Leveraging Hidden Talent

Dipansh B. -


Whether you're a manager or not, it's important to know how to leverage the hidden talent in your organization. You don't need to be a manager in order to harness the potential of others, but it can certainly help. Here are some tips on how to effectively do this as a manager, an individual contributor in a larger team, or even as a small business owner:

Understanding Hidden Talent

79% of CVs never reach a human's eyes. You might be surprised to learn just how much hidden talent you have in your pipeline. They may be working in a different industry or have been out of work for a while.

Or, they simply haven't had the opportunity to show their skills. Whatever the reason may be, these hidden gems could make great additions to your team—if only you could find them!

Here are some things to keep in mind:

  • It's possible that this person is applying for jobs in other industries because they don't see themselves fitting into yours. That doesn't mean they won't fit; it just means that your hiring process might need to be adjusted if you want more applicants from diverse backgrounds.
  • If someone isn't applying for jobs because he/she doesn’t have any experience or skills relevant to yours, then you need him/her even more than ever! You'll have an opportunity here: figure out what kind of training this person needs so he/she can get up-to-date on industry trends and the skillsets required at your company (and then give it).

Making the Most of Your ATS

You know how to use your ATS. You probably have a lot of experience with it, and you might even have a few tricks up your sleeve when it comes to improving productivity.

But what if there's more? What if there are hidden talents that could help you solve problems or find better candidates? You may be surprised by what lies deep within the system.

It all comes down to one thing: understanding how your ATS works and then using it to its full potential.

The problem of hidden talent is twofold: first, applicants aren't submitting their best work (and some don’t even fill out the application entirely); second, recruiters aren't taking advantage of all the information available in an applicant tracking system (ATS).

It's time to hack your hiring.

Hiring is a critical component of every business. The right people can help you boost your bottom line, but the wrong ones will be a costly drain on your time and resources.

So how do you find those diamonds in the rough? A lot of companies rely on an unstructured hiring process that leaves them with subpar employees and an overwhelmed HR team. They’ll use a tool like Indeed or LinkedIn to find candidates who are either not interested in applying or unqualified or potentially unqualified —and then they'll ask these same candidates to come in for an interview. This takes up valuable time and leads to a lot of heartache when it comes time for onboarding because these applicants aren't always what you thought they were going to be. This method does yield results, but they aren't always reliable or take too long.

Hiring is hard work—and it’s only getting harder. But if you want to stay competitive, you need to invest some time in finding and evaluating hidden talent. We’ve outlined the steps you can take today to start hiring smarter and faster. Stay tuned for the next blog!