Should We Hire the Skill — or Build It?

🧠 SHOULD WE HIRE THE SKILL — OR BUILD IT?

☕ Morning Talent Intelligence

Here's a question I think Talent Acquisition will increasingly need to answer:

When the business needs a new capability...

Do we need to HIRE it?

Or can we BUILD it?

AI is making that question increasingly important.

Companies aren't simply looking for "AI people."

They're asking existing:

• 👨💼 Leaders
• 🧑🔬Engineers
• 📊 Analysts
• 🎯 Recruiters
• 📦 Supply Chain professionals
• 🏭 Manufacturing teams
• 💰 Finance professionals

...to incorporate AI into jobs they already understand.

That changes the workforce strategy.

Because every skills gap doesn't necessarily require an external hire.

Sometimes the best candidate may already work for you.

💡 Talent Insight

When a business identifies a capability gap, there are several ways to solve it:

• 🎯 BUY — Recruit the skill externally
• 🎓 BUILD — Upskill or reskill existing employees
• 🤝 BORROW — Contractors, consultants or fractional talent
• 🤖 AUTOMATE — Use technology to perform portions of the work
• 🔄 REDESIGN — Change how the work itself is structured

The recruiter's job has traditionally focused heavily on:

BUY.

But the Talent Advisor should understand all five.

💭 Question

When a hiring manager says:

"I need someone with this skill."

Does your organization immediately open a requisition?

Or first ask whether the capability could be developed internally?

⚒️ Brett's Perspective

I don't think the future of Talent Acquisition is simply becoming better at filling requisitions.

I think it's becoming better at solving workforce problems.

Sometimes the answer is:

Hire someone.

But sometimes it's:

• Train someone.
• Contract the expertise.
• Automate part of the work.
• Redesign the role.

Or combine several of those approaches.

That's a very different conversation with a hiring manager.

And it's exactly why I believe the best recruiters increasingly need to become Talent Advisors.

Don't just ask:

"Who should we hire?"

Ask:

"What capability does the business actually need — and what's the smartest way to create it?"