Nine Strategies To Align Talent For Long-Term Business Needs

Finding the right talent for long-term business needs is a process that requires a lot of steps due to those needs changing every other year. However, strategies like having a people-centered vision to prioritizing skill development are just a couple of keys that should be used when scouting for candidates to meet business needs for years to come.

Businesses may feel obligated to take a more effective course of action to ensure they have the long-term talent to meet their business needs. Here, nine Forbes Human Resources Council members share more strategies that are just as helpful.

1. Have A Clear People-Centered Vision

Alignment must be defined. The criteria used to align employees have to be clear. What is the "rubric" or "scorecard" made up of? Measurable factors that are facilitating the evaluation process? A north star should be identified and can be pulled together from factors like company core values and a clear people-centered vision that can initiate conversations calibrating alignment. - Cynamon Voe Scott, DuploCloud Inc.

2. Develop A Talent Strategy

The most important way is to develop your talent strategy. A talent strategy should be a matrix that lists pivotal talent roles and the options as to whether you will buy, build, have the talent or outsource. Once you have that matrix complete, we can then take action to make sure we have the right talent in the right place at the right time. - Jason Averbook, Leapgen

3. Hire Employees With Great Traits

It's challenging to define the skills a business may require even three to five years out because business strategies are constantly evolving due to technological change and competitive pressures. To align talent with long-term business needs, hire employees that are rapid learners keen to acquire new skills and are conscientious. These traits need to feed into recruiting and promotion processes. - Heide Abelli, Boston College

4. Focus On Candidates With Aptitude And Attitude

By focusing on hiring for aptitude and attitude instead of strictly skills and knowledge, you ensure you will have several people on your team who possess a growth mindset. These are the employees who will be engaged as they evolve and grow along with the business. Additionally, don't be afraid to bring in new talent to supplement the team if you get to a point where you know you need it. - Tracy Cote, StockX

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5. Look To Hire For Curiosity And Learning Agility

While it is a best practice to hire based on the requirements of the role, most companies tend to overlook that companies continuously change over time. As a deep expert in employee selection, I advise my clients to not just hire what they need now, but also to focus on hiring for curiosity and learning agility. These individuals will grow with the company and be valuable in the long run. - Edie Goldberg, E. L. Goldberg & Associates

6. Broaden Your Talent Pool

I believe that a long game of talent is idealistic. Even when succession planning is engineered to perfection, life happens and talent leaves or doesn't get excited about a big promotion. How about broadening the net to include gig workers, women returning to the workforce after a career break or workers who reinvented themselves? Let's stop looking into the same old talent pools! - Catalina Schveninger, DataCamp

7. Look For The Best Cultural Fit And Potential

We must keep in mind that our organization and business needs change daily. A skill set that is required today can be unnecessary tomorrow. Thus, hire for minimum knowledge, skill and ability with maximum resilience, respect and collaboration. This means building a learning organization where you can hire based on the best culture fit and growth potential. - Nakisha Griffin, Neustar Security Services

8. Prioritize Skill Development

This entails knowing the core skills your company needs, being realistic about the current and future skills gaps, and creating a strategy for upskilling or reskilling employees where needed. With this approach, and since you’ll know which skill sets to prioritize, you’ll be able to select the right talent from a larger pool of internal and external candidates. - Graham Glass, CYPHER LEARNING

9. Create A Succession Plan

Long-term talent starts with assessing your employees and developing their skills to ensure that they are the right fit for their role, but more so for the company. Assessing the fit and developing employees helps with a succession plan where there are weaknesses and strengths on the team and within the organization. Self-assessments and manager assessments are key to succession planning. - Heather Smith, Flimp Communications