Category: Talent Acquisition Strategy

Boomerang Employees: How Looking Back Can Help Propel Your Organisation Forward

Posted on by jpatel

As employees around the world quit their jobs in droves, the Great Resignation quickly became a global phenomenon and job openings across industries hit all-time highs. In order to keep up with this increasing demand for workers, employers are expanding their talent pools in a variety of ways, including searching across new geographies, considering workers who are changing careers, implementing innovative recruitment marketing techniques and more.  

However, as a result of the Great Resignation, we’re beginning to see an alternative talent pool emerge: Boomerang employees—workers who voluntarily resign from your company and later rejoin. In this article, we’ll explain who boomerang employees are; the benefits and considerations of hiring them; and how to attract this unique group of talent. 

Who Are Boomerang Employees?

Before you consider rehiring an employee who previously left your organisation, it’s important to understand the key differentiators that separate potential boomerang employees from permanent alumni.  

As the term suggests, permanent alumni will remain just that—permanently separated from an organisation. These individuals likely stayed at the company for many years and had a good grasp of the organisation’s overall culture and values. However, at a certain point, these individuals decided that the company was not the right fit for them; this could be due to dissatisfaction with company culture, the need for a career change or any number of other work-related issues. Note here that a key factor in any of these reasons for leaving is an internal desire to resign. 

Conversely, boomerang employees are more likely to have left a company quickly due to external factors, such as a sudden family emergency or an unexpected competing job offer that was too good to decline. So, while permanent alumni chose to leave because they were unsatisfied with the company in some way, boomerang employees are more likely to consider rejoining because they left for other reasons—none of which implied that they had an issue with the company in the first place. 

“Five years ago, I chose to take a career break to raise my family. When the boys started school, I was ready to pick up my career again. As chance would have it, PeopleScout had identified a role working on a project supporting two big clients, and I was excited about the prospect of this new challenge. The company had changed a lot in the time I was away, so I was grateful for the in-depth introduction process and support from management and colleagues upon my return. The flexible working arrangement that PeopleScout offers means that I’m able to achieve the balance between working and looking after my family, which is fantastic. I’m happy to be back and am looking forward to developing my career over the coming years.”  

Shelley Romero, Media Solutions Manager 
PeopleScout UK 

Meanwhile, some people may leave to pursue new opportunities because they’re unsatisfied in some way and are hopeful that the “grass will be greener” elsewhere. Then, if they find that isn’t the case, they may also be inclined to return to a previous company with a newfound appreciation. 

“Due to business changes during the pandemic, I was assigned to a new client account and, after much time and consideration, I knew it just wasn’t the right fit for me. Though I did not want to leave, it was in my best interest to resign at that time. However, I stayed in contact with my previous manager and colleagues, and when an opening arose, they asked me, ‘Are you ready to come back home?’ It was never a matter of if, but when I was coming back. Everything needed to align—the right position, team and leadership. I was hesitant to return after my last experience that caused me to resign, but I knew what ‘home’ felt like, and I couldn’t be happier in my current position at PeopleScout!”

Alison Thompson, Senior Recruiter 
PeopleScout

During the pandemic, the world was reminded how quickly life can change. Whether employees left your organisation to pursue other opportunities or to prioritise caring for their family, these types of employees create a whole new pool of talent that could be the perfect fit for your organisation. After some time has passed, many of these people could be on the job hunt again—and your organisation could serve as the right choice at the right time.  

Benefits of Hiring Boomerang Employees 

Rehiring former employees can present a variety of benefits for employers. Here are some of the biggest reasons to consider looking back at your previous hires: 

Save Time & Money 

Hiring a former employee reduces the hiring timeline and cuts down on overall recruiting costs. And, because these employees have previous experience working at your company, they will require less time and fewer resources to onboard and get up to speed to hit the ground running. 

Eliminate Second-Guessing 

Additionally, when you hire a former employee, you won’t have to wonder whether they’ll be a cultural fit; you already know how they fit in with the company and how they work with various people in the organisation—something that always remains a slight unknown when hiring someone completely new. 

