemic, which heavily impacted the way we work and the way we desire to work.

If there’s anything we can learn from previous recessions, it is that cutting costs heavily in areas such as talent, R&D, and marketing won’t work. Such a reactive response will on the other hand put a company at great risk of successfully resurging post-recession. Instead of making dramatic cost-saving decisions, future-focused leaders proactively address areas where they can trim the organizational fat, where they can strengthen their core and where they can build dynamic organizational capabilities to cope with uncertain times. From a talent perspective, business leaders must understand how to continuously find, attract and hire the best talent and attain/retain the existing workforce to remain competitive.

The exact talent needs going into a potential recession are of course hard to predict which is also why we developed a little playbook called "talent acquisition in recession times" -  you can download it for free on this page. 

But what is the Headhunters' best advice to companies if they want to win the race for the best talents? We had a chat with Lars, who gives his seven best tips on the matter. It is both relevant for you who are looking for permanent employees and you who are looking for freelancers – in other words, you who are looking for the right talent somewhere in the blended workforce.

1: HAVE A HYBRID WORKFORCE MODEL

"The companies that continue to stay in the belief that at any moment now, we’ll draw a line in the sand, and then all employees are physically returned, will create great challenges for themselves. Top talent expects a hybrid work model with both remote and physical presence. They want to have a say in their work-life and how it's going to be put together so that they have balance."

2: MAKE ROOM FOR FREELANCERS AND INTERIMS

"At the same time, as more and more companies are using freelancers to scale up and down and to cover skills gaps, we are also seeing that more and more professionals are moving towards a freelance career. We see a growing demand for roles that require specialized skills, and here freelancers can really come in and get things done. In addition to being incredibly skilled, it can also be a cost-effective approach in certain situations compared to onboarding a permanent employee to a temporary project. That speed and agility can bring tremendous value to virtually every business. At the same time, they allow companies of any size to scale and up and down when needed."

"What research suggests and what we're currently witnessing with a lot of our clients is that a blended workforce with a mix of permanent staff, interim hires and freelancers can yield a competitive advantage for companies by bolstering them to withstand economic turbulence and build a more flexible and robust workforce."

3: GIVE TALENTS THE RIGHT TOOLS

"It is essential that the talents feel that they are helping to create and develop and not just execute. Therefore, they want to be in a place that is competitive and has the right structures. They want the right technologies and tech stacks, and the company needs to work with the right processes, as well as be in control of their data and customer journey. Otherwise, they won't be part of a winning team, and then they will find that elsewhere."

4: MAKE A STRONG REMUNERATION MODEL

"Doing something good in the world is important. But at the same time, the right remuneration is indispensable. Companies like Google, Facebook or start-ups tailor their salaries with bonuses and co-owner options. It's definitely something you can adjust on to move ahead of competition."

5: GIVE TALENTS SELF-DETERMINATION

"The talents also want to have an impact within the company. Therefore, they must have room for maneuvering and be able to decide things. You have to create a culture that listens and responds to their input because those are values that really matter."

6: FOCUS ON DIVERSITY

"A workplace with diversity and inclusion is the winning culture of the future. And that's where the greatest talents want to go. It's not nice to have, it's need to have in your organization, and it is something that the best talents will demand."

7: BE AN EMPATHETIC COMPANY

"You need to have empathy. Modern companies enshrine ethical and empathetic virtues and values in their talent strategy. You need to support the health, safety and well-being of your employees far more than in the past."

Are you in need of just the right talent?

We are proud to have a strong position in the talent market within digital, tech, marcom and commercial talent, and thus, we take a unique position that gives us access to the best talents across the permanent labor market and the freelance market - i.e. the blended workforce. 

If you are looking for a new permanent employee, reach out to us over at Marcher Markholt - email hello@marchermarkholt.com. 

If you are looking for the right freelance talent, then we can help you here at Free Agents™ - you can create a company profile here or send us an email at freeagents@freeagents.network. If you are a freelancer, create a free profile in top right corner or start here.