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Human resources managers and department leaders are constantly seeking innovative strategies to attract top talent. One such strategy is leveraging community engagement initiatives to improve a company's brand image and build a robust hiring pipeline. This approach allows organizations to connect with potential candidates on a more personal level and foster relationships that can lead to successful talent recruitment.
Below, Forbes Human Resources Council members explain how HR managers and department leaders can effectively use their community involvement as a strategic tool in talent acquisition. Follow their recommendations to ensure a steady flow of skilled candidates ready to contribute to your organization's success.
1. Establish A Value-Driven Connection
Workforce development strategies involving communities are a win-win proposition. Organizations that invest in community skill development and identify the employability of the population by providing resources and opportunities create a value-driven connection with the company brand. Industry-specific apprenticeships and job fairs can be quite effective in raising brand awareness. - Ekta Vyas, Ph.D, Keck Medicine of USC
2. Go Beyond The Checkbook
True involvement means more than just writing a check. Show up and actively participate, and you'll see the impact your effort has on building relationships and attracting talent that aligns with your company's values. Take the extra step and extend invitations to community members to visit your workplace to foster genuine connections that go beyond first impressions. - Patrick Donegan, SEI
3. Engage With Your Community On Social Media
HR managers and department leaders can leverage community engagement by actively engaging prospective employees through social media and sharing impactful stories from within an organization. Demonstrating commitment to the corporate vision through action, leaders can attract talent who align with the company’s values and are passionate about its vision, effectively building a robust hiring pipeline. - Katerina Goros, Euna Solutions
4. Showcase Your Mission
Top talent seeks mission-driven companies. Community engagement showcases yours. Organic relationships build trust and loyalty. With easier recruitment, less selling is needed. Highlight impact and values alignment to attract talent who share your vision. Benefits include stronger employer branding and easier hiring, attracting talent aligned with your values, and building trust and long-term relationships. - Michael D. Brown, Global Recruiters of Buckhead
5. Genuinely Represent Your Company
To keep talent pools and candidates engaged, employers must go beyond career site photos and quotes that offer surface-level glimpses into a company. Candidates instead seek visibility into employers’ culture, values and expectations. With employee-generated videos, employees’ authenticity and excitement shine through and provide true glimpses into a company that talent needs to stay engaged. - Laura Coccaro, iCIMS
Forbes Human Resources Council is an invitation-only organization for HR executives across all industries. Do I qualify?
6. Share Your Knowledge In Schools
Get involved with nearby technical schools, colleges and universities by offering to give talks on your industry, host facility tours and information sessions or participate in career fairs. Volunteering as a guest speaker positions you as an industry expert, raises awareness about your company and lets you start identifying promising up-and-coming talent. - Jessica Kriegel, Culture Partners
7. Serve The Underserved
Community engagement can be very broad and daunting. The first thing is to determine what engagement opportunities will attract the talent you desire based on challenging roles to fill in the business and culture fit. Once that field of engagement options is narrowed, my best advice is to find an underserved option and really serve it well so your investment light shines extra bright! - Bryan Passman, Hunter + Esquire
8. Take A Traditional Approach
The traditional active approach of engaging with recruiting managers, local educational bodies, attending professional events or cooperating with HR leaders from different industries must be supported. Building a hiring pipeline relies on effective workforce planning, developing competency frameworks and creative marketing strategies to enhance an employer's reputation. - Dr. Nara Ringrose, Cyclife Aquila Nuclear
9. Host Community-Oriented Events
Hosting a career exploration strictly limited to community members or those actively involved in a process allows for a great breeding ground for them to learn more about what the company does and what they look for in candidates. It also puts the company at the forefront of community members' minds who could fit such a role. The focus is more on sharing, which can be great leads for future hires. - Tiersa Smith-Hall, Impactful Imprints, Training & Consulting
10. Partner With Nonprofits
HR managers can forge partnerships with nonprofits that support college access and success or workforce development. Partnerships create a win-win opportunity. Nonprofits gain exposure to future employers for their participants and organizations gain access to early talent. Employees benefit by volunteering their time as mentors and by building skills in leadership and cultural competence. - Chelsea C. Williams, Reimagine Talent Co.
11. Support And Train Underrepresented Groups
Build a relationship with organizations that represent or serve diverse groups who are underrepresented in the workforce, such as a charity focused on supporting local veterans and military families. Businesses could even propose partnership programs and train promising candidates for select roles. These candidates are often overlooked yet are invaluable to employers facing a tight labor market. - Niki Jorgensen, Insperity
12. Seek Community Referrals
Some of the best hires I've made have been referrals. High-performing managers and employees will attract others who are like them. The benefit of leveraging community engagement is that most likely the people you interact with also share your values. Managers can leverage this engagement by building relationships, sharing what they do and why they enjoy it and sharing job opportunities. - Hazel Kassu, Sudduth Search
13. Work With Schools And Community Organizations
Strategic partnerships are essential for talent acquisition professionals. Not only do strategic partnerships with community organizations and schools build the employer brand, but they make your job even easier due to referrals. Getting a heads up on key hires entering the workforce, especially in hard-to-fill roles, is what makes or breaks organizations. - Nakisha Dixon, Vercara
14. Make Applying Easy For Candidates
Create recruiting business cards with a QR code linked to company-branded swag items. When potential candidates scan the QR code, they can be directed to a landing page detailing job openings and company culture. It simplifies the application process and elevates the employer brand, increasing applications and engagement. - Britton Bloch, Navy Federal
15. Support Community Initiatives
We strive to boost recruitment by championing community initiatives and supporting employee referral programs. By fostering goodwill and incentivizing referrals, we cultivate a talent-rich pipeline while making a positive impact. - William Stonehouse, Crawford Thomas Recruiting
16. Invest In Mentorship Opportunities
Community engagement extends beyond immediate hires and focuses on nurturing relationships for the long term. Build sustainable partnerships with community organizations, educational institutions and professional associations. Invest in mentorship programs, scholarships or skills development workshops to cultivate diverse talent and establish a continuous pipeline of qualified candidates. - Katrina Jones, Acacia Network
17. Establish Goodwill By Getting Involved
HR and other leaders can attend job fairs as well as volunteer at events and organizations to build goodwill in the community. There may be officer positions open at certain organizations where they can build a presence. They can even have their companies sponsor community events for name recognition. - Erin ImHof, CertiK
18. Offer Skill-Enhancing Workshops
Department leaders can partner with HR managers to host training workshops and support workforce development initiatives, directly contributing to the skills enhancement of the potential talent pool. Such proactive engagement not only builds a robust hiring pipeline but also establishes the company as a desirable and responsible employer within the community. - Ahva Sadeghi, Symba
19. Emphasize A Healthy Business Culture
I've always found it helpful to know that senior leaders can have lives outside of work as well. It demonstrates a commitment that the company is an organization that maintains healthy, fair expectations of their employees. Once this cultural norm starts to become more established, that will generate its own ability to attract talent. - Rick Rittmaster, CorTalent
20. Demonstrate Your Core Values
In a recent survey, 56% of employees said they wouldn’t consider working for an employer if they disagreed with the company’s values. By encouraging community involvement and building this into their employer brand by posting photos on their website and social media and offering paid volunteer time to employees, companies can benefit in the form of talent attraction and employee retention. - John Feldmann, Insperity
