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Our 2023 SHRM Talent Conference Review
Posted by NAS Recruitment Innovation on May 1st, 2023 This year we had the honor of sending three of our NAS leaders to the SHRM Talent Conference in Orlando, FL. The group got to experience some insightful presentations and interesting interactions with Talent Acquisition professionals from all over the world. We recapped with the NAS attendees, Jennifer Henley (SVP, Operations), Matt Adam (Chief Talent Strategist) and Daniel O’Neill (Vice President, Talent Strategy) and here are their takeaways.
What was the overall vibe and mood at the conference?
JH: “The environment was very high energy. It seemed like everyone there was open to trying something new.”
MA: “The conference had a record attendance this year. There was a great mix of both live and virtual attendees, so that created a positive, progressive and tech-focused vibe.”
DO: “There was a great, positive vibe at SHRM Talent this year! The TA leaders seemed excited to be there and eager to learn. From what I heard, everyone enjoyed the programming and got a few insights to bring back to their internal teams.”
What topics were top of mind for TA professionals at the SHRM Talent conference this year?
JH: “I noticed a focus on culture, brand, technology, AI., partnerships for diversity and retention.”
MA: “The major theme was the need to customize the candidate journey based on the hiring job family. I also saw a focus on embracing technology, particularly AI and generative AI, to improve efficiency.”
DO: “The topics that stood out to me were, how to authentically activate one’s employer brand, generative AI and GPT use cases in TA, talent acquisition and talent management teams starting to communicate more and share more data and responsibilities, the employee experience and retention, and DEI&B and how to attract more diverse candidates.”
What were some of the most interesting conversations you had with TA professionals?
JH: “I had so many great conversations at SHRM Talent. I felt there was an overall eagerness to learn how a brand can help talent attraction. Many of the people I talked to expressed a need to solve specific challenges, including recruiting volume and finding candidates for hard-to-fill or specialized roles.”
MA: “After my sessions, many people came up to me after and were asking about how they can improve their employment brand storytelling and their career site.”
DO: “One of the most interesting conversations I had at SHRM Talent was with two women who work in recruiting for a large multi-national company. They expressed an interest in increasing their veteran hiring. They outlined the struggle of understanding how a veteran’s service experience will translate into civilian roles and skills. They were looking for an AI tool that can help both sides (vets and employer) better understand what the other is looking for and help place veterans into civilian roles where they will succeed.”
What recruiting trends and issues do you see as being important in the rest of the year and beyond?
JH: “I see retention, maximizing referrals, benefits (flex, DEI, mental health), internal communications (onboarding, retention) and simple technology being the trends for the next year or more.”
MA: “The next year will be about staying steady in uncertain times. The organizations who stick to the course and don’t abandon strategies will be the ones who overtake others when the economy gains strength.”
DO: “I think there’s a trend of companies being less reactive and less frantic with their talent attraction strategies. Instead, companies are getting more strategic and forward-thinking about succession planning. I also believe the virtual workplace will remain a topic of interest. Remote work is here to stay and is increasingly a benefit that organizations will need to offer when and where they can to retain great talent against the competition.”
What did you personally learn or take away from the show that will impact your discussions with TA professionals throughout 2023?
JH: “I enjoyed the variety of experience and diversity that was present this year. I feel like I walked away with the desire to focus on various aspects of HR and what they mean to different generations and industries, with the intention of making our efforts scalable for our clients.”
MA: “A big theme was customizing candidate experiences based on talent. For some roles, you have more than enough quality candidates, but for others, you need to remove barriers and encourage more candidates to take action.”
DO: “I left the conference with a sense that TA teams are using 2023 as a year of transformation to try to prepare for the future. The world is changing so fast that solving 2023 problems reactively won’t work because the landscape will have changed by the time the solution is found. Leaders are thinking ahead to what the future of work will look like in 2030 and beyond and already starting to plant the seeds of transformation that will help them be future-fit.”
As the conference drew to a close, we were excited to be joined by our NAS colleagues located in Orlando for our social gathering. This event provided an excellent opportunity to connect with both new acquaintances and valued clients, marking the perfect conclusion to the SHRM Talent Conference & Expo 2023.
Our leaders at NAS have years of experience and are always learning new strategies and trends to keep our clients on the cutting-edge of the recruiting industry. NAS has over 75 years of experience in the industry and all the resources and staff to help you better position yourself in getting the talent you want. Contact us today to learn more about how our expertise can help your organization succeed in attracting and retaining the best talent.
NAS Recruitment Innovation
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