Gain Fresh Perspective 

Former employees are unique in the fact that they have had some time to step away and see the organisation from the outside. Often, employees may have left to advance their career at another company and gain valuable skills. Then, when they return, they’ll be equipped with increased knowledge and experience to bring new ideas and insight into your organisation. 

Boost Employer Brand 

Rehiring employees also sends a positive message to existing employees and can improve an organisation’s employer brand overall. Specifically, by giving employees a second chance, it shows that the company is willing to bring people back and help them reach their potential—even if they previously left on their own accord. Furthermore, to existing employees (perhaps some of whom were considering leaving themselves), it shows that the company is worth coming back to, thereby leading to improved retention and employee satisfaction. Moreover, it demonstrates that leaving doesn’t have to burn bridges—especially when the company sees the value of the whole person. 

Make Employees Happy 

Plus, employees who left a job during the pandemic may now realise that they miss some aspects of their old company. Returning to a previous employer with new skills and a fresh perspective can mean higher pay, more growth opportunities and, in some cases, the ability to work from anywhere, which may not have been an option pre-pandemic. Consequently, these employees will likely be happy with their decision to return—leading to improved productivity for your organisation. 

Questions to Ask Before Hiring Boomerang Employees 

rehire employees

While there are many reasons to hire previous employees, that doesn’t always mean you should. So, before you decide whether turning back to a former employee is the right move for your organisation, keep these considerations in mind: 

How Much Time Has Passed? 

Account for how much time has passed since the employee initially left the company. For instance, an employee who left less than a year ago due to a personal emergency is more likely to be able to jump back in and get started than someone who left several years ago and has to learn new processes and technology. 

Are They Adaptable? 

Nowadays, change within an organisation can happen fast, and if the employee has been away from the company for a while, it can be helpful to consider their level of adaptability: Are they willing to learn new systems and procedures? Or, will they be stuck in old habits from their first tenure? 

Are They the Best? 

Amid a labour shortage, it can be tempting to settle for the easiest, quickest option to fill an open role. However, it’s important to think long-term: While this employee will cost less to hire and is a good cultural fit, are they truly the best person for the job? Consider whether this employee performed well in their previous tenure with the company, which is a good indicator of how they will fare the second time around. 

Were They Missed? 

While an employee’s individual performance may have been stellar, it’s important to understand their influence on the team. In particular, did they get along well with colleagues, or was it a relief for people when they left? When bringing back an employee, ensure that their return will have a positive effect on the productivity of the team as a whole. 

Why Do They Want to Return? 

Find out what made the employee choose to leave in the first place. Is that reason still going to be an obstacle moving forward? It’s important to ask what has changed since the time when they initially left. While familial or personal reasons would likely be resolved, you might have a bigger issue on your hands if they left because the company was not a good fit the first time. So, ask the former employee why they want to return. Then, if you’re looking for long-term talent, try to get a grasp of whether they’re ready to commit to your company for the foreseeable future. If they aren’t, you may have a permanent alumnus on your hands. 

How to Keep the Door Open to Boomerang Employees 

As the past two years have shown us, things happen—often unexpectedly. For one reason or another, people might be pulled in another direction and have no choice but to leave your company a little too soon. When this happens, it’s important to understand why they’re leaving and if there’s anything the organisation could have done to encourage them to stay. If not, perform exit interviews and get an idea of what is working and what can be improved upon in your organisation. 

While some employees may choose to reapply to your company in the future, many former employees may never consider rejoining or even know it’s an option without first hearing from a former colleague or manager. In this situation, what’s the best way to reach out to these former employees? 

To start, be sure to part on good terms. If the employee is one whom you would be eager to welcome back to your team again, make sure they know that when they leave. In today’s world that’s driven by social media, it’s easier than ever to stay connected across job changes. So, keep in touch with high-performing employees after they leave and proactively check-in with them when you’re ready to bring them back. 

“Having former employees return to my team has been a true privilege. There is something about a second chance to help someone grow and develop and to be entrusted to help them achieve their career goals that is very special. I have the honour of having three boomerang employees on my current team. I am grateful that they rejoined and for the incredible know-how, passion and commitment that they bring to our team. I will continue to do all I can to support their success so that they can see their future here.”

