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What Recruiters Can Learn from the WNBA

By Peter Weddle, Founder & CEO TAtech

This year’s WNBA season was an off-the-charts success. Although a handful of standout players added special sizzle to the games, the caliber of talent was high across the board.

Despite that success and the corresponding growth in attendance and merchandise sales, the compensation of the women on the court lagged far behind that of the men.

Why?

The blatant bias built into the current Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) that governs player pay ensures that women will be paid as “second class players.”

Yeah, yeah, I know. The women’s league has been losing money, while the men’s hasn’t. Fair enough.

But the situation has now changed. The League has never had more fan enthusiasm or income, and the women should be compensated accordingly.

How are they making that point?

They’re refusing to play ball … metaphorically, that is.

The current CBA ends after next season, and the WNBA players have already announced that they’re opting out. They are demanding equal pay with the men, and my bet is they’re going to get it.

The TAtech Leadership Summit on Recruitment Marketing is designed for HR/TA leaders and senior professionals at enterprise employers and their counterparts among TA solution providers. To be held at the newly renovated Le Méridien Tampa, The Courthouse, the conference opens with a welcome reception on the evening of February 26 and then runs all day February 27. The agenda is still in development, but the focus will be on showcasing the latest technology and most innovative practices for moving to full-funnel recruitment marketing. Seating is limited at the conference venue, so register today to make sure you have a spot.

What’s That Got to Do With Recruiters?

In many, maybe even most companies, recruiters work as real or de facto members of the HR Department. And in every last one of those companies, they make an outsized contribution to its bottom line success.

They deliver the talent that determines how the company performs in the research lab and design studio, on the factory floor and behind the cash register, and in the court of public opinion.

Yes, the HR Department also plays an important role, but it can’t happen without recruiters. The hard truth is that the Department can’t manage the human resources it doesn’t have, and only recruiters bring talent in the door.

And yet, despite that critical role, recruiters are treated as “second class players.” Because they’re buried deep inside the HR Department and report to an individual who’s almost certainly never actually recruited, their priority, budget and staffing are perennially far below what they should be.

In many companies, for example, individual recruiters are forced to fill 20, 30 or more open reqs at the same time. And, that’s if they don’t get laid off as soon as there’s the slightest dip in the economy.

In effect, while it’s undoubtedly not true of every organization, in far too many of today’s enterprises, the HR Department’s management of recruiters is the equivalent of the WNBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement. It unjustly minimizes the support that recruiters deserve. And need.

So, what should recruiters do?

Follow the lead of the WNBA players. They should opt out of their second class status by speaking up for themselves. Make the business case for equality by championing an independent Recruiting Department that is funded and staffed for success.

There won’t be any fans cheering, but the company’s shareholders will celebrate.

Food for Thought,
Peter

Peter Weddle has authored or edited over two dozen books and been a columnist for The Wall Street Journal. He is the founder and CEO of TAtech: The Association for Talent Acquisition Solutions.