In our last blog, we discussed the factors that are driving the current talent shortage. If you didn’t read that, you can learn more here. In this blog, we discuss best practices for navigating the current tight labor market.
Unemployment rates in the U.S. are at a 50 year low. With the health technology industry continuing to grow, you will need to be deliberate in taking measures to successfully find the talent your company needs. In this changing landscape, you’ll need to implement new strategies to ensure you have great talent when you need it.
Here are 4 different strategies your company can implement to respond to the changing talent market:
Keep your existing talent
Employee retention is more important than ever in this labor market. By focusing on improving your company culture, you can expect to see significant increases in employee engagement, morale, and tenure. This can look like offering remote work, days off, increased benefits, and more. Whatever your plan, ensure you have one that addresses retention.
Provide referral bonuses and work your network
Another effective strategy is to leverage your network by asking your employees to locate quality candidates – providing referral bonuses to those who find new hires. Make sure the incentive is significant enough to ensure your employees actually drive talent to your organization.
Share your need for specific talent with your friends and family as well as your professional network so they can refer candidates from their network to you. In addition, leverage your online network and post the position on social media. These methods can help you access a wider pool of candidates than just relying on ads and your internal recruiting team.
Leverage contract staffing
Engaging contract and/or fractional staff will allow your organization to be nimble and quick to pivot. This strategy is continuing to grow in popularity for innovative industries across the country. Be open to contract staffing for the specific experience you need. As the market continues to evolve, this strategy will help you to fill talent voids and remain competitive. Partner with a reputable firm to fill your temporary needs.
Employ foreign talent
Consider utilizing the H-1B visa system to fill the need for additional STEM workers for positions requiring specialized knowledge. The H-1B program has a cap of 85,000 visas per year, including 20,000 specifically for recipients of advanced degrees. Most H-1B employees have at least a bachelor’s degree, and the majority hold master’s degrees. 64% of the visas were for jobs in science, technology, engineering and math.
Demand for H-1B workers has rapidly risen in recent years. In the past five years, the visa cap was reached within a week of the application period opening. Conversely, between 2000 and 2013, the visa cap was reached twice. The employer application cost ranges from $1,710 to $6,460 for each visa. This is a challenging strategy but once mastered, can be fruitful.
Takeaways
These four strategies can result in significant improvement for your talent acquisition process. However, they are not one-size-fits-all. You need to understand the implications of each option and choose the one that’s best for your organization. They are also not permanent strategies; you may implement different tactics interchangeably if your situation calls for a new approach.
In our next blog, we’ll dive into the rest of the talent strategies we didn’t have a chance to cover in this blog. If you want to read more about our recommended acquisition strategies, read our 2019 Health Technology Driving Forces where we take a closer look at the various alternatives. You can download it for free here.
If you are a health-technology company looking to hire new talent and you want to partner with an organization that specializes exclusively in the health-technology industry, Talencio can help. Talencio is comprised of a diverse team of health technology professionals with extensive industry experience. Our unique partnership approach enables us to be your safety net whenever anticipated or unanticipated staffing needs arise. Talencio has been the preferred provider of vetted, accomplished professionals to the Health Technology Community for over 11 years. To learn how other companies have partnered with Talencio, tap into our skilled professional talent pool, or learn about career opportunities, contact us at 612.703.4236 or by email.
Written by: Ben Kvale, Talencio Marketing Intern
Source: Paula Norbom and Benjamin Kvale. 2019 Health Technology Driving Forces: Navigating the Talent Crisis. Minneapolis, Minnesota: Talencio, 2019