Private Equity and Venture Capital firms are closing more and more deals particularly in the Life Sciences and Healthcare sectors in our local market, or the Triad of Greensboro, High Point and Winston-Salem here in North Carolina. As a result, competition for talent among start-ups, emerging technologies and portfolio companies has never been more competitive. Typically, most PE and VC firms approach recruiting and talent acquisition reactively - or hiring when a new role or need arises. In order to beat competitors and hire the best athlete talent, HR leaders at PE and VC firms need to shift to a more proactive approach through talent mapping.
Strategically Build And Track Your Talent Pipeline.
Talent Mapping strategically and proactively tracks active and passive talent in the candidate marketplace months ahead of a hiring need. Talent Mapping uses traditional researching and sourcing methodologies to constantly track, engage with, and attract talent, leading up to a hiring need. As a search firm, we’ve found that VC and PE firms in the Triad struggle with hiring for specific levels or key positions including:
Senior Executive or C-Suite Level Leadership
Heads of Business Units
Vice President or One Level Below At The Director Level
Mapping the above tiers of leadership provides insight into a candidate’s career trajectory. VC and PE firms can accurately gauge when a candidate may be ready for a transition or a new challenge and pursue them accordingly. In addition to recruiting and tracking talent, VC and PE firms can also use talent mapping data points to strengthen their team and organization including:
Uncovering any skills gaps in their organization
Building a more precise candidate profile or research criteria
Precisely identifying core competencies and leadership skills
Hire Faster And Reduce Costs.
In reactive recruitment, the cost of hiring grows as the length of a search extends, and in today’s hiring market it can potentially take months to close a search. Talent mapping solves this in two ways. First, the data and insights remain accurate for the next six months - meaning the research and long list are readily available when a hiring need arises over the next two quarters. This shaves off weeks of sourcing LinkedIn and producing a list of qualified candidates. Second, as part of the Talent Mapping process, VC or PE firms or their external talent partners can leverage this time to build a relationship with the top candidates. As a result, taking this time to build meaningful relationships with candidates creates a positive candidate experience. This deeper level of engagement builds trust and reduces the time needed to persuade a candidate to consider an opportunity.
Identifying Emerging Leaders.
Part of the biggest challenge PE and VC firms face when recruiting is hiring for the future. Talent mapping not only tracks today’s senior leadership, but several levels underneath them in the workforce. These candidates will eventually become the leaders of the future in the industry. For VC and PE firms, this is critical for recruiting and succession planning. In some cases, it is more effective to hire a candidate that is a few tiers below senior leadership level and allow them to grow into a role and with the organization. On the other hand, talent mapping can be strictly focused on succession planning. If a senior leader within a portfolio company unexpectedly leaves, talent mapping has already outlined and built a pipeline for those candidates best suited to step-in in the interim.
To learn more about Talent Mapping or how we work with PE and VC firms investing in Life Sciences in North Carolina, get in touch with us today.
About The Author
With over 10 years of experience in search and business operations, Julian is a highly diligent and efficient marketer and operations manager. He is a proven leader who combines creative thinking and strong communications with operational strategy, business development, recruitment operations, and digital marketing. Julian joined Chapel Hill Solutions to modernize the recruitment industry’s approach. He is passionate about creating a transparent and collaborative relationship with his clients.