As American companies recover from ‘the great resignation,’ labor participation still lags in various verticals, and the market remains tight.  

Following the high-magnitude mass exit, employers are keen to know why did workers quit despite the global economy being a bit shaky. Were there other factors besides compensation that employees considered? Why did their job satisfaction level hit an all-time low? There’s also a bit of introspection that made employers rethink their recruitment strategy.

For Instance, they realized that skills and capabilities matter as much as experience and expertise. They also sensed that jobs are going through a massive transformation, and sprawling new work arrangements allowing more flexibility, balance, and creative and decision-making freedom are taking over.  

Now, here’s a situation for all HR Leaders to think over – 

Suppose you are in a similar position. High attrition, talent instability, the volatile labor market is racking up your brain and draining your energy. After so many voluntary exits leaving you high and dry, you don’t want another jolt. What should you do? How should you ensure that your best and brightest don’t leave? 

Here’s what we think – 

Internal mobility has been a game-changer for companies like Unilever, Schneider Electric, and Ford Otosan. You can be next. The model encourages career agility and allows workers to pick new roles, projects, short-term/long-term assignments, and re-skilling opportunities. 

As much as the model is relevant, creating a robust and all-encompassing internal talent pipeline is not a walk in the park. To really crack it, leaders should know why their employees are leaving. The following could be possible scenarios in which your workers might be looking for a change – 

Building an Internal Talent Marketplace

Once you know what your employees are looking for and what’s pushing them to look outside, the next step is to address that issue. The best part of setting up an internal talent marketplace is that it can effectively handle most of your employees’ concerns. For instance –  

Role-to-role or project-based mobility helps groom workers, provides career advancement, encourages them to diversify, and up-skills them. While baby boomers see such challenging opportunities as stepping stones to growth and progress, HR leaders can scout those who have the potential to be future leaders, especially since they have continued to display their strengths and capabilities for a long time and have become seasoned experts. 

Building an internal ‘gig economy’ can have added advantages. There is a common perception that millennials and Gen-Z are not entirely driven by the idea of compensation and financial benefits when it comes to job satisfaction. In fact, they seek projects that capitalize on their skills. This is where short gigs, projects, or assignments that enhance collaboration, foster creativity, and cut through silos may appear exciting. 

Internal talent pipeline opens up communication around diverse employment possibilities. Open communication will facilitate information-sharing. They become aware of the different internal openings they can apply for. Moreover, when you invite your workers to express their thoughts, they feel included and valued. The process builds trust. And trust is one of the key factors in employee engagement. 

5 steps to incorporate a comprehensive & diverse 'Internal Talent Marketplace' 

1. Incorporate internal mobility in HR Policies. For leaders and managers to sincerely invest in building and grooming in-house talent, start with making internal talent pipeline an official part of the organization. The process should involve every top leader joining hands at the discussion table, talking about role requirements and creating positions accordingly.  
   
2. Identify tasks at a broader level. To establish an effective internal talent pipeline, lay down what you want to achieve in the next three years. What are your short-term goals? Break those goals into tasks and determine how much people power would be required to complete those tasks. Accordingly, create or define the positions you want to fill up. Outline the skills and competencies needed to fill those positions. 
3. Implement a system to match internal jobs and potential candidates. Once you have designed internal career pathways and you are ready to fill priority roles, the next step is to identify a pool of candidates that would fit those roles or match the required skill set. If done manually, this can be an extremely tedious task. Hence, you are encouraged to use an AI-powered system as a matchmaker between potential employees and job roles. The next step is to share the listed opportunities with workers looking for growth and professional development.
4. Use numbers to track progress and convince reluctant managers. After laying down a perfect strategy, you want to know if it worked. That’s where metrics help. They measure the effectiveness of your internal pipeline and sourcing strategy. They indicate the success rate in assigning the right resources to the vacant positions. They measure whether the candidate who applied turned up for a particular position and they are happy in their new role. Metrics also help in allocating the hiring budget. 
5. Metrics also play an instrumental in convincing managers who are otherwise reluctant to hire internally. As managers can see people in their team thriving in other roles and having robust career paths, it convinces them of how effective this strategy can be and their role as career navigators.  

 If you don’t want to lose your talented workforce to competitors and are looking for ways to establish a steady and reliable internal talent pipeline, our professionals at Cornerstone Consulting Organization can help you get started.