Recruiting is more challenging than ever. The global skills gap is real, and according to McKinsey & Company, the large majority of companies worldwide (87%) are aware that they either already have a skills gap or will have one within a few years. Many companies are  therefore recognising the benefits of hiring for potential, rather than direct skill or experience.

Here are 5 benefits of hiring for potential to fill your skills gap in 2023 and beyond!

Expand your talent pool

Hiring for potential immediately opens up your talent pool rather than seeking out candidates who have specific experience. The more open you are, the wider the talent pool and remember that an individual’s experience with another company doesn’t necessarily guarantee future success with yours.

Much of this, of course, depends on the role you are recruiting for, but Customer Service roles, Account Managers and Sales Roles can often work just as well with not as much experience, but plenty of enthusiasm!

Hire for cultural fit

When you hire for potential, as an employer, you are focusing more on whether the candidate will be a good fit for your organisation. The candidate is therefore more likely going to blend in and function well with other colleagues and share the same behaviours and beliefs that are aligned with your company’s values.

Determining whether a candidate is a good cultural fit for an organisation is something which is often more achievable at an interview stage, where a candidate’s personality can come to the fore. This may mean spending more time on the interview process, but less time searching for specific experience on LinkedIn or other recruitment websites.

Increases employee loyalty

Employees who have lots of experience and skills under their belt can often reach targets in a new company and outgrow an organisation very quickly.  Whereas, hiring for potential can also, but not always, increase employee loyalty. If your organisation is putting time, money and effort into training an employee, they will have more inclination to stay longer.

Allows you to tap into new ideas and skills

Hiring for potential allows you to inject new energy from candidates who are keen to learn, and who may bring other experience and skills that you can use to the benefit of your business.

Lower salary expectations

Highly skilled individuals and lots of experience often demand a higher salary than their less experienced counterparts.  This can enable you to put some recruitment costs elsewhere, such as training and development to upskill those who do have potential.

Hiring for potential requires asking more behavioural-based questions to better understand how they like to work and what their strengths are:

These questions might include:

• What is it about our company that made you apply for this role?
• What excites you most about this role?
• Tell me about a time you demonstrated this quality.
• How do you like to work? Tell me what your ideal workday looks like.
• Describe a time when you helped a coworker overcome a difficulty they were facing.
• What can I do to support you in this role?

Hiring for potential definitely has its advantages, but depending on the role, it’s not always the right strategy. However, in today’s talent pool shortage, it’s certainly something that you should consider in 2023.

Contact us if you need help and support with your recruitment in 2023. Whatever stage you’re at, we have the expertise and skills to find the right talent to support your recruitment program.