12 Talent Acquisition and Retention Strategies to Build a Better Workforce

While hiring top talent is crucial for growth, attracting the best candidates is only half of the equation. The real challenge and growth opportunities lie in retaining top-performing employees within your company.

That’s why aligning talent acquisition and retention is no longer just an option – it’s a strategic imperative. With unemployment low and specialized skills in high demand, companies must attract the right candidates and retain them for the long term.

SHRM reports that 77% of HR professionals say their top priority over the years has been retaining top candidates in the company. McKinsey finds that aligning hiring with retention goals delivers higher shareholder returns and productivity.

Since replacing a salaried employee can cost an employer between six and nine months of that employee’s salary, taking a holistic approach to talent, from first contact to onboarding, can help mitigate these unnecessary losses. In this post, we’ll explore why talent acquisition and retention are essential, along with the best strategies to help your company reach its full potential.

What is Talent Acquisition and Retention?

Talent acquisition is a strategic process of finding and hiring the right people for a business. It encompasses not only posting jobs and screening resumes, but also employer branding, candidate engagement, and utilizing data and tools to build talent pipelines. As a concept, it encapsulates workforce planning and nurturing relationships with potential candidates.

Talent retention, also known as employee retention, refers to the practice of retaining top talent within a company and minimizing employee turnover. In other words, it’s about how well an organization maintains its workforce by meeting employees’ needs, career goals, and expectations of competitive pay.

Both concepts are two sides of talent management, where one brings people in, and the other keeps them engaged once hired.

Why are Talent Acquisition and Retention Strategies Important?

Integrated talent acquisition and retention strategies bring the most tangible benefits. Better hires strengthen the business, and retaining them avoids the high costs associated with turnover. Industry data from Aptitude Research indicates that organizations that align recruitment and retention goals experience a 2x improvement in retention and quality of hire, while achieving 3x gains in productivity.

In other words, when recruitment and retention teams work together with valuable historical data, turnover rates decrease while productivity increases. On the other hand, nearly 30% of employees quit within the first six months, often due to misaligned expectations or a poor fit. Implementing practical acquisition and retention strategies can reduce churn and improve morale in the workplace.

How Your Talent Acquisition Strategy Influences Retention

A strategic talent acquisition process sets the stage for employees to stay. Thoughtful recruitment practices from the first contact to onboarding shape the expectations and engagement of the candidate. Let’s explore how:

Early Engagement and Candidate Experience

The way candidates are treated before they join reveals a great deal about company culture. Candidates who feel respected and informed are more likely to accept the offer and commit long term. For example, a candidate experience report by CareerPlug found that 66% of candidates stated a positive hiring experience influenced their decision to accept a job, while 26% declined offers after negative interactions.

Hiring for Long-Term Fit

Recruitment isn’t just about skills; it’s about aligning with your organizational goals. Selecting candidates whose values, work style, and growth potential match the company means they’re more likely to thrive in the workplace.

Since we found that the retention rates automatically improve once suitable candidates are selected. For example, Salesforce sets clear expectations in interviews so that people understand the culture and mission, which helps them identify suitable candidates who not only align with their work style but also bring new perspectives to the table.

Role of Onboarding in Long-Term Success

The first weeks on the job can make or break your retention game. Therefore, effective onboarding accelerates integration and commitment to top talent. Employees with exceptional onboarding are far more likely to stay, as we found that about 69% of workers with great onboarding experiences remain with the company for more than three years.

Matching Recruitment Promises with Reality

Finally, alignment between what was promised and what’s delivered is crucial after setting the said expectations. If a job description or interview oversells perks or misrepresents the role, new hires quickly disengage from their responsibilities.

Research from achievers indicates that 30% of early exiters cite mismatched expectations as their primary reason for leaving, while 32% cite a poor culture fit. Recruitment should paint an accurate picture so your employees aren’t caught off guard on their first day.

Addressing each of these aspects—positive early engagement, careful culture fit, and cultural addition practices—along with honest promises, creates a virtuous circle of strength. Aligning talent acquisition with retention yields double-digit gains, and investing in candidate experience to ensure long-term fit and retention will help you build a more stable and high-performing workforce.

