Top 3 in-demand skills for recruiters
3 mins, 34 secs read time
Upskilling remains a hot topic in most talent acquisition (TA) career conversations. But it’s an essential skill (formerly known as a soft skill). Anyone can learn to use a new tool or log hours in a tech sandbox. Honing certain skills for recruiters like curiosity, efficiency and bravery can be far more challenging.
Our Senior Director of Talent Planning & Acquisition, Ariana Moon, sat down with Laurie Ruettimann, author, HR expert and entrepreneur, during the “Key attributes talent acquisition professionals must have in 2024” webinar to discuss the new playbook for TA success.
3 essential skills TA professionals can (and should) build
In the past year or so, the tech industry has experienced mass layoffs, including 50% of talent acquisition professionals. The result? Fear and uncertainty have been at an all-time high. But, for the first time in a long time, TA professionals could empathize with candidates navigating a chaotic job market.
And now, TA employees have more free time than ever. Take advantage of the downtime to reflect and build the essential skills for recruiters that will enhance your career.
Laurie suggests people professionals focus on:
- Curiosity
- Efficiency
- Bravery
1. Curiosity
The days of casual upskilling are over. Embracing curiosity is one of the most impactful ways to stay on the leading edge of a rapidly evolving skills space. Curiosity leads to new skills for recruiters, better methods, deeper conversations and stronger relationships.
Ariana added that self-leadership is in play, too. She brought up waiting to be invited to sit at a table or simply pulling up a chair and joining the others. That self-leadership stems from curiosity.
2. Efficiency
You want the authority to opt out of a low-value meeting, activate your OOO message or decline that extra project. Organizations don’t give out that autonomy freely – you have to make yourself indispensable and highly productive. Once you do, you’ll have more power in how you orchestrate your days.
It can be hard to lay boundaries, but it’s key to becoming highly efficient. When you make time for priority work (by saying no to unnecessary meetings or extraneous work), you become more efficient, more invaluable.
We need to get ahead of productivity before productivity comes for us. – Laurie Ruettimann, HR expert and entrepreneur
3. Bravery
Curiosity and efficiency aren’t the only parts of the equation. Getting curious and drawing boundaries requires bravery. And that bravery empowers you to create your ideal workflow that yields the best results.
Ultimately, exercising bravery has a compounding effect on your schedule, projects and partners.
Talent acquisition upskilling resources
Ready to elevate with these skills for recruiters? Laurie broke down the resources you should be snatching up.
- Books. Laurie recommended The Corporate Recruiting Playbook by Carmen Hudson to up-level general talent acquisition skills.
- New experiences. Seek out cultural experiences like art, food and festivals that broaden your perspective and worldview.
- Mentorship. Laurie and Ariana agreed that seeking mentorship is pivotal to career growth.
- Outside experts. When you need to make a big move or want serious help, look to outside experts.
- LinkedIn Learning. There are several recruiting and talent acquisition courses here.
- Software. Partnering with platforms like Greenhouse allows access to rich content libraries and resources that help you overcome skills gaps.
A different way of thinking
Ordinary career advisors suggest staying on top of world news and industry trends. Of course, that’s important, but it doesn’t necessarily make us better leaders. Just like becoming a candidate gives TA workers a new perspective, Laurie points out that diversity evolves your approach.
Recruiting sits at that weird intersection of work, power, politics and money. You need to know what’s happening in the world, but there’s something really important about learning about you. - Laurie Ruettimann, HR expert and entrepreneur
Curiosity, efficiency and bravery make you a great recruiter. But relationships are essential to success in life and business. Laurie celebrated Ariana’s story as a perfect example of how to build deep connections at work and find success in talent acquisition.
Want to empower leaders to create a people-first culture? Catch the replay for tips on building people-first champions within your organization.
Sheena Fronk
is a writing-obsessed entrepreneur who founded her all things writing passion project turned small business, wanderluster co. She works with SaaS and tech companies, transforming jargon into conversations using human-centered copy. When not working, Sheena eats doughnuts, plays with her pup and travels the world.