How can we best attract and develop the talent we need?

The HR/Capacities session of the Ashoka Globalizer Economic Inclusion Summit focused on addressing this question for the social entrepreneurship sector.

A group of around twenty people, working in the social entrepreneurship sector in different capacities, exchanged ideas and opinions in the hour-long session as they identified the problems and offered viable solutions for attracting and retaining talent in this sector.

The session was coordinated by Shweta Sharma, founder, Karmany, and Pooja Warior, founder of UnLtd India. Karmany is a web-based platform for recruitment in the social enterprise sector while UnLtd India identifies itself as a launchpad for social entrepreneurs.

Building a recruitment pipeline emerged as one of the most talked-about issues in the session. The entrepreneurs emphasised that identifying institutions as a candidate base in very important. Moreover, constant engagement with such a pool of candidates and updating the profile of the enterprise is equally important. “Sometimes, we take a recruitment pipeline for granted. But after some years, we find out that there are no interested candidates anymore and have to look for a different candidate base. Constant engagement will avert this kind of situation,” pointed out Preetha Bhakta, Head - Education and Learning Initiatives, Naandi, a non-profit organisation.

Generate interest Another obvious topic was getting more young people interested in the social sector. It was suggested that the initiation number should be more - if students in schools and colleges were given a slice of the life in the social sector through volunteering programmes and field works, more of them could be possibly become interested later. However, it was also pointed out that the returns from this model were not instantaneous.

The necessity of more dedicated employees in the rural areas was also a concern. Ashweetha Shetty, in-charge of community talks at Sughavazhvu Healthcare in Thanjavur district, pointed out that rural schoolgirls can be seen as a good prospect of future employees. Shetty herself comes from a village in Tirunelveli and was inculcated to the social sector after her stint as a Young India Fellow. Women become a better mediator in community talks, she said.

Impatience

Entrepreneurs were also bothered by the lack of perseverance and patience among young people working in the social sector. While some participants thought that it was the leader's job to keep the staff motivated, some said that unrealistic expectations made youngsters impatient.

“They have to understand that there is no instant gratification in this sector and you have to invest considerable time and energy before you see a change,” Preetha Bhakta of Naandi said.

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