How to Attract High Performing Talent

We’re constantly being told that it’s a job seeker’s market — candidates are now the ones with all the power. The amount of available jobs out there means workers have greater leverage than ever before to negotiate on salary and working arrangements. Suddenly, attracting high performing talent presents as a challenge — not that it was ever an easy task to begin with.

There are many strategies that executive search firms recommend you implement to ensure your executive and C-suite roles appear as attractive as possible. Above all, be prepared to take your time. Your eventual choice of executive candidate will have a considerable impact on the performance and culture of your company. It’s not a search you want to rush.

To many potential employees, all job ads look the same. There is a spiel about the history of the company, a short summary of the job requirements, and a few dot points outlining what is expected of the candidate. None of this sounds particularly exciting or appealing, does it?

Top talent will be looking for engaging challenges and the opportunity to make an impact in their chosen field. If you can offer this, make it the centrepiece of your advertisement. 

The truth is, not all businesses are in a position to offer what top executive candidates want and need. However, having these employees leading your team is often exactly what’s required to take your company to new heights.

Before advertising for an executive or C-suite position, consider sitting down with your current senior employees to gain an accurate understanding of how they feel about their roles, including salary and benefits. You’ll then be in a much better position to offer a competitive overall package.

Perhaps in the past you’ve felt like you’re right on the verge of signing a top candidate, only to have them accept another position with one of your competitors. If this happens once, it’s probably bad luck. If it happens multiple times, it’s definitely a sign that you’re not up there with the best of the best. 

Conducting research into what types of benefits and opportunities your competitors are offering can help you tailor a job opportunity that is attractive to ambitious candidates. If you’re not sure how to go about this type of research, speak to a team that provides executive search in Melbourne. Competitor research tends to be a service offered by top executive firms.

What sets high performing talent apart from adequate employees is their thirst for challenges and development opportunities. When putting together a job advertisement, make mention of the fact that you are happy to sponsor professional development or that you will be open to supporting any activity that leads to upskilling. This type of attitude can be very attractive to motivated senior staff. 

If all the above strategies fail or you are not sure how best to go about implementing them, the best thing you can do is reach out to a professional executive search firm. Their trained, experienced personnel will be able to lead the search for you, guaranteeing interest from high performing talent.