Whether you work for a startup or an established company, it’s the people that can mean the difference between a business’ success and failure, which is why recruitment is so critical. It’s the single business process that identifies which individuals should come in to help the organization grow and achieve its goals.

When scouting for talent, a recruiter will often focus on candidates with the right level of experience. However, looking at experience alone will narrow the talent pool and cause employers to overlook an applicant’s potential. Moreover, an individual’s experience with another organization doesn’t necessarily guarantee future success with yours.

On the flip side, hiring for experience also has its tried-and-tested advantages for most employers. It may even be necessary for some roles such as leadership positions.

If you’re facing the dilemma of whether to hire for potential or experience, read on to get some insights on what course of action to pursue.

Hiring for potential

According to Inc. Magazine, “Potential is generally defined as the capacity to develop into something great based on unrealized ability.” It can be found primarily in an individual’s problem-solving skills and level of conscientiousness.

When attempting to identify a candidate with raw potential, it will be the ability of a person to adapt his strengths to the responsibilities of a work position that will be the key success factor.

Why hire for potential?

Here are a number of reasons for employers to focus more on a person’s potential over his/her years of experience.

What roles and company growth phase are best for high-potential talent?

Jobs that involve plenty of problem-solving and are constantly presented with change are best occupied by high-potential individuals. While they may not be immediately placed in more senior or managerial roles, these talents will be motivated to perform in roles that allow for growth.

Talented and high-potential individuals will thrive in fast-paced, growing startups, but they can also flourish even in established organizations that are in the process of change management or processes.

How to hire for potential

Here are a few ways to find and assess candidates for their raw potential.

Hiring for experience

Experience is what most recruiters traditionally look at when hiring to determine how qualified we are, which is why it’s what most of us list in our resumes. Experience combines both the knowledge and actual work performed by an individual. It is the cumulative term for any previous work experience, training, and/or education. Unlike potential, the experience is measurable and more objective.

Why hire for experience?

Hiring for experience offers a number of advantages to the potential employer. These include:

What roles and company growth phase are best for highly-experienced talent?

Highly-experienced individuals are best positioned in jobs that require the management of people or coordinating workflows. Roles like these will need the knowledge or experience of someone who understands that some processes need structure and routine.

Candidates with substantial experience will thrive when placed in a company that has long been established or is reaching its peak and needs to maintain or enhance the successful processes in place.

How to hire for experienced talent

The process for hiring for experienced talent has three key steps, all of which are commonplace in most recruitment strategies.

While experience provides stability and fewer uncertainties to employers, potential can also be valuable in providing fresh perspectives and adapting to changes. With the descriptions of the differences, advantages, and how-tos in hiring for both experience and potential listed in this article, may you be equipped with the knowledge needed to decide on which kind of applicant to go with.