Recruiting Lessons From D1 Coaches In Arkansas

Pictured above: UAPB’s Alonzo Hampton

Whether it’s in relation to Greek life, college athletics or finding a job, the process of recruiting is an essential aspect to bringing any group of people together. In 2023, recruiting athletes to a Division 1 school is essentially a full-time gig, taking place year-round except for dead periods and NCAA-mandated breaks from the process.

In the workforce, career recruitment mimics the athletic process, with resumes collected nonstop and talent acquisition emerging as an industry itself.

On the surface, recruiting college athletes to campus may not seem the same as recruiting employees to the corporate world, but there are many similarities. In the case of recruiting an athlete, coaches are looking for coachable talent and academically minded athletes who will add to the success of their program. The main goal for college coaches is to form a team, the members of which work well together and can succeed at a high level.

In the corporate world, recruiting talent boils down to the same thing — getting the best people and placing them in positions to “win,” ultimately benefiting the “team.”

According to Next College Student Athletes (NCSA), most colleges recruit similarly across all sports, generally following the same five-step process:

No. 1 — finding a list of prospective athletes who meet basic requirements

No. 2 — sending out recruiting letters, questionnaires and camp invites to prospects

No. 3 — conducting in-depth academic and character evaluations of recruits

No. 4 — extending scholarship offers

No. 5 — signing athletes after ensuring academic eligibility is a good fit for the school

For athletes, the recruitment process may take place over several years. In corporate recruiting, the process is sped up significantly, leaving less time for research and more time to wow potential employees.

According to the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2023, the second-most popular roles from 2018-2022 were human resources and talent acquisition roles, which both relate heavily to talent acquisition and recruitment. The Jobs Report also showed that in 2023, 81 percent of companies are investing in learning and on-the-job training as a key strategy in talent acquisition and retention. As much as D1 coaches in Arkansas are looking for academically minded players, corporations and job seekers are also passionate about continuing-education opportunities.

And, according to the Jobs Report, prospective hirees today are looking for the following:

• Talent progression and promotion processes

• Higher wages

• Effective reskilling and upskilling

• Positions that articulate purpose and impact

• Remote and hybrid work opportunities

• Internal communication strategies

• More diversity, equity and inclusion programs

• Support for employee health and well-being

• Improved working hours and overtime

• Safety in the workplace

• Less emphasis on degree requirements and more skill based hiring

• Supplemented childcare for working parents

• Jobs that support worker representation

The World Economic Forum predicts that between 2023 and 2027, these practices will represent the best way to attract talent. The Harvard Business Review reports that corporate recruiters now are hiring more on potential rather than experience, a practice not unheard of when it comes to college coaches. For those on the Division 1 level, recruiting essentially is a year-long practice, and coaches have to adopt a mindset similar to that of corporate recruiters.

“I believe the way we recruit can translate to any profession. We recruit off personality and fit before we recruit off talent,” said Nathan Brown, head football coach at the University of Central Arkansas. “If we sign young men that fit our program culture, we believe we can have success. This is something that any organization can use when hiring people for their departments.”

Other D1 coaches in Arkansas say recruitment strategies are generally the same. If they were to offer corporate recruiters any advice, it would be to remain realistic with prospective team members; gather as much information as possible, understanding that prospects are doing the same; check within one’s shared networks for connections; and look for evidence of culture fit.

And in today’s competitive world, it’s important not to narrow a search so much that you miss out on great hires.

“There are a lot of talented kids who seem to stay at the same level they were at when you first became aware of them,” Brown said. “In our program, we want to look for people who are seeking opportunities to improve their skills, no matter what level they are currently at.”

Brown is a firm believer in wanting to see prospective student athletes aim to achieve more than they have already successfully accomplished. For many hiring and recruiting managers, it is important to not immediately rule out those from different career backgrounds, but to look at what prospective hirees can offer in terms of experience.

Mike Neighbors, head women’s basketball coach at the University of Arkansas, is entering his seventh year leading the Razorbacks and his 10th as a head coach. The most important thing in recruiting, he said, is to show prospective athletes or employees the reality of the situation.

UA’s Mike Neighbors

“We don’t roll out the red carpet when prospective athletes visit, we don’t put on a 48-hour facade,” he said. “We show them the actuality of being a student athlete in the program with no tricks, just evidence. We want them to know what their living arrangements would likely be, where they would actually eat on campus, what it would be like to have practice and then take a test.”

Neighbors attributes this philosophy to his program’s low player turnover. Showing prospective employees what their job would be like, or players their roles, results in a higher level of respect from both sides. And there is no bait and switch in the Razorback program, something that could apply to the corporate world, he said.

Just as job searchers are doing their homework on prospective employers, athletes looking to play at the next level are doing the same with prospective schools.

According to University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff head football coach Alonzo Hampton, this process is standard, and every person who plays a role in recruiting at a high level will likely be looking for the same thing: high character.

UAPB’s Alonzo Hampton

“During the recruiting process, we check with the community, we talk to their teachers, position coaches, we search for their social media, we are looking to ensure there won’t be liability with adding the recruit to our roster,” Hampton said, explaining that background research is often one of the most important parts of the process.

A University of Idaho study found that job seekers’ attitudes toward prospective employers could be impacted by the appearance of their social media accounts. More specifically, corporate Facebook and LinkedIn accounts seemed to make the most difference for those applying to vacant positions. High character may be a major factor in the hiring process for businesses, but it goes both ways.

“You can tell people all day what you can offer them, but you’ll get farther by actually showing them,” Neighbors said.   

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