How to Attract (and Keep) Top Talent in a Competitive Market
Here’s the brutal truth: great people don’t queue up outside your office because you’ve put “competitive salary” on a job ad. Everyone says that. Everyone. If your grand plan to hire top talent is a recycled job spec and a half-hearted LinkedIn post, you’re going to be very lonely in that interview room.
Attracting and keeping brilliant people isn’t about dangling the biggest pay cheque. It’s about being the kind of business they actually want to work for. Spoiler: that means more than free fruit and a ping-pong table.
- Get your story straight
Your employer brand isn’t what you say on LinkedIn. It’s what your people mutter when they’re having a pint with their mates.
If your team are secretly saying, “Honestly, it’s chaos and I can’t wait to leave,” then trust me, candidates will sniff that out quicker than you can say “Glassdoor review.”
So before you even think about job ads, get brutally honest: why should someone brilliant choose you? And please, don’t say “we’re like a family.” Families argue about bins.
- Think beyond salary
Yes, money matters. But do you know what matters more? Time, flexibility, and the feeling you’re not just another bum on a seat.
I once placed a candidate who turned down £120k to take £95k. Why? Because the £95k role gave her Fridays off and the chance to see her kids’ school play. She was over the moon. The £120k client? They’re still scratching their heads.
- Don’t make your hiring process a horror story
If your interview process drags longer than a Netflix boxset, candidates will switch off. If you ghost them mid-way through, they’ll remember (and so will their network).
Would you buy from a company that treated you like dirt? No? Then why on earth would someone want to work for you?
- Onboarding is not an afterthought
Imagine buying a brand-new sofa, it arrives without legs, no instructions, and the delivery guy shrugs and says, “Figure it out.” That’s how most businesses do onboarding.
New hires don’t need beanbags and branded water bottles. They need a 90-day plan, a clear idea of what success looks like, and someone to show them where the good biscuits are hidden.
Final thought
Attracting talent isn’t about luck or shiny job ads. It’s about being real, being human, and creating a place where people want to stay.
Get that right, and you won’t just hire top talent — you’ll actually keep them. Which, let’s be honest, is the real magic.
