How organisations can win the talent war in 2022

“If you want to be successful in this world, you have to follow your passion, not a paycheck.”

While this statement may ring true for Jen Welter, the first female to coach in the National Football League (NFL), pragmatism typically takes precedence over the pursue of dreams for the average employee, who is likely to identify salary and remuneration as the most important criteria in selecting jobs.

Or at least, that was before the pandemic struck and changed the way people think and decide their priorities in life.

Even with the offering of more attractive salary and remuneration packages, employers worldwide are struggling to replace the exodus of talent that is the Great Resignation. If salary and remuneration alone is no longer enough to both retain and recruit talent, what must organisations do to win the talent war in 2022?

Adopting a people-centric approach to talent acquisition

Salary and remuneration will continue to be critical in attracting the right talent for organisations; to suggest otherwise is perhaps too idealistic. What organisations need to do is to combine an attractive salary and remuneration package with other differentiators that matter to employees.

Career growth, role expectations, and inclusion are the three most common reasons employees leave an organisation, Culture Amp revealed in a recent ebook produced in partnership with HRM Asia.

Career growth, in particular, has consistently been one of the strongest predictors of engagement and retention throughout 2021, said Pip Lyons, Senior People Scientist, Culture Amp.

“Employees want to know they have career and development opportunities and just aren’t willing to stick around where these don’t exit,” she added, while highlighting how employee enablement will become a cornerstone requirement for hybrid work. “Organisations need to ensure that employees are set up for success. Given the importance of career developments and growth, employees need to feel enabled to drive their own individual development, with direction from their manager.”

2022 is likely to see the continued erosion of the “9-to-5” concept of work as workplace flexibility becomes an increasingly discussed topic. More and more employees are turning away from mundane jobs that do not provide them with the freedom and flexibility to grow both professionally and personally.

Having the opportunity to learn and develop new skills and capabilities is the number one reason why most people will join an organisation, suggested Mervyn Dinnen, HR, Talent and WorkTech Analyst, Co-Founder of Two Heads Consulting.

He told HRM Asia, “An organisation’s approach to supporting and enabling their people to grow has to be front and centre of their employer brand, and overall employment offering. Learning and development (L&D) should increasingly be part of the hiring process, ensuring all candidates are aware of their opportunities for growth and development should they join, and being open about the approach to internal mobility.”

(Don’t miss the February/March 2022 issue of HRM Asia Magazine, where we speak exclusively with Mervyn Dinnen and Matt Adler, Producer and Host, The Recruiting Future Podcast, Co-Founders of Two Heads Consulting, on the role L&D can play in organisational success today).

What is your Employer Value Proposition?

Much like how consumers are drawn to certain brands when they select products and services to purchase, organisations are beginning to realise the importance of employer branding in promoting their culture, beliefs, and values to potential candidates.

This can range from how the organisation is perceived to treat their employees, its level of social responsibility, to its dedication to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I), among others.

Employee branding is usually depicted in the form of an organisation’s Employer Value Proposition (EVP), said Ammara Naeem, Head of Client Success, Top Employers Institute.

She added, “A well-executed employer branding strategy can bring about many benefits, including ensuring organisations target the right talent, get their message across, and retain existing employees.”

“Ultimately, an employer branding strategy should focus on both external and internal audiences and in doing so, aim to ensure the messaging reflects what is the reality and the experience. In the long run, an effective employee branding strategy reduces the cost of hiring because you are attracting the right people and keeping them for longer.”

In essence, it is an opportunity for organisations to accurately present what they stand for and attract talent that shares the same values. Instead of employees and candidates asking the proverbial question of “What’s in it for me”, the focus should shift to, “What we can achieve together.”

Technology can also play a key role in employer branding, beginning with the candidate experience.

With many organisations expected to conduct the hiring process virtually in 2022, data analytics, automation, and artificial intelligence (AI) are likely to be increasingly deployed for functions such as pre-screening, interviewing, and onboarding new employees remotely.

With online recruitment likely to increase the talent pool, HR leaders can utiliise data via applicant tracking systems and recruitment candidate relationship management (CRMs) systems to better understand the characteristics and abilities of potential candidates, and whether they fit into the criteria the organisation is looking for.

When candidates are converted to new hires, organisations will then have to create a virtual platform that will allow new employees to be onboarded successfully, and in the long-term, create a work environment that will allow organisations to retain their best talent.

READ: Ushering in the new era of the hybrid workforce

2022 will be another year of organisational transformation as businesses overcome the changes and challenges brought about in 2021. The priorities for most HR leaders, as they support these new businesses strategies, will focus heavily on building critical skills and competencies, and to also undertake workforce and work (re)design, leadership development, preparing for the future workplace and improving the employee experience.

Over the coming months, look out for HRM Asia’s HR Leadership Series, which is the best resource destination for HR leaders as they navigate the trends and workforce changes that will shape the world of HR in 2022.