Making the most of your search efforts for today’s HR leaders can be challenging. The tight labor market can make locating, interviewing, and hiring top talent difficult.

Because the best HR leaders are in high demand, the ones who are looking for new opportunities can be hard to find.  As a result, you need a plan to locate these professionals. The following methods can help.

Implement these strategies to make the most of your search efforts for today’s leaders in HR.

Align Your Hiring Team

Ensure the hiring manager and other members of your hiring team are on the same page about what to look for in an HR leader:

• Organize a kickoff meeting to discuss the role, including must-have and nice-to-have qualifications.
• Create a list of role-specific keywords and ideal sourcing channels for ideal candidates.
• Review the talent pool to determine whether you have the right requirements to find an adequate number of candidates.
• Discuss why specific candidates may or may not be a good fit for the role.
• Maintain contact with the hiring manager to regularly check on the quality and quantity of the candidates.
• Modify the candidate search as needed.

Request Employee Referrals

Talk with your HR team about the job duties, responsibilities, qualifications, and other requirements. Then, ask your employees to provide qualified referrals.

Employee referrals typically fit with company culture, perform at high levels, and remain long-term. As a result, you should be able to fast-track your hiring process and add HR leaders to your team.

Source from Your Applicant Tracking System

Reengage qualified candidates the hiring team has already invested time in. These candidates either were not offered jobs with your company or turned down these offers for other opportunities.

Any of these candidates may be a good fit for the role. They might be interested in interviewing for the role because they previously met with your hiring team.

Diversify Your Sourcing Channels

Understand your target candidates so you can more effectively find them online:

• Focus on where these candidates congregate, such as online groups and forums.
• Determine where your competitors might go to source HR leaders.
• Emphasize whether HR leaders go by different job titles that you should target.

Participate in Professional Events

Engage with candidates at job- or industry-specific conferences. Also, host meetups to gather the types of HR professionals you would like to meet.

Participation in face-to-face events helps you stand out as an employer. Candidates are more likely to respond to your follow-up messages because they spoke with you in person.

Partner with an HR Staffing Firm

Ensure the hiring manager and the rest of your hiring team are on the same page for what to look for in an HR leader. Then, use employee referrals, your ATS, targeted online channels, local industry events, and an HR staffing firm to find candidates with the qualifications needed to fill the role.

Partner with Arlington Resources to effectively find the HR leaders you need to grow your business. Start the process today.