How to Recruit, Select, and Onboard the Right Early Talent

Hiring the right early talent serves a dual purpose – meeting immediate staffing needs while cultivating the next generation of company leaders. In part three of our Early Talent Series, we’re diving into the core phases of the Early Talent lifecycle: recruitment, selection, and onboarding.  

From choosing the right university partners to creating a smooth and engaging first-day experience, these moments shape how Early Talent views your organization and influence how successful they’ll be during their time with you.  

Whether you’re building a program from the ground up or refining an existing one, these tips will help you create a more effective, equitable, and engaging Early Talent experience.  

Recruiting Early Talent: Identify Target Schools and Programs for Inclusive Hiring    

By connecting with the right schools and programs, you can enhance your Early Talent Programs and attract a more diverse group of candidates. Some simple strategies to make your recruitment process more inclusive and ensure that everyone has a shot at opportunities include: 

• Choosing the Right Schools and Events: Look for schools and career fairs that are relevant to your location, align with the degrees you’re targeting, and are developing the skills for the talent your organization needs. Consider inclusive student bodies – think HBCUs, HSIs, and women’s colleges. Prioritize institutions with established co-op programs and track records of supporting underrepresented students.  

• Building Strategic Partnerships: Invest in strategic partnerships that emphasize inclusion. This helps to expand your talent pool and cultivate a pipeline of talent with unique perspectives.  

• Engaging with Campus Groups: Reach out to multicultural student organizations and identity-based professional groups on campus to connect with potential candidates.  

• Implementing Anonymous Resume Reviews: Use resumes with personally identifiable information removed to minimize unconscious bias during the initial screening process.  

• Tracking Candidate Sources: Create specific application URLs for your partners to share with candidates. You can also include a dropdown of your top source options for candidates to self-select when submitting their application.  

• Training Your Recruiters: Make sure your recruiters know how to conduct inclusive interviews and have cultural competence.   

By taking this focused approach, you’ll create a strategic pipeline that attracts skilled candidates, all while making your recruitment process more efficient.  

Selecting Early Talent: Streamline the Hiring Process  

When it comes to bringing in great talent, having clear job descriptions and an efficient way to pick candidates makes all the difference. Here’s a systematic approach to crafting job postings and streamlining the selection process.  

Start with Strong Job Descriptions  

• Provide hiring managers with standard job description templates that outline the basic requirements.  

• Decide whether to use evergreen job postings or one-time listings. For instance, if a department is hiring multiple interns for similar roles in the same location, an evergreen post can streamline the candidate experience. For specialized roles, a one-time, targeted posting may be more effective.  

• Promote the openings on your careers page and across various job boards. 

Simplify Screening with your Applicant-Tracking System (ATS)  

• Use targeted questions and input from hiring managers to identify strong candidates. 

• Keep track of applications and their status in the pipeline.  

• Share the top 10 resumes with managers so they can select 4-5 candidates to interview.   

• Always have backup candidates just in case!  

Run Efficient Interviews 

• Assign a coordinator to manage scheduling and provide prep guides to keep things organized.  

• Stick to one-round interviews with hiring managers. 

• If using a panel format, keep it to a 3:1 ratio of interviewers to candidates.  

Make the Offer and Transition Smoothly 

• Have a recruiter give them a call to extend the formal offer.  

• After acceptance, have an onboarding coordinator conduct welcome calls explaining the next steps.  

Onboarding and Training Early Talent: Creating an Excellent Experience  

To kick off a great experience for your Early Talent, focus on three main areas: helping them dive into your company culture, providing the right training and resources, and setting clear expectations and goals. This makes it easier for them to fit in quickly and helps them make solid contributions during their time with you.  

Begin with an Initial Orientation:  

• Introduce your company’s values, norms, and policies.   

• Share detailed first-day instructions to set expectations early. 

• Hold “Welcome 101” sessions and cohort-specific orientations to nurture engagement from the start.  

 Cover Key Topics During Orientation:  

• Outline onboarding expectations, roles, responsibilities, and points of contact.  

• Explain timesheet and expense submission processes.  

• Provide a calendar of events for their assignment timeline.  

• Offer tips on corporate etiquette to help them navigate the workplace. 

• Share performance management guidance for Early Talent managers. 

Establish Clear Expectations and Goals:  

• Assign specific tasks and responsibilities to help Early Talent understand their roles.  

• Create a supportive environment where participants can excel and make a real difference. 

Looking Ahead: Support Early Talent Like a Pro & Use Data to Continuously Improve Programs  

In the final installment of our Early Talent Series, we’ll explore how to support Early Talent throughout their assignments, gather feedback from students and managers, and use data to improve your programs year over year.  

And on National Intern Day, we’ll introduce The Complete Step-By-Step Guide to Building a Successful Early Talent Program – your ultimate resource for designing and scaling a best-in-class experience.  

Looking for immediate support? Atrium’s Early Talent Administration programs help you build a highly engaged future workforce by handling every aspect of program design — from planning and sourcing to interviewing, hiring, and payroll. Our dedicated team of experts ensures ideal Early Talent matches, guaranteeing that the young professionals we hire will be engaged and ready to maximize the internship period.