The talent landscape is everchanging, with emerging technologies, shifting demographics, and evolving workplaces all playing their part. In 2024 ensuring you are taking a proactive approach to talent planning will enable your business to be more resilient when the inevitable bumps in the road appear.
To help you plan for 2024, we wanted to share our top tips on how to get ahead – specifically looking at how to get more from talent mapping, pipelining and insights.
1. Talent Mapping
We’ve seen how a more innovative approach to talent mapping really increases the value for our clients compared to more traditional methods. This means taking a wider view, meticulously charting the landscape of potential candidates beyond quick-fire online searches, by delving into industry communities, professional networks, and online platforms where hidden gems reside. Discovering different, high quality talent pools that our client’s competition would potentially miss. To get more from talent mapping in 2024 expect to see ….
- Sophisticated data analytics to play a starring role, identifying patterns and predicting future talent needs with greater accuracy.
- Hyper-focused mapping exercises to target specific skill sets and emerging roles – looking beyond your immediate sector – to ensure a ready pool of talent when critical positions arise.
- Rigorous research digging beneath the surface of potential candidates – assessing company structures, geographic scope, routes to market – to more reliably assess suitability.
2. Talent Pipelining
In 2024, we believe clients that put Strategic Talent Pipelining centre stage will see real value in their long-term succession planning. Building and maintaining a solid slate of candidates for senior roles that don’t currently exist sets up businesses better for success with future hiring needs – by having a ready-made pool of very strong, well-fitting and engaged talent to hire from when the time arrives. We are passionate about supporting our clients closely on these critical assignments. Not only in the upfront identification of the best talent, but throughout the process – building excitement, promoting the employer business and brand and by keeping candidates engaged over what can be an extensive period. However, from our experience the clients that will see the biggest benefits from Strategic Talent Pipelining will also invest in the programme, by:
- Encouraging internal TA and Recruiting teams to invest time directly with preferred prospective candidates. These interactions add additional value beyond our efforts, ensuring candidates feel even more connected with their potential future employers
- Looping hiring managers and senior leaders into the process – encouraging them to set aside specific time in their diaries to network and build relationships with key individuals.
- Leveraging social media and other opportunities to engage, such as events, when relevant to create a constant dialogue, fostering a sense of belonging even before they officially join the organisation.
3. Talent Insights
We’re predicting the need for talent insights to see an uprise in 2024 – as companies look to take a firmer hold of their business objectives and to optimise the areas they have full control of, helping to offset pressures from external market factors. Attracting the right talent is only half the battle, TA leaders should prioritise talent insights in 2024, delving beyond CVs and interviews to really understand the potential, motivations, and aspirations of their workforce. Engaging with key industry stakeholders, competitor organisations and potential candidates to learn how to create better resourcing strategies, how to better address skills shortages and how to create the optimal organisational culture and structures. Talent Insights can take many forms, however we expect to see a rise in the following areas in 2024:
- Deeper review of D&I initiatives, with a push to much better understand the culture and conditions needed to attract more diverse talent, especially at leadership levels.
- Moves to optimise organisational structures – to ensure the best set up to meet business goals, taking inspiration from other successful businesses.
- Widening of talent pools to address skills shortages, with businesses seeking insights such as how to better engage outside of their sectors, how to connect better with potential new talent, how their company brand perceptions are working for and against them.
Embracing these talent trends in 2024 will better empower businesses to navigate the ever-changing external landscape with more confidence. By proactively mapping the talent landscape, building robust strategic pipelines, and unlocking valuable insights, companies can better discover, attract, engage and retain a workforce that drives success in the years to come.
How We Can Help…
At Henley Research we are dedicated to closely partnering with our clients to provide a comprehensive and personalised service. Our proactive, strategic approach enables our clients to keep a step ahead with their talent planning and the rigour we apply ensures no stone is left unturned in discovering the best people for your business.
To find out more please get in touch.