Caroline Sabetti, Chief Marketing Officer, PeopleReady & PeopleScout 
Senior Vice President, TrueBlue Communications 

In addition, consider these three strategies for re-recruiting former employees: 

1. Existing Employees

If you have an opening on your team and some of your existing employees still maintain relationships with former staff, your current team can be helpful in re-recruiting this talent. Let your current employees know you’d like to consider a former employee for the role and, if they’re willing, they can bring the idea up with the former colleague and encourage them to apply. 

2. Direct Manager Outreach 

For a former employee, it can be extremely powerful to hear directly from a former leader that the company and team wants them back. And, by hearing directly from a manager, the former employee is likely to take the offer seriously and understand that they are specifically who the team and leader want. 

“I had the opportunity to work for our sister company Staff Management | SMX before leaving for another position outside of TrueBlue that allowed me to get specific experience in a different facet of marketing. After gaining valuable experience for a period of time with a different organisation, my former leader at Staff Management | SMX reached out to me to discuss an opportunity to join PeopleScout in a new role. I was thrilled to be able to rejoin TrueBlue and put to use the experience I gained outside of the company. Rejoining TrueBlue and joining PeopleScout was an easy decision due to the positive experience that I had during my original time with the organisation, as well as due to the ability to work directly for my former leader once again.”  

Sarah Katz Candelario, Vice President of Marketing and Communications 
PeopleScout 

3. Email Campaign 

If your company is looking to fill multiple roles at once, a larger campaign might make the most sense. This can include a list of all high-performing employees who left in the last year and serve as a check-in to see where they are in their career now and whether they’d be interested in taking on a new role in the company. 

Beyond the Boomerang Employee 

While looking to former employees serves as a strong new talent pool, it’s just one part of an organisation’s larger rehiring and retention strategy.  

For example, in addition to traditional boomerang employees, the pandemic has also introduced an alternative group of potential employees—those who were furloughed. While these employees didn’t leave voluntarily, they can still be considered for boomerang status and serve as yet another talent pool to reach out to when needs arise. 

But, in order for people to be willing to come back, organisations must ensure that their company is one that people want to return to (or, ideally, one they won’t want to leave at all). This means fostering a welcoming and empowering culture, as well as placing strong emphasis on growth and development of all employees. 

In summary, when people feel valued, included and invested in, they’re less likely to leave your company for another. Then, even when human factors cause them to be pulled away, they’ll be willing and ready to return when the time is right. 

Driving Recruitment Innovation by Collaborating with Suppliers

Posted on by cspivack

By Rachel Harris, Head of Marketing EMEA & APAC


I recently read an article on the CIPS website about Thales, an aerospace company. In the piece, Roque Carmona, Group Chief Procurement Officer at Thales, explained that ‘66% of innovation for Thales customers come from their suppliers’. As a completely customer-focused organisation, Thales has not only seen the value in ‘two heads are better than one’, but they are prepared to speak up about it.

I’m a firm believer that the best business results come from a collaborative approach, where your solutions acquire exponential value as the insights, experience, and resources from supplier organisations feed into your customer-centric strategy.

Of course, RPO was initially developed to outsource hiring during critical business growth phases. But now it has become so much more.

By working across companies, industries, and regions the value of RPO is finally being recognised; not as a quick-fix to hiring, but for the expertise, knowledge and experience that only a global leader with many SMEs in resourcing can provide.

It’s a critical time for HR. The teams that saw us through the pandemic, the people who ensured we could work effectively from home, the leaders who took on-board our well-being during isolation, and then managed redundancies at the start, followed by filling the gaps on our return to the offices—have been burning the midnight oil. And now to fan the HR fire, recession is on the horizon.

In this environment, it’s more critical than ever to collaborate on innovation with your suppliers; to learn from each other, to build better value into solutions and find future-proof processes to ensure that our businesses grow.  

Diversity & Candidate Attraction: Putting the Right Messages Out by Correct Channels

Posted on by cspivack

By Paula Simmons, Director of Employer Brand & Communications Strategy

As your organisation continues to invest in creating a more diverse and inclusive team of employees, it’s important to ensure you are relying on the most up-to-date information about recruiting the right people and meeting their needs during your hiring process. There are many assumptions that have become part of accepted recruiting wisdom, but are these methods still effective for interacting with diverse, modern job seekers?

