What Does Talent Sourcing Mean Exactly?

Posted by Jonathan Kidder on October 31, 2018January 28, 2023

What does talent sourcing mean exactly? Talent Sourcing is the method used to find applicants who aren’t applying directly to open roles. This is accomplished by building boolean strings and searching for leads, among other things. Not only are they finding candidates, but they are also actively screening and submitting leads to roles.

Sourcers are becoming an integral part of the job search market, as companies are looking for more specialized roles with fewer qualified applicants. Gone are the days when a company could post a role and easily find candidates that have exactly what they are looking for.

Talent Sourcers vs Recruiters

Talent Sourcers are often confused with Recruiters, but there are distinct differences between the two. So how exactly is a Sourcer different from a Recruiter? Talent Sourcers are searching for potential candidates that have not applied to the role. According to Boolean Blackbelt, they are not necessarily “passive” because they could be actively applying to other roles, just not yours. In order to get that perfect candidate to know about the open role, a Sourcer finds them and gives them the information through a screening call.

Not only are Sourcers informing potential candidates about the role, but they are also checking to make sure they meet all of the qualifications. Once they are comfortable with the candidate, they then submit them to the role they are sourcing for.

Recruiters may also perform some sourcing, but that isn’t the main focus of their role. They are managing hiring managers, screening candidates, scheduling interviews and are involved in the full cycle process. Recruiters are more involved with the company they are partnering with, which gives them less time to focus on searching for candidates. The optimal hiring strategy is to have both Talent Sourcers and Recruiters working on roles.

Why is Sourcing Important?

Sourcing is non-negotiable in a tough job market. Companies can’t simply expect applicants to apply to the company’s website when the job market is thriving. Candidates are more content in their jobs and not as active in looking for a new job. Many potential candidates would be open to a new position if it would be an increase in salary or opportunity to increase their scope of responsibility. Sourcers come in by bringing those opportunities to their attention and getting them to think about making a move.

Sourcing is also essential for smaller companies who don’t have a strong market presence. If people don’t know who you are, even if they are looking for a new job, they won’t be applying. If your company is looking for roles requiring a specialized skill set, like many in the Tech industry, sourcing will also be very beneficial. It’s unrealistic to think that the right candidate is going to happen upon your company’s website to apply. While it could happen, it’s a much better strategy to have Sourcers actively helping you. I’ve written a rant about why the sourcing function matters (here).

What Does A Sourcer Do?

The sourcing world is changing from just focusing on finding leads using Boolean String Searches. Sourcers will also actively search for applicants on social media sites for candidates who have updated their career backgrounds. LinkedIn is one of the biggest sites Sourcers can use to proactively make connections with candidates they want to engage.

Sourcers can act a bit like detectives when uncovering contact information for employees at companies that have a similar profile. Cold calling is another tactic that is engaged to locate and start a relationship with the potential candidate. Sourcers also utilize texting to contact candidates. With so many millennials in the workforce, it is important to communicate in a way that is comfortable with the candidate to keep them interested.

In the past, once a Sourcer found a potential candidate profile, they would submit to the company or Recruiter and be done. Now it is more common that they are actually building relationships and engaging those candidates. In the past they may have just passed the information along, today they usually stay with the candidate throughout the hiring process.

How has the role changed?

1. Sourcing was once seen as just finding contact details and sending that info over to a recruiter for them to contact. Now, Sourcers often do the initial outreach and pre-screen the applicants.

2. Sourcing used to be more about lead gen and having the recruiter contact them in a database. Now, Sourcers handle all the outreach and build an active list of passive leads.

3. Building Boolean strings and research duties are still important. There are many tools that can automate these duties. I’m sure AI will impact this area more in the future.

4. Sourcers always go where the talent goes– whether it’s on GitHub or reddit. It’s important to stay up to date on the latest communication/social network/forum.

5. Sourcing is now about building a network of niche applicant-leads. Try and specialize in a challenging niche area and master networking techniques.

Will Sourcing be around in 10 to 15 years?

It’s hard to predict the future at this point. I think we are just scratching the surface when it comes to AI Technology. I think these advances will only help improve our recruiting process and improve the candidate experience. Our duties might change – but there will always be a need for human relationship. Because of that, I think Sourcing will still be around but may look different than where it is now.

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Jonathan Kidder

With more than 12 years of recruitment experience, Jonathan has helped startups and small businesses find the talent they need. He runs the blog WizardSourcer, which explores the latest trends in talent sourcing, provides reviews of recruitment tools, and features interviews with prominent figures in the industry.