Who doesn’t need a little sourcing advice from time to time? And the only thing that can make great sourcing tips even better is who they come from—and in today’s case, we’re going to hear from the pros who will help you ace sourcing.
If you’re looking to enhance your sourcing practices or just want to get fresh information on best practices for sourcing candidates, read on to gain insights and sourcing tips from some of the industry’s leading recruiting professionals:
Better candidate
In her article, “The Future of Sourcing,” Stacy Donovan Zapper, CEO and founder of Tenfold Social Training, says that the future of sourcing is engagement. And an important way to engage potential candidates, Zapar explains, is to build relationships and be social.
“Build those relationships. Grow your network. Connect. Follow up first. Share. Interact. Say thanks. Get to work!” Zapar writes. “Don’t worry about socializing; just focus on being social, and you’ll be fine. People are more likely to respond to you if you’ve formed some sort of relationship with them before. And relationships are what separate you from that junior recruiter with a huge database and a spam trigger-finger.”
Reach out to passive job seekers
Building relationships with candidates can be challenging, and even more so when you try to do so with passive candidates. In her article on Recruiter.com, “How to Find the Best Talent When They’re Not Looking for You,” Lori Fenstermaker, founder and main source of Scovado, offers some tips for recruiters to tackle this effort. According to her, recruiters need to find where their potential candidates live online before reaching out to them.
Build relationships
This one principle is the building block for most of the other tips you’ll read below. Build those relationships. Grow your network. Connect. Follow first. Share. Have a conversation. Say thanks. Put to work! Don’t worry about socializing; just focus on being social, and you’ll be fine. People are more likely to respond to you if you’ve formed some sort of relationship with them before. And those relationships are what separate you from that junior recruiter with a huge database and a spam trigger finger.
Think Ahead
Always keep thinking ahead. A good source is always planning for that next request that may pop up out of nowhere. If someone doesn’t have a match now it doesn’t mean they won’t be fit for future openings. Just because they don’t fit in doesn’t mean they don’t know a lot of people who are. Treat all candidates equally and do not discriminate. Do everything keeping a long time in mind.
Work smarter, not harder.
Many people work hard. It just doesn’t cut it anymore. Smarter is better. Always look to streamline your processes, take advantage of technology, automate what you can, being careful not to duplicate efforts or reinvent the wheel too often. Use a template. Maximize every minute of every day. There are very few 2 positions in the recruitment. One candidate gets the job and the rest don’t. One recruiter fills out a request and the other agencies go home empty-handed, regardless of working hours. It is the smartest who wins.
Grow the network
When you grow your network, you increase your reach. This is just a fact. Recruiters and Sources need both quantity and quality in their network. A smaller network is not as effective. Period. If you tweet and you have no followers, you can even go to the middle of the woods and scream at the top of your lungs…no one is listening so no one can hear you. If you search LinkedIn and most results show up outside the third tier or network, you are greatly limiting your effectiveness as a source. If you share status updates but have no real reach, your employer branding efforts and networking potential are greatly hindered. Calling a candidate found in the database is rarely as effective as conversing with one of your connections you may already be talking to.
Be proactive & control the process.
Gone are the days after prayer. You must be actively sourcing to fill your positions, both present, and future. Instead of waiting patiently for great candidates to come to you, you need to take the initiative to find great candidates. No employee referrals coming your way? Go out and find people on your hiring team and start running a name for them. Get the recruitment team to reach out to the candidates. (They’re more likely to get feedback from their peers than you!) Even write emails for them if you have to. Either way, take control and move things forward. If you don’t control the process, it controls you. think about that.
Always network
You can easily incorporate networking into your everyday activities. It doesn’t need to be a separate step or something that requires you to “take time out”. Initiate conversations whenever you can and stay in touch with whoever makes sense. An active networker is an active source. You’re giving yourself an automatic start if you’re already talking to relevant candidates until a request hits your lap. Build a talent pool and network with them. Always keep your networking hat on, no matter where you are or what you’re doing… whether it’s on social media, email, phone, or in person!
Be forward.
Be a giver, not a taker. It will come back to you. I have been helping people for years and now, whenever I ask for help from my network, I get tons of responses, engagements, shares, retweets, leads, and referrals. Plus, helping others feels good and makes networking and sourcing infinitely more rewarding and fun. Writer Keith Ferrazzi said it best. “The currency of networking is generosity.
Hopefully, this article has been informative and helpful to you. Please share your opinions in the comment section if you have anything to add.
