Your Talent Pool is bigger than you think
Broad Talent Pools Need Strong Foundations: What McKinsey's Latest HR Report Means for Your Pipeline
McKinsey's recent HR report makes a point we've long believed at High5: successful organizations are built on successful talent processes. And one clear marker of that success is speed. High-performing organizations hire faster.
The numbers make the gap stark. The median time to hire from position approval to offer acceptance stands at 70 days, with a mean of more than 90 days. Top-quartile organizations complete the same process in just 49 days, under seven weeks.
This is familiar territory for us. The primary reason organizations turn to a talent marketplace is to compress that hiring cycle, and a ready pool of talent combined with sophisticated matching, is what makes it possible. But the benefit doesn't stop at time-to-hire. Pre-vetted talent also shortens time-to-effectiveness. New hires contribute sooner, which is exactly the kind of outcome McKinsey ties to organizational success.
What the Report Recommends
McKinsey's guidance is direct:
"Build proactive talent pipelines. High-performing organizations invest in building robust talent pipelines before roles become vacant. Structured workforce planning, active relationship management with passive candidates, strong referral programs, and reengaging with previous 'runner-up' candidates reduce sourcing time when demand arises. AI-supported matching of internal and external talent pools to open opportunities accelerates staffing, improves fit, strengthens internal mobility, and reduces reliance on reactive external hiring."
The Gap We Keep Seeing
Since launching talent pools, we've watched TA teams embrace planning for new roles, but several scenarios still go unaddressed. Most talent pools live inside the ATS, which is good at managing runner-ups and other near-miss candidates, but far less effective at managing the other talent communities McKinsey describes, or the further opportunities they represent.
The most common gap: teams want to move to direct sourcing without having the foundational talent pool in place first. That's where High5 comes in. Our pre-vetted network of 75,000+ consultants gives you an immediate, ready-made base for building your first talent pipeline becoming the catalyst to start the talent build.
Beyond that starting point, talent marketplace capabilities can fast-track pipeline-building further still, and AI matching adds another layer of speed on top. Here's where we see the most opportunity.
Three Scenarios Worth Building For
Alumni. SHRM research shows only around 8% of businesses run formal alumni programs. Most companies' approach to departing employees is still "out of sight, out of mind" and even organizations with strong alumni networks, tend to run them as event networks rather than as part of a real talent strategy. An active talent pool changes that. Done well, as with High5 and its talent passports approach, it lets alumni update their own circumstances, keeps you informed on how their skills have developed, and uses AI matching to surface them for new roles quickly. It can become a natural part of offboarding rather than an afterthought.
Mass layoff and rehire. Layoffs driven by macroeconomic pressure or post-pandemic correction are common, and they're almost always followed by a need to bring skills back into the business. Rehiring is a strong option, but only if you can find people once their circumstances have changed. Offering the chance to join a talent pool as part of a redundancy process gives departing employees visibility into the wider marketplace, and gives you a way to find them again if the need arises. It won't soften the impact of redundancy, but it's a proactive step that also strengthens employer reputation.
Returnships. Employees leave for many reasons, and returnship programs are built for the "good leavers", the people who left with strong reputations and in-demand skills. Many haven't ruled out full-time work; they may simply be using independent work to support a different pace of life. A dedicated alumni-style talent pool makes it far easier to bring these people back and restart that relationship.
Where the Value Shows Up
The cost of a bad hire keeps climbing, for senior or highly specialized roles, it's typically estimated at around 1.5 to 2* annual salary. Rehiring someone who was already proven to be a fit is a straightforward way to reduce that risk. The same logic applies to strong runner-up candidates who weren't hired the first time.
The productivity case is just as clear. Rehires are reported to be 40% more productive in their first quarter than new hires, and more effective at supporting colleagues. Talent expert Bryan Heger has pointed to research reinforcing this: a study in the Academy of Management Journal found former employees often outperform new hires in roles requiring relational skills and coordination, and research in Organization Science shows returning employees tend to help colleagues more than external hires do.
Building the Employer Brand Along the Way
Direct sourcing has always carried a secondary benefit: a stronger employer brand. Managing all your talent sources in one place makes that easier. Communications stay consistent, relationships stay warm, and every interaction reinforces the connection rather than starting from scratch.
Keep Every Avenue Open
High5 can help you build these pipelines from day one,starting with a network of pre-vetted talent and extending to former employees you may have lost touch with. And when your talent pools still don't surfaceenough matches, our wider network, including the broader eTeam candidate pool, is there to fill the gap.
It may be time to take a genuinely strategic approach to talent acquisition. Talk to us about how we can help.
Start your journey with High5 today, and tap into the resources that will build your future workforce.