Why your talent acquisition team deserves the industry’s highest honour

In business, we love to celebrate the visionary CEO, the record-breaking sales team, and the innovative product designers. But none of those successes happen without one crucial, often overlooked group: the people who found them, interviewed them, and brought them through the door.

Too often, the daily reality of recruiting is reduced to a numbers game. Did you meet the target? Did you fill the open seats? But exceptional hiring isn't about rushing to plug a gap or running a single, flashy recruitment drive. It is about quietly and consistently building the foundation of a company over time.

That is exactly what we are setting out to recognise at the Economic Times HR Excellence Awards 2027 with the Talent Acquisition Team of the Year category.


We are not looking for the most viral hiring campaign. We are looking for the backbone of your organisation.

When reviewing the nominations for this category, the evaluation process looks past the sheer volume of hires to assess the team as a cohesive working unit over a full year. The goal is to understand the everyday mechanics of how your in-house engine operates:

• The Blueprint: How has the team designed a process that works smoothly for both the candidates and the company?
• The Trust: Has the recruiting team earned the genuine confidence of the managers they hire for? Do department heads view them as trusted advisors rather than just order-takers?
• The Capability: How does the team work together to overcome the daily hurdles of finding the right fit for the right role?

If you lead an in-house recruiting team, you know the difficult negotiations and the endless coordination it takes to keep a business growing. You know the effort it takes to maintain quality and care across twelve months of hiring.

Bringing that effort out of the shadows is more than just a morale boost for your staff. It is a public statement that your company respects the difficult work of building a workforce.

It is time to give the architects of your company the recognition they deserve on a national stage.

Nominate your team for the ET HR Excellence Awards 2027 today.