5 Tips To Attract Top Talent To Your Startup

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When it comes to hiring employees, attracting top talent is essential for all firms, but it is even more important for startups. Does the candidate possess the required skills?

Will they be able to fit into your company's culture? Do they understand that as a startup, you might not have everything streamlined yet but are heading in that direction? Those are just some of the questions startup hiring managers need to keep in mind during the recruitment process. You can learn plenty by placing yourself on the opposite side of the table – so for example why not read about how to write a great cover letter and see how to spot the best talent.

Presented below are 5 top tips for attracting the best talent to your startup:

#1 Create An Appealing Careers Page

When potential candidates are looking to apply for work at your startup, one of the first places they will check out is the careers page on your website. In many cases, startup companies design their websites to appeal to new customers but forget to spend time designing the career page to attract new hires.

A well-designed, attractive careers page is essential for captivating the best talent, yet many startups fail to even have such a page on their website. The page should go beyond simply listing roles and job descriptions, and should focus on things that will engage the best potential candidates. On the page, you should make sure that your company's mission is outlined, including where you started from and your current progression. The page should also include bio's for some of the senior management team, as well as comments from current employees explaining what it's like working for your firm. To see an example of an effective careers page, click here.

#2 Use Employee Referrals

In a lot of cases, the best candidates come for direct referrals from investors or current employees. Your current employees know your brand, company culture and are well-suited to explain the duties associated with different roles. It might seem like a bit of a hassle to ask current workers to reach out to their social networks, but many employees will be happy to help with hiring processes if they are made to feel like they are part of your company's growth and offered a reward for any success. Incentives are always helpful and a lot of companies offer financial bonuses for referring a successful candidate. such bonuses are usually paid out in two halves: the first half when the candidate is hired and the second half after a probation period has passed.

#3 Build Your Employer Brand

Your company's brand as an employer is essential for attracting and retaining the best talent, but many startups neglect this aspect. Smaller startups have a big opportunity to compete with larger companies for the best talent simply by cultivating a great employer brand.

Of course, a great employer brand alone is not all that is required. Just like with your company's brand, it means nothing if it is not seen by the people you are looking to attract. Where to advertise your employer brand will vary based on the type of candidates you want to attract. At a bare minimum, your startup needs a Twitter account and a LinkedIn Company Page - and both of those should be updated at least once a week.

If you're looking to hire recent graduates, Facebook and Instagram generally perform well. Meanwhile, if you're looking to hire more senior team members, LinkedIn is arguably the best place to begin. Software Developers on LinkedIn are often less responsive as they are generally flooded by requests from headhunters, however, they can be receptive on Twitter. In the near future, we will publish a post explaining some of the best ways to engage with candidates depending on what role you looking to hire them for.

#4 Offer Benefits

Startups are well-known for offering 'perks' like table tennis, bean bags and gym passes. While such things can initially seem great, they can lose value with employees very quickly. Consequently, it's better to offer perks that provide long term real value to employees. The good news is that such perks don't have to break the bank. We'll write a post explaining some of the most successful benefits we've seen offered by startups that have helped attract the best talent in the future. As a quick taster, benefits like flexible working, structured career professional, team events and company lunches are good things to start with.

#5 Make Your Hiring Process Streamlined

Developing an interview process that works effectively for your startup can take some trial and error. Remember that processes that work for other companies will not necessarily work for your startup. An interview process that is too short will often lead to poor hires and may leave candidates feeling anxious about accepting an offer for employment as they don't know enough about your company. Similarly, an interview process that is too long risks you missing out on some of the best candidates. When it comes to the hiring process, the famous saying "time kills all deal" is never truer.

We'll publish a future post outlining how to build a solid, effective interview process that provides great results soon, but as a quick starting guide, you should always select the interview process and your hiring team before you contact any candidates. Candidates should be informed about the process and the expected timeframe from day one. Transparency is important and it will help to build trust between your company and potential hires.