Sourcing
Sourcing is the systematic process of finding and building a list of qualified candidates for a role, usually before any of them have applied. It is the research-and-identification stage that feeds outreach, distinct from screening or interviewing.
Good sourcing starts from a precise candidate profile and works methodically through the places strong people actually are: competitors, adjacent companies, and specialist communities.
It is the groundwork that makes headhunting effective, and the practical answer to the fact that the strongest passive candidates will never see, or respond to, a public job posting.