Talent acquisition is a multifaceted process that often comes down to the common question of whether it’s more beneficial to promote internal candidates or seek out external applicants. It’s not uncommon for companies to lean toward internal hiring processes due to the familiarity of skill sets and the desire to maintain workplace culture, but it can also be extremely advantageous to seek out and embrace external talent as well.
Incorporating Diverse Perspectives
Recruiting external candidates can add not only fresh perspectives to your workplace environment, but also potentially innovative ideas and initiatives to increase the profitability, productivity, or competitive potential within your company. Incorporating diverse staff members can bring a second set of eyes to pre-existing processes and procedures and introduce new ways to problem-solve or level up current business practices.
For example, if a business has been experiencing low levels of productivity, hiring fresh talent could open the door to developing creative ways to optimize company resources to raise those productivity levels.
Expanding Company Skill Sets
One of the other key benefits of recruiting external rather than internal candidates is that it can serve as a means of filling existing skill gaps within your company or providing expert guidance to current employees seeking to expand their skill sets. Every company seeks to gain a competitive advantage in the market and stay up-to-date with best practices and industry demands. Hiring outside candidates allows businesses to meet this need for evolving talent and knowledge by seeking out individuals who can bring something new that the company doesn’t currently possess.
Changing Workplace Culture
While maintaining a thriving workplace culture is paramount for some companies, others may benefit from introducing new and diverse personalities to the team. Particularly for companies struggling with a lack of connectivity or collaboration in the workplace, hiring external candidates opens the door to creating healthier or more conducive teams that simply work together better. Furthermore, while hiring internally can cause strife between employees vying for the same position, hiring externally can remove competition between coworkers and instead promote the shared goal of welcoming new talent.
Recruitment needs can be extremely varied and personalized company to company, and it’s important to identify the unique desires of your respective business, considering the skill sets it may be lacking or the workplace culture you’re seeking to create. By considering external candidates, you can cast a wider net and seek out a wider array of candidates that can sustain and grow a company in tangible, profitable, and progressive ways.