hen organizations need to ;nd
project talent, sometimes it
pays to be the aggressor. Digging through the résumé slush
pile or searching the company’s application-tracking system
doesn’t always reveal the right ;t.
;at’s when looking for candidates who
aren’t looking can be the answer.
Like other program, portfolio or human resources
leaders, Jennifer Gance, PMP, human resources
director, Destination Hotels and Resorts, Denver,
Colorado, USA, takes a multipronged approach to
chase passive candidates—people who might be
open to a new position but aren’t actively searching.
In addition to a company referral program, she
;nds passive candidates by networking at PMI
chapter meetings and association gatherings for
other professions. When she spreads news of any
job opening via a LinkedIn post, she also asks her
50 managers to share it across social media.
“We go to passive candidates when we’re looking
for someone with very speci;c skills and we’re not
;nding that talent in our applicant tracking system,”
says Ms. Gance.
As the global economy has stabilized, the employment malaise has lifted. ;at means the best project
talent might not be on the market. Nearly three in
four CEOs worry that a lack of available talent with
key skills will threaten their organizations’ growth
prospects, according to PwC’s 19th Annual Global
CEO Survey.
“;ose people that are not actively thinking about
W