12 Talent Acquisition and Retention Strategies That Work Together

The best talent acquisition and retention strategy isn’t a one-way street. It’s a web of interconnected strategies that are effectively executed together to create a self-reinforcing cycle of organizational success. Let’s explore some of the best talent acquisition and retention strategies that work best for a long-term impact:

1. Offer Competitive Compensation and Benefits

It has been proven that employees stay where they feel valued, and nothing signals value more than fair, competitive compensation. According to the Harvard Business Review, the majority of organizations adjusted compensation based on market data, improved employee retention by leveraging senior executive incentives with 41% paid in cash, and 59% in equity, adjusted according to business maturity.

Additionally, many workers also promoted additional benefits beyond a pay raise, including wellness programs, remote work stipends, mental health support, and more.

2. Flexible Work Schedules

As we navigate the emerging world of augmentation, companies strive for a complete rebirth by ditching their old ways and harnessing the power of flexible work schedules. According to LinkedIn’s Global Talent Trend reports, jobs offering remote or hybrid options have attracted nearly 3x more applications.

When flexibility reduces burnout and supports work-life balance, it empowers asynchronous work that is often reported to increase productivity and lower attrition.

3. Build a Strong Employer Brand

Employer brand isn’t just about recruitment; it has a direct impact on your retention rate. A consistent and authentic employer brand builds trust from the moment a candidate applies for the position. According to LinkedIn’s annual reports, companies with strong employer brands see lower turnover rates.

To build a strong employer brand, we highly recommend sharing employee stories, clarifying your values, and showcasing internal mobility to highlight the growth opportunities available.

For example, HubSpot’s Culture Code is viewed by millions and has reinforced its values, helping to position the company as a top player in employer branding.

4. Invest in Career Development and Growth

Employees leave when they feel stuck and don’t see any growth opportunities. A Gallup study revealed that 59% of Millennials say learning and growth opportunities are their top priority when applying for a job. While career development enhances both retention and performance, it also provides training stipends, mentorship programs, and internal mobility opportunities.

Amazon’s Career Choice program, for example, pre-pays tuition for employees to learn in-demand fields—even outside of their employment. That’s growth!

5. Recruit for Culture Add, Not Just Culture Fit

Hiring for ‘culture fit’ alone can put you at risk of creating homogeneity and unconscious bias. Instead, prioritizing ‘culture add’ aligns with your work values and brings new perspectives to your team. Doing this will not only improve innovation and inclusion but also become a key driver of retention.

Pinterest trains hiring managers to screen for cultural add, not just fit, to help them increase diverse hires. You can find this and many examples of cultural add that are reshaping the societal dynamics

Societal dynamics are reshaping work structures, and organizations are adapting to a landscape where technology and AI are not just tools but integral components of the workforce.​

6. Use Data Analytics to Optimize Hiring

According to the Harvard Business Review, companies that use predictive analytics to inform hiring decisions, leveraging historical data, have observed lower turnover and higher performance. While talent acquisition has its benefits, data analytics, particularly based on historical data, can be transformative in achieving retention goals.

7. Prioritize DEI in Every Stage of Recruitment

Diversity drives productivity, and productivity drives engagement. When companies in the top quartile for ethnic and cultural diversity have more engaged teams, they’re 36% more likely to outperform on profitability.

Google’s structured interview process, for example, includes diverse panels to reduce bias and build inclusivity in the workplace.

8. Enhance Candidate Experience

There’s a difference between candidate experience and candidate development when it comes to acquisition and retention. While candidate experience focuses on the selection and onboarding process, candidate development focuses on retaining talent within the company through various growth-focused programs.

Companies with strong candidate experience improve their offer acceptance rates by up to 38%. From timely communication to transparency about role expectations, every stage reflects the company culture, further enhancing the candidate experience.

