The construction industry can be very competitive when it comes to hiring. Top talent is always in high demand and will often get to choose from a couple of different offers. As part of your hiring strategy, you should also be looking at passive talent. These are individuals who are not actively looking for a new position but could nevertheless be swayed and would bring a tremendous amount of value to your team.

This article will go over why, where, and how you should be looking for and engaging passive talent.

Passive talent: Why you should look for them

These applicants are essentially the hidden gems of recruiting. They are just as talented as star candidates who quickly snatch up competitors. But since they are not actively interviewing, you have more time to lay the groundwork and build a connection and relationship.

Passive talent: Where to find them

These individuals obviously are not scanning the job boards, so any traditional job posting will generally not work for passive talent. The best way to find passive talent is to work with a recruiter familiar with the industry and who can tap into their vast network. Beyond that, you should ask your star employees and respected colleagues for referrals. To extend your reach even further, search on social media – you will want to look specifically for individuals with whom you share a mutual connection.

Passive talent: How to engage them

Engaging passive talent is a delicate game. These individuals might not have even considered looking for a job in the past couple of years, so they may be inclined to shut you down immediately. The best thing that you can do is personalize your initial message as much as possible – this is where it helps to mention your mutual connection. Ideally, you should even copy the referral on the initial correspondence or ask them to reach out on your behalf. This will help ensure that it does not get marked as spam. You should also think about what would be the most effective motivator for this individual – they may currently be content with their title and salary, but are there other perks that you could offer to them?

The other good thing about passive talent is that you can consistently recruit. Reaching out and building connections with individuals at the top of their game is a great way to ensure that you always have a good starting point when a position opens up.

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