What makes a successful TA transformation? 3 lessons learned

As technology speeds forward, the HR tech market evolves and the demand for talent heats up, talent acquisition transformation is everywhere. According to Aptitude Research Partners, only 12% of companies are not going through some form of TA transformation at the moment.

Madeline Laurano, Aptitude Research
Madeline Laurano

What separates a sustainable TA transformation from one that falters? At an HR Tech session moderated by Aptitudeā€™s Madeline Laurano, three TA professionals sounded off.

3 key considerations for TA transformation success

1. Invest in change management strategies

ā€œChange is hard. You have to remember change management,ā€ said Melissa Thompson, executive director of global talent acquisition at Ford Motor Co.

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Thorough change management strategizing goes beyond messaging, she noted.

ā€œEmails are not change management. Communication is not change management,ā€ she said. ā€œChange management is a broad journey, and you have to carry your people with you on that journey.ā€

2. Stakeholders may need to change.

TA transformation will often ā€œfundamentallyā€ change how an HR organization operates within the business, said Kelly Cartwright, vice president of global people acquisition, technology and operations at software firm Splunk. That process will likely shift the role of the recruiter away from a transactional focus to one as a ā€œsteward of the processes and tools,ā€ working more closely with hiring teams.

ā€œDonā€™t be surprised if some people donā€™t want to move forward,ā€ she said. ā€œYou have to make changes to drive transformation.ā€

3. Have tough conversations with your vendor partners.

Vendors in a TA transformation should be considered partners, but TA and HR leaders still need to stay focused on the outcomes vendors will bring, said Jennifer Tracy, vice president of talent attraction and acquisition at communications corporation Spectrum.

ā€œNegotiations [with vendors] should be tough, should be hard,ā€ Tracy said. ā€œYou should both be pushing each other to make stuff better and great. Iā€™ve done my best work when I had a strong partnership that was really honest. Thatā€™s how we got to great.ā€

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Jen Colletta
Jen Colletta is managing editor at HRE. She earned bachelor's and master's degrees in writing from La Salle University in Philadelphia and spent 10 years as a newspaper reporter and editor before joining HRE. She can be reached at [email protected].