As we wrote last week here on the Future of Work Exchange, there are many innovative platforms today that are changing the dynamics of talent engagement and workforce management. No longer can enterprises traverse the transformative landscape of talent on their own; technology is no longer the wild card for better enterprise outcomes, but rather the foundational core of how businesses can optimize how work gets done through the power of top-tier talent and expertise.

The very concept of “talent communities” lies somewhere within the power of talent pools (via direct sourcing strategies, and, more specifically, talent curation), the global reach of talent marketplaces, and the continued progression of digital staffing technology. These attributes, combined with the evolution of core workforce management technology (such as Vendor Management Systems and extended workforce automation), present business leaders with something that they’ve truly never had before: the ability to build dynamic, on-demand communities of talent that are comprised of various types of workers that can be engaged in such a way that they drive real workforce scalability.

We’ve all heard various phrases tossed around the past several years: talent pools, talent clouds, talent channels, talent marketplaces, etc. In some way, they are unique depending on usage and purpose. However, many more times, they are similar in scope and deliver exactly what drives real-time responses to new enterprise challenges: agile talent. [While I’m aware that these phrases, over time, have come to mean different things to organizations, the evolution of the labor market and its corresponding technology means that “community” is an ideal catch-all term. The one caveat to talent communities is whether or not they are public or private.]

Talent communities, then, can be described as any network a business relies on to engage talent, foster collaboration with independent workers, and augment the overall breadth of the extended workforce. Contemporary direct sourcing technology allows users to build deep networks that resemble social channels in which businesses can both nurture and engage talent, while today’s VMS and extended workforce platforms offer functionality for injecting that talent directly into organizational recruitment streams. Talent marketplaces, while also offering end-to-end workforce management automation, also play a pivotal role in pushing talent from their networks to directly where hiring managers need them.

Together, these solutions offer businesses the opportunity to build robust talent communities that serve several purposes, including:

• Creating a groundswell of skillsets and expertise for ongoing talent acquisition initiatives. Just knowing that businesses can leverage on-demand accessibility to top-shelf talent means that any new project or initiative will be supported with the necessary skillsets for completion. In an ongoing war for talent and amidst the so-called “Great Resignation,” many business leaders can be assured that critical objectives will leverage the best-fit talent when, where, and however it is required. Many industries today are facing staff shortages that are draining revenue, alienating customers (and consumers), and, worst of all, destroying productivity. Agile skillsets available in near-real-time? A boon for the enterprises that are feeling the ramifications of “The Big Quit.”
• Driving true workforce scalability. “Scalability” took on new meaning during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. Some businesses faced a revenue shock that forced them to lay off chunks of staff, while others experienced a spike in demand for products and services. The extended workforce became the de-facto face of scalability, and one reason that direct sourcing and talent pools took on such a high profile was that enterprises had the ability to tap into an engaged community of workers that were ready for new opportunities. And, as the ebb-and-flow rollercoaster petered out for some organizations, the temporary staff they had leveraged were free to take on new projects with other businesses.
• Contributing to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) initiatives. Let’s say it once more (with feeling!): a diverse talent community is the deepest talent community. A common refrain here at the Exchange, the realm of DE&I should never again be considered a “check-a-box” initiative but rather a way to showcase new voices and new talent that will contribute greatly to the greater organization. By attracting and engaging underrepresented voices, businesses effectively ensure that they tap into the innovation that these workers can bring to critical enterprise projects and objectives.
• Fostering a level of engagement with talent that helps to develop a better overall candidate experience. The concept of the “candidate experience” didn’t begin during the era of COVID, but well before the crisis. However, the pandemic and its continued labor ramifications (yes, the Great Resignation) exacerbated the criticality of the overall talent experience; business leaders have been pumping more time, energy, and resources into building and curating deeper talent pools by leveraging the power of the employer brand and all that is associated with it (positive culture, spirit of charity, social responsibility, etc.). Too, an enhanced level of candidate engagement is often what is needed to sway passive candidates and convince them to join a talent community.
• Improving the overall hiring manager experience. Often overlooked because of the bullet directly above, there should be tremendous focus on the overall hiring manager experience, given that these leaders are the ones that are at the forefront of talent engagement and talent acquisition activity. Hiring managers are facing somewhat of an existential crisis: they, too, are feeling the anxiety of staff shortages with added pressure from several stakeholders and functional units to find each department a top-tier level of talent in a short amount of time. Talent communities give hiring managers a built-in leg up on their engagement activity, enabling with them on-demand access to a network of pre-vetted, known, and highly-skilled candidates…making their overall experience that much more seamless (and positive).

We experienced first-hand what is was like to live in a business world perpetuated by uncertainty and consistent worry over the future. The necessary agility required by businesses to navigate the first year of the pandemic was driven by initiatives that began before the crisis took shape, such as utilization of direct sourcing strategies and digital staffing channels. We’ve been learning (actively, mind you) that thriving during the second full year of the pandemic occurred mainly in those organizations that realized the power of talent communities would provide longer-term and deeper workforce scalability whilst boosting initiatives around DE&I, emotional connections to candidates, and the development of networks that would amplify the workforce agility that is now a prerequisite to moving onto yet another year that will be challenging given the evolving nature of a public health crisis that seems to throw roadblocks even when things seem hopeful and optimistic.

The power of talent communities is driven by the innovative ways businesses are leveraging talent pools, talent networks, and talent clouds, converging with the nuances of the employer brand, social and emotional connections with both active and passive candidates, the the ultimate development of omnichannel, experience-driven candidate engagement.