A talent community is a network or cohort of professionals on social media platforms or digital databases who would have been exceptional candidates for your company but circumstances prevent them from joining, or a candidate who may be interested in your company but not motivated to make an immediate move. Rather than losing these prospective candidates forever, a talent community will keep them in the loop for the next time a role opens up. The community can be built further by including ex-employees, like-minded professionals, those who show interest in job roles, specific skill sets, college/university attended, and more.
The benefits of building a talent community include growing your talent pool that you can just dip into when a need arises, keeping your brand alive and buzzing, creating top-of-mind awareness, and ensuring that a candidate, when ready to make a job change, thinks of your company first. Also, to build segmented communities or platform-based communities of professionals with common interests or skill sets, for example, a Java Talent Community, that provides skilled talent on demand.