Competing with the “Big Boys and Girls” for Top Life Sciences Talent

As a business leader, I’m sure you’re aware that competing with larger corporations for talent can be challenging. But, it doesn’t mean that it can’t be done — you just need to offer what the bigger boys and girls can’t.

Small(er) businesses often win clients by offering things that their large competitors don’t – such as enhanced personal care, responsiveness, tailored solutions, and in many cases a higher quality product or service at a lower price...You can win top talent by leveraging similar competitive advantages, such as:

Purpose

An Inc.com article states that the number one thing that employees want isn’t a hefty paycheck or lofty perks. They want to be doing something with purpose behind it. "What people want most is the chance to make a difference," says Alexander Hiam, the Massachusetts-based author of Business Innovation For Dummies. Smaller companies or startups are in a good position to provide their people with a good sense of purpose, since they live it every day.

Flexibility

Experts say employees also want a say over when and how they work. A survey conducted by Fractl found that, after health insurance, workers value low-cost benefits, such a flexible hours, more paid vacation time, and work-from-home options. They also found that certain benefits can win over some candidates faced with higher-paying offers, but that come with fewer additional advantages.

Transparency

It’s no secret- candidates want transparency. This means being more honest about your benefits, salary and work practices with your candidates, and making everything more upfront and personal. Transparency relates to your hiring process too - it can lead to increases in your quality of hires, higher candidate-to-interview ratios and faster time-to-fill. Being honest with candidates (and getting back to them sooner) means going through more applications at a time because there’s less hemming and hawing about how to deliver the message.

Competitive Recruiting

Many smaller companies shy away from ‘big company’ recruiting strategies because of the expense and competition with larger firms, but this is a mistake. In fact, competition IS the reason you should work with a recruiter that specializes in your space…. We recruiters have deep relationships in your specific industry and are experts at “selling” a company’s story!

The Bottom Line –winning the war for talent is not impossible–it comes down to the degree of sincerity, follow up, and the truly demonstrated interest you have in candidates… Bet the “big guys/gals” aren’t focusing on that!

TELL ME ABOUT THE TALENT OR JOB YOU’RE LOOKING FOR.                                                                                                    Get in touch with me today!