How to attract top talent for your Fintech start-up or SME

Recruiting outstanding talent is the goal of every talent acquisition team. However, market forces have made that task increasingly difficult. Often candidates are unwilling to leave jobs that have seen them through the pandemic, and those who are looking for new opportunities are often the subject of bidding wars. Even highly desirable businesses, like Fintech SMEs, are having a hard time finding enough people with the right skill set for their companies. Ultimately, these candidates command a premium and, as a business, you may very well offer and exceed their expectations, however, that still may not be enough to sway them to work for you.  

So, in a skills' drought, what can your business do to attract the best talent for your Fintech start-up or SME? 

Understand the candidate’s motives                                                                               

As a Senior Recruitment Consultant, who specialises in the Fintech market, I have multiple conversations a day about the cons of working for a start-up vs. a large organisation. Some of the key themes from these conversations include:

1. Potential lack of learning and development in a smaller business
2. Fewer opportunities to progress in SMEs
3. Less opportunity for flexible working and longer working hours
4. Not enough employee benefits
5. Less job security in a start-up

Yes, there are risks that come with joining a smaller business, but start-ups are some of the most progressive and creative businesses around. Remuneration, employee benefits and job security are only some of the motivators for people in their working life. People often work at start-ups because they believe in the mission or product, not necessarily for financial gain or job security.  

Make your job opportunity stand out from the crowd 

Recruiting top talent in the Fintech market is difficult, every hire is integral and can make or break your company. With budgets being a big concern for many businesses, you need to think strategically about how you present jobs to potential candidates. A job advert is not a list of responsibilities.  Companies need to understand who they want to attract with the job advertisement. A well put together job advert, which covers all of the essential qualities the candidate needs to possess to be successful and what you can offer them in return, is a great starting point. 

Utilise websites like Gender Decoder to ensure your job adverts are gender-neutral and consider using SEO practices to attract better quality and more diverse candidates.

Showcase your employer brand 

Candidates want to know what it is like to work for a company before they work for them. Attracting candidates whose values and work style align with those of your company will make your recruitment process smoother, as you won’t have to sift through candidate profiles that aren’t a match in any way. It also works the other way around. Candidates who don’t like what they see will deselect themselves from the selection process.                                                                                                                                                                                  

Boost retention and retain talent

Retaining talent is an essential component of acquiring talent. The Fintech industry is compact and well-connected. One person’s poor experience with your organisation could have a damaging impact on your ability to hire new people. Therefore, ensuring there is a keen focus on developing and retaining talent is a must if you want to recruit successfully for your Fintech SME. 

Start-ups and SMEs are often disadvantaged when it comes to their ability to incentivise their employee’s roles and provide the type of working environments, benefits and conditions that incentivise employees to stay long-term. This is because start-ups may not always be able to compete with large organisations on remuneration, benefits and bonuses. Therefore, it is essential to see appropriate and financially sustainable incentives as a cornerstone of talent acquisition and retention.

Some SMEs might shirk the cost of training, however, learning opportunities often lead to increased productivity. Furthermore, employees are much more likely to stay with a business if they can see a clear progression and development plan. And whilst there is always the risk that if you train your employees and enhance their education, that they will leave if you don’t offer a clear progression and training route, they are even less likely to hang around. 

You should actively seek feedback from your people around the business. The people on the frontline of your organisation are often the ones best placed to provide insight into business performance. Moreover, employees who are engaged and feel heard often stay in their roles longer. 

Ask for help                                                                         

The average employee exit costs 33% of their annual salary. However, some studies have found that the real cost of making a bad hire is closer to £130k! This is taking into account the loss of talent, time, recruitment fees, training and decreased productivity. 

A high turnover rate can cripple a start-up or SME. It is essential that as a business, small or large, that you don’t fall into a pattern of making bad hires. There are several routes to acquire talent, such as referrals, ex-colleagues, and reaching out to connections, which are advantageous. However, scaling and growing a business on the back of referrals is time-consuming, and there are fewer safety nets in place if the hire isn’t quite right. 

That is why engaging the services of specialist recruitment consultancies, like Marks Sattin, is essential. We don’t just find you your next hire, we are uniquely placed to consult with businesses on hiring trends, candidate behaviour and best talent attraction methods for your business. And the best part is, it won’t cost you anything until we have made a placement.

You can read our previously published article on the pros and cons of taking recruitment in-house. If you would like to discuss any of the above, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me.