Choosing the Right Channels

In the past, when employers have wanted to recruit from under-represented groups, they have traditionally relied on limited media targeting, but this doesn’t take into account what we know about candidate behaviour. For example, we know that just because a person looks at a certain type of content in their everyday life, it doesn’t mean they will use that specialised media in their job search.

Research has shown that candidates look at channels offering roles related to their profession and then assess employers to ensure they are inclusive. So, employers should focus on targeting the right professional channels with the right messaging. When candidates from under-represented groups are searching for jobs, the right job title might be enough to entice them to review an advert—but whether they apply is influenced by what they read and what they hear about how an organisation treats its people.

Adjusting Job Descriptions to Attract More Diverse Candidates

To ensure an inclusive process, using the right verbiage in job postings is essential. Your job advert copy should feel inclusive and should also reflect the career level of candidates. Many talent leaders are familiar with the research that shows women are less likely to apply for roles when they feel they do not meet 100% of the criteria, whereas men will apply if they meet just some of them. Often, women just don’t want to waste their time on an application if they believe they would be automatically rejected.

To overcome this, employers should list only the essential criteria. As the list of criteria gets longer, the applicant pool for that job will become less diverse. Staying with the example of attracting more women, recruitment communications should include content that showcase the voices and stories of women at all levels to demonstrate they are welcome at your organisation and will have the opportunity to progress. The same principle can be applied to any demographic group.

Change won’t happen overnight. When it comes to engaging with candidates from under-represented groups, it’s about building an employer brand that appeals to multiple demographics and fosters a sense of belonging in an organisation—and making sure that during each part of the candidate journey individuals from all walks of life are supported so you find the best people to fill your roles.

PeopleScout Cuts Time-to-Hire in Half with Global Talent Acquisition for Global Manufacturer

Posted on by akessler
PeopleScout Cuts Time-to-Hire in Half with bespoke Talent Acquisition Solution

PeopleScout Cuts Time-to-Hire in Half with bespoke Talent Acquisition Solution

A manufacturer of engineering solutions turned to PeopleScout for a recruitment process outsourcing (RPO) to fulfil their need for highly specialised, hard-to-find industrial engineering talent at their manufacturing sites, innovation centres and service centres.

50% % Average Reduction in Time-to-Hire
16 Countries & 9 Languages
16 Countries & 9 Languages
Scope Expanded After Exceeding Hire Target
Scope Expanded After Exceeding Hire Target

Scope & Scale

The manufacturer engaged with PeopleScout for an RPO solution to make 150 hires for over 30 of their sites across 16 countries including Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Poland, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, the Netherlands, the United Arab Emirates and the United Kingdom.

For most of their hires, they were seeking specialty talent with expertise in engineering and industrial design. These skills help build equipment for businesses all over the world that focus on chemicals, air and water treatment, mining, pharmaceuticals, marine, construction and other industrial applications.

Challenge

The client came to us after their previous RPO provider failed to deliver on the manufacturer’s talent acquisition challenges. With some requisitions still open after 500 days, many of their site managers had taken recruitment into their own hands. Each manager had their own approach which resulted in a disjointed candidate experience and high levels of frustration for hiring managers and internal stakeholders. The global talent acquisition leader had very little visibility into time-to-fill and cost-to-fill metrics from country to country and wanted to see a consistent process across all regions that showcased their employer brand. 

The manufacturer also had growing concerns about the future of their labour force. With the average age of an engineer in the mid-50s, a huge portion of the global engineering workforce is due to retire in the next 10 years. The client needed to get ahead of this by recruiting talent with specific engineering skills to prevent a future talent gap.

However, engineers are highly sought after, with 63% of European manufacturers indicating the engineering skills shortage is making it harder to find qualified workers. The manufacturer needed candidates with unique experience in mechanical engineering and automation and who also matched their language requirements which varied by country and role. So, attracting these rare engineers—and convincing them to make a move—meant we had our work cut out for us.

Solution

Our diverse, multilingual and multicultural delivery teams in our Bristol and Krakow delivery centres plus remote teams got to work executing an end-to-end RPO solution. They sourced, screened and evaluated candidates in English, Swedish, German, French, Italian, Polish, Hungarian, Portuguese and Spanish.

