Find your purple squirrel
Every business needs great people to successfully develop and evolve. Great talent = Growth. This means that finding the workforce that will outperform in their roles and exceed expectations will ultimately contribute to your company’s bottom line. We call these individuals “purple squirrels”; they are valuable game changers who are the perfect fit for a company’s culture and the job’s requirements.
There are many elements to consider in finding your very own purple squirrel, here are a few tips to help you get started:
Cultivate an environment that’s attractive and engaging.
You want to build a brand that brings talent to you, so define what your core values are as a business and communicate this to candidates and current employees. For example, at Curate Partners, our #1 core value, proudly printed on our office wall, is people first. This means we put our employees, candidates and stakeholder’s best interests first and deliver our word daily through industry leading benefits, mentorship & training programs, office perks, employee appreciation/milestone gifts, and much more.
Our Senior Talent Acquisition Manager, Karen Watson, shares a major factor in a candidate’s decision making process, “I talk to candidates everyday about their job search. I hear first-hand the things that are most important to them. They want to know they are going to have a seat at the table- they want to know that the company and their manager is truly invested in their individual success and that they will have the support and access for them to be successful. In the end- they want to feel valued and heard and to be put into a position for growth and success.”
Become accessible to the online world.
Publish a job title and description that is accurate, understandable and SEO-friendly. If you want to generate organic applicants, your job opening should be easily searchable to attract the right candidates. Make sure the job title is clear and concise, avoid using acronyms or untraditional words such as genius, wizard, rockstar, etc. Also, the job description should speak to the values you would like to see in a candidate, so using relevant keywords that pertain to the qualities you are looking for will make it easier for a the perfect candidates to find your job online
Foster an experience that is attractive.
Deliver a desirable experience for each candidate. “90% of candidates say that a company’s candidate experience could change their mind about accepting a role” – pathmotion.com. A bad hiring experience may cause the right applicant to turn down the job (and we don’t want that). Candidates that experience a positive hiring process are set up for a successful future. They begin their journey at your company feeling respected and valued, which ultimately leads to success for your organization.
Karen has also seen, first-hand, the effects a negative experience can have on a candidate and it was a big part of the reason she took interest in Talent Acquisition. “This is what drew me to talent acquisition 10 years ago. I wanted to make what is often a painful and daunting experience, easier, insightful and less intimidating for job seekers.”
With the right approach and a clear vision of who you want on your team, you are more likely to nail down a Purple Squirrel, one who is exactly the right fit for your culture and the job requirements. Although they are rare and hard to find, it is worth the wait.
