Cut Through the Noise and Connect With Skilled International Contractors
Are you looking for new ways to build your pool of high-level contractors around the globe? If the answer is yes, you might find a few new ideas in this article to help you in your daily search for the perfect candidates to take on new projects for your clients.
Recruiters and placement firms have a more difficult task than many people imagine since it seems that filling a position should be a snap with all the available talent out there.
But that is not always the case, since many open slots in the workforce require that international contractors have highly specific skill sets or technical abilities.
Reaching across borders, cultural differences and language barriers also creates a new level of challenge for international recruiters, who have to match their client’s needs with a qualified candidate who may not be from the same region or country.
There is also the process of locating and building relationships with top independent contractors and having a rapport long before the right job opens up.
There are a myriad of online platforms that can assist you, and the good news is that many job seekers are active users of these forums. The issue is sorting through the volume of information and individuals that seem to flood any website that deals with contracting or employment possibilities.
All of this requires open communication and the use of effective search tools, as well as a thorough understanding of the field and geographical region where you are recruiting. Here are eight ways to stay focused on the methods to connect and attract skilled contractors for any position.
Communicate Well With Your Global Audience
Depending on your target candidates and their area of specialization, you should customize your communication to fit their culture and geographical location. Recruiting globally requires a thoughtful approach to crossing language barriers and expectations about what information matters.
- How would you recruit for an IT position in Southeast Asia, where you may have candidates from 5-7 different countries?
- Where is the ‘mid-line’ of communication where everyone understands, but no one is bored or turned off?
- Do you stick with English only or try to throw in local language phrases with some contractors, to at least show you know where they live?
If you are building an ongoing talent pool, that also needs parameters for communicating. How often will you contact candidates in your database or send out emails with positions?
Remember to always ask questions when you contact a new candidate, since the cornerstone of good communication is listening to responses and learning their opinion of how they fill a unique place in the workforce. They will tell you what you need to know to place them in the perfect position.
Maintain An Updated Database of Top Talent
You never know when a position will open up, and you don’t want to wait until that crucial moment to assemble a quality list of applicants from thin air. By maintaining a database and updating it regularly you can easily pull out the top talent by category. You should be able to refine your database with a few keystrokes to identify the core skills and experience that apply to the job.
It helps to organize your talent lists by location, profession, and online sources such as LinkedIn, which is the next tip for focused recruitment.
Harness the Power of LinkedIn
LinkedIn is a two-way street for recruiters hunting for hidden gems and contractors looking for the next gig. It does take some search skill and practice to extract the right collection of abilities, but with 200 million users there are plenty to choose from. If you have not leveraged this site for your recruitment in the past, you can use some of the tips in our complete guide to using LinkedIn.
For recruiters, many of the same networking strategies can be effective in attracting candidates, including setting up a compelling profile, how to search by keyword and creating invitations. As with online networking forums, consistent participation and updating will keep you visible, and add another element of credibility with both job seekers and potential client companies looking to fill an open position.
You can also harness the power of LinkedIn by using the Talent Pool Report, Talent Pipeline and other automated features that will keep a steady stream of candidates flowing your way. Some of these tools have a fee, but many are free to use as needed.
Always Have Email IDs Handy and Don’t Rely Just on LinkedIn
Although LinkedIn is a great recruitment tool, not all contractors are on the site, or rarely check it for messages. A better approach is to search LinkedIn using email IDs to pull up the contractor and check their profile.
If they don’t have an active LinkedIn presence, there is nothing wrong with directly sending periodic emails with open positions. By the way, if you do use LinkedIn, don’t store data there, just link to it from your database to check profile updates.
Recruit By Hashtag and Jobseeker Chats on Twitter
Twitter is a great tool (link is external)for finding candidates and posting open positions. But, to use Twitter without wasting time on all the fluff, you need to drill down on finding shortcuts. Searching by username, a keyword/location and hashtags are all proven methods to access potential talent that like to hang out on Twitter.
Know Your Market
If you specialize in recruitment for one or more fields, it matters to stay abreast of market and industry developments. And that means specific items such as:
- The quality of a marketing team at a tech company that your client wants to emulate – demonstrates that you are involved and informed
- The other recruiters a client has worked with and the outcome – what happened to them, and why?
- Hot topics in the industry, current events – great for generating rapport and establishing your knowledge
- Which companies and positions give candidate credibility and which ones detract – don’t rely on academic credentials alone – work history can mean more
The best candidates will have the insights and will ask questions that could test your market knowledge; so regular homework, industry publications and news feeds can all supplement your pool of information.
Choose Great Brands / Projects That Contractors Desire
If you want to successfully place contractors in quality projects, you should choose the brands and companies that will attract the very best candidates. By aligning yourself with those well-known names, contractors will seek you out and offer to be a part of your talent pool.
As a recruiter or placement firm, your reputation is only as good as your clients and customers, so be sure to screen the companies you represent just as carefully as you select a candidate.
Summary
There are a host of tools to use for recruitment and placement, but most require a refined and focused approach to eliminate unqualified or unavailable talent. It is easy to spend too much time sifting through hundreds of online profiles or tweets, and it is essential to target your efforts to find the best candidates. Following a few of these simple steps should help you save time and increase your placement results for international contractors in any field.