Evolution: Recruit, Develop, Improve

“Yeah, we don’t sponsor candidates…”

We know this is the case for many companies.

Before you stop reading the rest of this newsletter, walk with us through some paradigm shifts with regard to the way you may view hiring candidates requiring sponsorship.

Charles Kettering, the former Head of Research at General Motors and holder of over 300 patents once said, “The world hates change, yet it is the only thing that has brought progress.”

If we truly want to improve our success in talent acquisition, it will require us to do things differently in order to make progress.

We’re firm believers in developing a large tool box when it comes to talent acquisition – a hammer and screwdriver just aren’t enough to finish most jobs. The more tools you have in your tool box, the better chance you have of getting the job done well – and done right.

So back to recruiting – we can all agree that it’s probably time for some fresh thinking in our approach. That’s what led to the development of our recent pilot program with Western Michigan University’s College of Engineering, connecting master’s level international STEM field graduates with employers through OPT sponsorship.

If you could hire highly educated STEM field graduates, many of whom have work experience, for a minimum of three years in an entry-level role in your company, why wouldn’t you do it?

For many companies, it’s a lack of understanding the value of the talent and the ease of the hiring paperwork. We underestimate what these highly skilled graduates can bring to our organizations, and we overestimate the time and expense it will take us to bring them in.

Hiring STEM graduates under OPT status has been simplified through a new pilot program we’re launching. Want to learn more about it? Tune in to our most recent podcast on The Welsh Wire.

In part one of the podcast, we talk about why we need to shift our paradigms around where we will find STEM employees in the years ahead. (And here’s a clue: We don’t have enough of them in Michigan, and relocating them here from other states is not likely to happen.)

In June, we’ll share part two of the podcast, which reveals the ease of working with WMU’s College of Engineering and Institute for Global Education to hire those STEM students into your operation.

The future of talent acquisition certainly looks challenging. However, we think there’s an even greater risk at stake. We think Jeff Bezos puts it well – “What’s dangerous is not to evolve.”

We hope you’ll agree that in considering new approaches to old problems, we may find greater success for the organizations we lead. That’s what we’re doing with our pilot program, and we hope you’ll consider being a part of it!