Purple Unicorn:
Definition, Types, Benefits & Comparison

A Purple Unicorn is an ideal candidate who possesses all the required skills, qualifications, and experiences for a job with no questions asked. These candidates are exceptional and extremely rare in the job market, making them highly sought-after by recruiters and employers. The term uses the mythical creature as a metaphor to represent how elusive and difficult it is to find such perfect candidates.

Purple Unicorns are distinguished by their unique combination of technical expertise, leadership qualities, and cultural fit that perfectly aligns with a company's needs. They are sometimes called Pink Unicorns when they are passive candidates not actively seeking employment, or Winged Unicorns when they are actively looking for new opportunities.

Related terms: Pink Unicorn, Winged Unicorn, Purple Squirrel, Passive Candidate

A unicorn in HR is a highly skilled candidate with all the skills and qualifications required for the job. These candidates are hard to find and elusive, like mythical characters, which is why they are called unicorns. Unicorn candidates possess the right combination of skills, qualifications, and experiences that make them more valuable than other applicants and employees.

Unicorns know they have the potential to become something big, and since they are too rare to find, recruiting them is a difficult task. They are essentially the celebrities of the recruitment world, commanding attention and competitive offers from employers.

Purple Unicorns are classified into 2 types based on their job-seeking status:

• Pink Unicorns (Passive Candidates): These candidates are not actively looking for a new job but remain open to the right opportunity. They are usually happy, engaged, and productive in their current roles, making them more elusive yet highly desirable. Pink Unicorns are content in their positions and have not made a substantial time commitment to job searching.
• Winged Unicorns (Active Candidates): These candidates are actively seeking employment opportunities. While they may still be exceptional, they are more visible in the job market and therefore slightly easier to find compared to Pink Unicorns.

Hiring Purple Unicorns offers 3 key advantages to organizations:

• They help develop the workplace: Once hired, unicorn employees bring enormous benefits to the workplace and can help scale a business or brand to the next level. They put in efforts to improve the overall functioning of an organization and help enhance the Employee Value Proposition (EVP).
• They have leadership qualities: Purple Unicorns are equipped with team spirit and the ability to work with others and manage a team. These candidates encourage and motivate their colleagues to work efficiently, which elevates team performance. They always find a way to move the needle.
• They help enhance a company's reputation: The performance of candidates and workers impacts the company's reputation and position among its competitors and in the market. Unicorns are top-performing candidates who bring significant value to the organization, enhancing the company's work and market standing.

A Purple Unicorn's ability to seamlessly integrate into teams and deliver results immediately makes them invaluable assets to any company.

Despite their value, hiring Purple Unicorns comes with 3 significant disadvantages:

• They have a lot of demands: Exceptional candidates know their worth and put forward numerous demands. They not only demand a fat paycheck but also require work flexibility and favorable differential treatment. Unicorn candidates often expect companies to adapt to their ways and methods.
• Hiring them is expensive and time-intensive: Hiring these rare and valuable candidates may take days, weeks, or even months. Most of them are passive candidates, so attracting them is a time-consuming process that requires significant monetary investment and can exceed budget allocations.
• Other potential candidates may be ignored: In the search for Purple Unicorns, recruiters may overlook other talented job seekers from the candidate pool. Unicorn candidates snatch away job opportunities from normal candidates and pose a threat to other employees, superiors, and managers at the company.

Companies must ensure they offer continuous growth opportunities, competitive compensation, and a supportive work environment to retain Purple Unicorns, as failing to meet these needs may lead to dissatisfaction and potential turnover.

Companies can implement 5 strategic tips to attract and hire Purple Unicorns:

1. Fix your job postings: Write compelling and attractive job descriptions that clearly outline roles, responsibilities, and benefits. Include pay benefits, career growth opportunities, and other company advantages. Update job boards and advertise postings on various online platforms.
2. Offer competitive packages: Provide strong salary packages and growth opportunities. Since unicorn hiring is highly competitive, companies that offer attractive compensation will stand out in the market.
3. Provide work flexibility: Offer flexibility in terms of timings and location to candidates. Purple Unicorns often look for jobs that provide work-life balance and wish to see companies adapt to their needs, which increases employee retention rates and productivity.
4. Engage the candidates effectively: Communicate and interact with candidates in an interesting manner. Candidate engagement is critical for attracting talented candidates and retaining them by continuously communicating during the recruitment process, which improves the candidate experience.
5. Market your client's company: Promote and market the employer's brand on different channels and platforms to establish a brand name in the market. Once the brand name is established, candidates will identify the company as a great place to work.

Companies can also identify Purple Unicorns by targeting niche job boards, using advanced search filters on recruitment platforms, leveraging employee referrals, and engaging in targeted networking at industry events.

Purple Unicorns possess a unique combination of advanced technical skills, exceptional problem-solving abilities, and strong interpersonal skills. They may also have specialized knowledge relevant to the industry or role. This blend of skills and traits makes them stand out and highly desirable in the job market.

They are task and people-oriented, attentive to detail while also being big picture thinkers, and function as both visionaries and implementers. They possess the rare ability to perform multiple critical functions exceptionally well.

Purple Unicorns, as perfect candidates with zero flaws, do not exist. The reality is that all humans make mistakes and have areas for growth. When hiring, companies often envision the perfect employee who possesses every valued characteristic, but such perfection is unattainable.

The real value lies in where strong leaders and talented employees meet and work together, willing to hear each other out from both sides. Moving a business forward is a team effort, and no one person will perfectly tackle every task and obligation. Everyone requires some development and molding, and everything good takes time.

A Purple Unicorn is often compared to 2 related recruitment terms:

Purple Unicorn vs. Purple Squirrel

In HR, a Purple Squirrel means the same thing as a Purple Unicorn. Both terms describe rare ideal candidates for a job who possess all the necessary skills and qualifications. The terms are used interchangeably in recruitment contexts.

Purple Unicorn vs. Unicorn Company

While Purple Unicorn describes an ideal job candidate, a Unicorn Company is a privately held startup with a valuation of over $1 billion that is not listed on the stock market. The term Unicorn Company represents a business that achieves extraordinary success and becomes highly valued in a short period, possessing a unique combination of qualities that make it exceptional and extremely rare.