Apple is a top 5 “dream company” for business, engineering and IT students around the world. Their meteoric rise to the top of the world was no accident.
Now, we’re not saying you have to be Steve Jobs or spend billions to recruit top talent. Couldn’t be farther from the truth.
Instead, what ideas can you take from Apple’s recruiting strategy? We’ve boiled it down to one key lesson.
Think different. Don’t blend in with the crowd
From the moment Steve Jobs started the company in his Silicon Valley garage, Apple has had a mission.
Not just a set-it-and-forget-it mission that most companies have. And definitely not a pie-in-the-sky goal that lives on their “About Us” page and nowhere else.
But a powerful, magnetic mission that’s propelled the company forward and attracted a specific breed – both customers and employees.
“Apple is about people who think outside the box, who want to use computers to help them change the world.” — Steve Jobs
In 1997 Apple dedicated a TV ad to the 19th century’s “crazy ones, rebels, troublemakers,” like Einstein, Earhardt, King and Gandhi. The outcasts that were “crazy enough to think they can change the world.”
They didn’t show a single computer in the ad. Instead, they proudly declared who they were and who they were for.
Jobs’s passion for Apple’s mission showed. Like a bat signal in the tech industry. Calling the name of every innovator and rulebreaker.
At the time, you could buy a computer from any of these brands:
- HP
- IBM
- Microsoft
And a majority of people did.
But Apple’s strong stance set them apart from others. Their computers were only for the “crazy ones” – the outcasts, misfits and dreamers. Anyone but the majority.
How can your organization stand out as a talent magnet within your industry? What’s your bat signal?
Establish your mission – proudly – and stick to it.
“I’m worried my mission will exclude some people”
Good.
When companies try to be everything to everyone, they don’t stand for anything. Instead, they become nothing to no one. If your mission were inclusive of everyone’s goals, it wouldn’t be a mission at all.
Proudly stake your ground. Relentlessly push your mission. And claim your market.
Not only will you attract your industry’s top talent who care deeply about your goal, customers will come crawling.
Executives and leaders, get involved in your recruiting strategy. It’s time you put your mission on full-display for your industry and candidates.
The market’s top talent wants to know your vision for the future. What sets you apart from others in your industry?
Your candidates will see right through table-stakes perks and empty promises. Think different. Think big.
Need help establishing your recruitment strategy and getting the talent you deserve?
We’re Field of Talent and we help organizations like Auctor, Audiochuck and VisionThree fill their rosters with top talent. Let’s chat.
