The best strategies to nurture early career talent

From a talent acquisition perspective, it’s important to engage with talent on a long-term basis, whether there is a current relevant opening or not. But many recruiters don’t do this, instead relegating their engagement efforts to only when they recruit. This is especially true in relation to early career professionals. Given how they haven’t had time to amass valuable experience and develop skills, recruiters may think it’s not worth the time and effort to engage with them. But the truth is when an early career professional applies for a job, they potentially enter into a lifecycle. One in which you could establish a long relationship with them, t. Doing so, they become a part of your talent community. As they accumulate even more skills and knowledge, they become valuable assets you could reach out to when a relevant role opens.

But what are the best strategies to nurture early career talent? Let’s look at them.

Initial contact

Some might consider the context in which early career talent connects with you extraneous to the recruitment lifecycle. But you should consider it as part of the lifecycle. It matters a lot whether the talent reached out to you having seen a job post or not. If it’s the former, their awareness of your employer brand may be limited. If it’s the latter, they are probably well aware of your company and its culture. With those without prior knowledge about the company, share information about the company’s origin and core business. If they are already savvy about such details, start your engagement by  providing information about the company culture.

Content for early career talent should be different from that for others

The early talent you engage with are typically Gen Z-ers. Many of them are digital natives. Their mode of content consumption has been shaped by circumstances different from those experienced by previous generations. So, language  and the images you use should cater to their taste. Seek the help of your marketing department for customizing content for early career talent.

Promote content wherever the talent is

As mentioned earlier, the bulk of early career talent you interact with are young digital natives. Social media is a main source of general information for many of them- including to learn about job openings. So, make sure that you post relevant content beyond conventional channels like LinkedIn.

Make your CTAs more than about selling a job

The young early career talent are not just looking for a good job. They are used to online news about how businesses function in the real world. They are aware of the increasingly important roles brands play in shaping the society. They are conscious of brand-power more than any other generation before them. Which is why instead of trying to sell them a job, you should showcase the benefits of being a part of the company. Frequently share content which highlights the strength of your employer brand- be it the incredible work culture, or the growth opportunities in the company. Gen Z-ers are also conscious about issues like climate change which affect how societies function. Content which illustrates your company’s view on such matters finds traction among them.  

Share testimonials of your current employees

Stories which illustrate the perks and benefits your current employees enjoy are invaluable while communicating with early career talent. Early career talent couldn’t glean insights about professional lives from their peers  since they are also not experienced professionals. So, they would find employee testimonials valuable. 

TalentNet is a single doorway in to attract and manage all types of talent- contingent, full time and freelancers. From identifying the right talent for a role to nurturing a long-term relationship with them, you can use the platform according to your requirements. Trusted by leading brands including Meta, Pfizer, BP and Capgemini, TalentNet is comprehensive yet easy to use. To learn more about TalentNet, please book a product demo.