What makes an organization great? There are many factors, including competent leadership, useful tools and technology, a positive work culture and at least a little luck.
Ultimately, though, it’s the people within a company that make it great or not. A business is only as good as its staff, and while it’s important to give personnel an environment in which they can thrive, it’s still essential to have an effective talent acquisition strategy.
But how do you attract top talent? And what does “top talent” even mean?
What Makes Someone “Top Talent”
A term such as “top talent” is subjective. The skills and credentials that make someone highly sought after in one industry may not be valuable in another. Furthermore, every organization has characteristics and attributes it seeks more than others. But there are qualities that consistently make candidates highly attractive in the job market.
When hiring strategically, consider candidates who have the following:
The Right Credentials
This is one of the more tangible qualities qualified candidates can have. When writing a job description, make sure to include the basic credentials the role requires and any further qualifications you desire. For example, lawyers must have passed the bar, and translators must speak multiple languages. An example of a softer credential might be a license to operate a forklift; maybe it isn’t strictly necessary for the warehouse position you’re looking to fill, but it could certainly come in handy.
The Right Skills
A certain skill set can be a prerequisite the right candidate must have, but these are more difficult to verify. You probably can’t contact an applicant’s college and ask if they have good organizational skills.
What a hiring manager or recruiter can do is scan resumes that mention the skills the position calls for. A good applicant tracking system (ATS) can do this for you automatically. Next, during the interview process, you can ask a candidate to describe how their time management skills helped them in the past. Or if it’s a more tangible skill, like using spreadsheet software, you can ask them to demonstrate their proficiency with Microsoft Excel or Google Sheets.
Impressive Experience
The ideal candidate has the experience necessary to succeed in the role. This could be experience in the same role before, or success in positions that require similar skills. Prospective employees who have a proven track record of doing the job before will likely shoot to the top of a hiring manager’s list.
However, if you lean on experience too much, you might hurt your recruitment strategy by needlessly restricting your talent pool. There might be an amazing potential hire just waiting for the opportunity to move up in their career, whom you could overlook if you prize experience above all other qualifications.
Proven Results
Experience in a role is neutral; it could be a positive experience or a negative one. A candidate might have experience in a similar position, but that doesn’t mean they succeeded there. Skilled hiring managers and recruiters ask applicants questions that invite them to discuss results, metrics or stats that evidence their success in a previous role. For example, if hiring for a sales managerial role, a talented candidate might discuss how much they helped increase sales in a previous role, thanks to an action they took or a practice they implemented.
A Positive Attitude
Michael Jordan may have been the best basketball player of all time. He could also be very difficult to work with. But when you’re Michael Jordan, you can get away with that.
Even the most skilled accountant probably can’t get away with having a bad attitude. Successful job seekers tend to be polite, show enthusiasm and have good listening skills. From the perspective of a hiring manager, it’s important to be careful and not merely hire the most charismatic or charming candidate, as not all great employees will have naturally great social skills. However, the ideal candidate probably does have a positive attitude that can help foster a positive company culture.
Problem-Solving Skills
Problem-solving and conflict resolution are highly valued soft skills. A problem solver can find solutions on their own, making the job of management easier. Being able to de-escalate tense situations can make a candidate a great cultural fit.
Initiative and Self-Motivation
A talented employee is probably someone who’s focused on their own career growth. When recruiting top talent, it’s important to seek candidates who have (a healthy amount of) ambition, such as those who will take it upon themselves to make progress and reach goals.
Goal-Oriented
Speaking of goals, being goal-oriented is a great quality for candidates. For some positions, it might be important to be journey-oriented, as not all success is measurable by goal attainment. However, setting goals for oneself and then working to achieve them is a hallmark of top talent.
Team-Oriented
Working well with others dovetails with having a positive attitude. The value of working with a team varies from job to job, but it’s often quite important. High-quality candidates bring good team-working skills to the table.
Leadership
Sometimes working with a team isn’t as important as leading a team. Leadership can be difficult to judge during the hiring process, but top talent often know how to lead, even if the position in question isn’t a managerial role.
8 Strategies for Attracting Top Talent
Here are eight methods you can use to enhance your organization’s talent acquisition strategy:
1. Offer Competitive Compensation Packages
If you want to attract and retain top talent, you must offer a competitive salary, benefits, and potentially some other perks as well. This is where large enterprises often have an advantage, because they can pay the most.
This doesn’t mean small- and medium-sized businesses can’t win the talent attraction game, though. Smaller companies can get top talent for less money by offering certain perks, such as hybrid or remote work schedules, programs for professional development and a positive candidate experience. Ultimately, though, if the compensation isn’t at least competitive, the talent pipeline is unlikely to be bursting with the cream of the crop.
2. Build a Strong Employer Brand
Why might potential employees choose a job offer for less money? One reason is if they feel working for an organization will be enjoyable or positive. This is where employer branding comes into play.
Is the application process straightforward and transparent? Are all interviewers and HR personnel respectful, warm and considerate? Does an organization foster a good company culture? Having an attractive employer brand means talent will want to work for you.
3. Craft Compelling Job Descriptions
It’s important to remember that a job description is, essentially, an advertisement. An intriguing and informative job description is a great recruitment marketing asset. A short introduction that clearly explains what the job is, followed by key information — such as salary, location and hours — and then a more detailed description is a good template.
4. Leverage Employee Referrals
If you value your current employees, then you should value their opinions about who else could work for your organization. Hiring based on employee referrals can save time and resources and increase your chances of finding a candidate who’s a good cultural fit.
5. Utilize Social Media Platforms
There are many job boards out there, and many are great. But you needn’t limit yourself to those platforms. Social media recruiting can be an excellent way to find passive candidates — those who may not be actively looking for a new job. It also allows you to connect with prospective candidates who might be interested in roles in the future.
6. Foster a Positive Work Culture
Even with the highest compensation in the industry, a company can easily burn out employees and scare off candidates if it has a bad work culture. High employee churn means more resources dedicated to talent acquisition and onboarding. Good workplace vibes aren’t just fun; they can be highly cost-effective.
7. Provide Career Development Opportunities
Many candidates aren’t looking to stay in one role for the rest of their careers. By offering pathways for career development and opportunities to learn skills and earn accreditations, organizations can attract ambitious talent.
8. Consider Offering Remote or Hybrid Roles
These work models aren’t practical for all organizations, but many job seekers prefer to work from home. If your business can accommodate that, not only might your organization be more appealing, but you can widen your talent pool by potentially recruiting someone from anywhere in the world with a remote model. Just make sure you have a good video interviewing tool.
How Using the Right Tools Can Land Top Talent
The right ATS can help you attract, communicate with and, ultimately, help hire the best talent. First, an effective ATS gives you the data you need. It can store all important information in an easy-to-access dashboard, making it easy to share data and notes with other people on the hiring team. The best ATS platforms can also help with compliance, providing advanced data security and privacy, so you’re not at risk of mishandling candidates’ information.
Ready To Attract Top Talent to Your Organization?
ApplicantStack offers all the ATS features mentioned in this article. ApplicantStack makes it easy to collaborate with other hiring professionals, write effective job descriptions and post them to multiple sites. It also facilitates communication with candidates, keeping all their pertinent information in a centralized database and storing all that information securely to comply with various laws and regulations.
Schedule a demo to discover how ApplicantStack can help your business attract and onboard top talent.
- How to Respond to Candidates During Interviews - December 3, 2025
- Understanding Internal Mobility in Hiring - November 26, 2025
- Swipeclock Announces Partnership with Canary - November 20, 2025