9. Create a Seamless Onboarding Journey

Great onboarding can provide the benefit of increased retention of over 58%, and productivity improved by nearly 50%, according to SHRM. Ensuring new hires receive precisely what they expect from the role, meet key stakeholders early, and receive personalized support when needed, you’ll gain key insights for identifying red flags early and rectifying organizational hazards before they occur.

A seamless onboarding example would be Microsoft’s ‘New Hire Buddy’ program that connects employees with experienced mentors to improve new hire satisfaction.

10. Actively Seek Feedback and Act on It

Feedback is the most valuable asset of the modern workplace. Companies that strive to make their employees feel heard are more likely to feel empowered to do their best at work. Cultivate a habit of obtaining regular feedback loops through pulse surveys, town halls, and exit interviews.

More importantly, take actionable steps to demonstrate to your employees that their voice matters and they’re respected at work. This enhances productivity and drives engagement to the fullest. For example, Adobe’s Check-In System replaced annual reviews with onboarding feedback conversations, resulting in a higher engagement score.

11. Collaborate Cross-Functionally on Talent Decisions

Talent management isn’t just an HR’s responsibility. To ensure consistent messaging, hiring criteria, and career paths in high-performing organizations, hiring managers, people teams, and leadership must align with the workforce strategy.

According to Josh Bersin, an analyst, author, and thought leader in the HR industry, companies that employ cross-functional collaboration in talent decisions have observed nearly a 22% higher retention rate.

12. Use Exit Data to Improve Retention Strategies

Departing employees are highly beneficial due to the valuable insights they gain from their experience working in the company. Exit interviews and turnover trend analysis can reveal patterns, such as poor management or limited growth, that can help bridge the knowledge gaps within the organization.

Utilizing the power of historical data to address systematic issues and develop targeted interventions to increase future talent rates. IBM is utilizing AI to analyze exit data, identifying risks and reducing unwanted attrition by nearly 25%.

Benefits of an Integrated Talent Acquisition and Retention Strategy

A well-aligned strategy that brings tangible benefits beyond just headcount stability is the most significant return on investment in talent acquisition and retention.

• Cost Saving: When turnover is reduced in a company, it also reduces the need for rehiring and retraining, which can otherwise cost thousands of dollars. Losing an employee is estimated to be the equivalent of 6 to 9 months of their salary.
• Improved Employee Experience: A seamless journey from recruitment to onboarding fosters the utmost engagement at the workplace. It sets expectations early and fulfills them through consistent development and support, which also increases innovation and productivity.
• Reduced Attrition and Burnout: When employees are hired with long-term fit in mind and are supported throughout their journey, the risk of disengagement and burnout is reduced.
• Stronger Employee Brand and References: Satisfied employees are strong brand advocates. They’re more likely to refer others and are the most effective and cost-efficient channels for creating an inclusive workplace.
• Greater Team Cohesion: Long-tenured employees foster long-term trust and collaboration ethics that directly impact retention and team chemistry, keeping institutional knowledge intact.

How R180 Helps Organizations Hire Smarter and Retain Top Talent

Revaluate180 offers comprehensive, data-driven solutions designed to help organizations make informed hiring decisions and foster a fearlessly engaged workforce.

Revaluate180 helps organizations build internal stakeholdership among employees during periods of growth and transformation. Using our standardized procedures to obtain proprietary behavioral and motivational insights, companies can make optimal hiring decisions that align with the team dynamics and organizational goals.

Our talent optimization model identifies, nurtures, and retains the high-performing employees that boost leadership effectiveness and engagement by providing deep insights into their potential.

Understanding that employee offboarding is just as critical as onboarding, our severance support helps companies maintain positive employer brand perception and provide the dignity and structure it deserves among their current and future employees. Contact us to design your hiring and retention plan today!

Final Thoughts

Our mission is to remove the barrier between recruitment and retention with seamless strategies. When organizations take a unified approach to the employee lifecycle, the benefits ripple across all aspects, including engagement, performance, and profitability.

Whether you’re hiring your next employee or rethinking your DEI approach, start by aligning your people strategy with your business goals. A long-term workforce with stability and growth is where the true transformation begins.