tmpFirst off, what defines a passive job seeker? Let’s see, they aren’t necessarily looking for a job. They are happily employed where they are. They are top performers of their company which means that their company is taking really good care of them.

Screeeeeech. What? Let’s back that up.They are top performers of their company which means that their company is taking really good care of them.  

Well this opens up a larger discussion on who these people are and why we are after them. It goes beyond the label we give people who simply are not looking for a job. In reality we’re not after passives. We’re after high quality performers that companies want to keep. They are proven and extremely valuable for the organization’s growth and success. So how do you attract them, and how do you even know that they’re in fact top performers?

Attracting high quality performers makes for pretty tough odds in getting their attention. Much less asking them to give up on what they have now, risk creating anxieties between them and the company that’s treating them so well, and changing their lives. Let’s analyze this audience a little more.

Why You Should Stop Pursuing Passive Candidates

2014-07-14_09-34-21First, a passive job seeker does not = best talent. Just because they’re not looking, doesn’t always mean that they’re great. In fact, they may be happy just doing their jobs, going through the motion, and not wanting to change and/or grow at all. They’re comfortable and they may have no motive or anchor to want to change. Change may be a difficult task for them to execute upon and chances are, this isn’t really an attribute you’re looking for in the first place.

Second, getting top performers to believe in your messages, if they’ve seen them, will be tough and will need to get their attention first and engage them on a whole other level that involves contagious content strategies. Take a look at your story and the content that delivers it. Connect your story to those high performing people that have anchors to contribute to new things, and you will have greater chances for a match.

High performing people love what they do. They are attracted to skills growth, contribution to new challenges, and they have an open mind and ears to the market. Reason? To stay sharp. To keep in the know, and to keep engaged with their craft so that they can grow and apply it to their work. They do this through networking, research blogs, and knowledge communities to name a few.

If you approach your audience with this in mind instead of a label, it will force you to be more strategic in how you develop your creative messaging, content and distribution strategies that will have a greater chance to persuade these top performers to consider the possibilities with you.

Read more at Meshworking from TMP Worldwide.

russell miyaki headshotAbout the Author: Russell Miyaki is Sr. Vice President Global Creative Director for TMP Worldwide and leads innovation initiatives for our clients and development teams while overseeing the development and creation of all interactive media. He is involved with ensuring that the highest of standards and best practices of interactive development are applied to all interactive projects. At the same time he is constantly focused on exploring new navigational schemes and information design that involves audiences deeper into the context of the message.

His experience and knowledge of interactive media and human factors allows him to bring a strong balance of sound usability and intuitive exploration to each solution. Russell is one of TMP’s visionaries. He is the leader of a company think tank known as TMP Labs which is comprised of TMP visionaries tasked to stay in the forefront of innovative new media solutions and trend indicators in talent acquisition.

Russell has over 20 years of experience in advertising and design working for agencies such as FCB, Landor and as Creative Director for The Sharper Image.

 



By Russell Miyaki

Russell Miyaki is Sr. Vice President Global Creative Director for TMP Worldwide and leads innovation initiatives for our clients and development teams while overseeing the development and creation of all interactive media. He is involved with ensuring that the highest of standards and best practices of interactive development are applied to all interactive projects. At the same time he is constantly focused on exploring new navigational schemes and information design that involves audiences deeper into the context of the message. His experience and knowledge of interactive media and human factors allows him to bring a strong balance of sound usability and intuitive exploration to each solution. Russell is one of TMP’s visionaries. He is the leader of a company think tank known as TMP Labs which is comprised of TMP visionaries tasked to stay in the forefront of innovative new media solutions and trend indicators in talent acquisition. Russell has over 20 years of experience in advertising and design working for agencies such as FCB, Landor and as Creative Director for The Sharper Image.