Using Labour Market Insights to Inform Strategy

With competition from other well-known, international companies in certain markets, some roles were particularly challenging with over 200 similar open positions across competitors in one location alone. The PeopleScout Insights Team was commissioned to conduct in-depth research across markets and uncover potential candidate motivators that would give the organisation a competitive edge.

In one case, our market data indicated that the labour pool for engineers in Czech Republic is small. So, we approached the client with the idea to expand the geography of our search to include candidates who lived across the border in Poland who could commute. By doing this, we filled business-critical automation engineer roles that saved their productivity levels. 

Global Process Meets Local Expertise

We created a bespoke process to meet the requirements of the global talent acquisition leader and then worked with hiring managers in each region to adjust our approach to account for nuances like culture, job role and labour market across their sites.

Applying our team’s deep regional expertise, we adapted our strategy in each location, using the appropriate databases, job boards and online and offline marketing tactics to reach the right candidates for every role in each country. For example, in smaller cities, we knew it was less likely that blue-collar candidates would be seeking employment via online channels, so we took out ads at bus stops.

For other roles, we increased awareness of organisation’s employer brand through targeted recruitment marketing efforts on job boards and social media. We also partnered with local universities to get in front of students who were looking for their first jobs after completing their studies. 

Talent Pooling with a Focus on Diversity

Because most engineers in Europe aren’t actively looking to change jobs, our recruiters found most success through proactive headhunting. By engaging directly with passive candidates via social media, email and phone, they filled many existing requisitions and created talent pools for future vacancies, which reduced the overall time-to-fill.

Since women remain underrepresented in engineering fields across Europe, the manufacturer put great importance on increasing the number of women engineers they hired. In addition to adjusting the verbiage in job descriptions to make them more inviting to a wider variety of candidates, our recruiters paid special attention to reaching out to women by targeting online groups for women in engineering and women in tech.

Results

In the first year, we surpassed the initial target of 150 positions to deliver 245 total hires across 30 sites with a quarter sourced through proactive search and engagement. We filled the 500-day-old roles and reduced the time-to-hire by approximately 50% on average through our talent pooling efforts. In the process, we won over sceptical stakeholder groups, including the client’s EMEA engineering leadership. In the second year, we’re growing our partnership with over 300 hires projected.

In one instance, we were asked to source specialist inside sales talent. These individuals needed IT experience, manufacturing experience and to be fluent in German. With such specific requirements, advertising wouldn’t have worked, but because of the talent pool we built, we filled these two positions in less than three days.

“We have forged an excellent relationship with the PeopleScout team. They fully understand our challenges and needs and are able to meet our recruitment requirements in an efficient and professional manner.”

– Talent Acquisition Manager

AT A GLANCE

  • COMPANY
    Manufacturer
  • PEOPLESCOUT SOLUTIONS
    Recruitment Process Outsourcing
  • ANNUAL HIRES
    300
Contact Us

Is No the Right Answer to Increasing Business Demands?

Posted on by cspivack

By Rachel Harris, Head of Marketing EMEA & APAC

I recently read a blog from Ken Brotherston. It’s a strong and passionate argument concerning the pressure and level of strain that HR and talent acquisition (TA) leaders are currently facing. He argues that talent leaders are stretched to the breaking point and suggests they start saying ‘no’ to the demands of the business if they don’t see more investment.

The pandemic resulted in many business challenges, and yet, across the board, we know that the need for solutions appear in the HR inbox—re-skilling, upskilling and internal mobility for employee retention; creating remote-first flexible working models and onboarding strategies; assessing and deploying an technology solutions and driving better DE&I results—all whilst hiring against the most acute talent shortages any of us have ever seen.

Over the past two years, HR and TA leaders have made huge efforts to do what they could to support employees and candidates with limited resources in a turbulent business environment. As we move into a post-pandemic reality, it’s time for TA to create proactive strategies rather than continuing to take reactive measures. As Brotherston states, “continuing to operate at a ‘code red’ level…is simply not sustainable”.

Can HR and TA Leaders Afford to Say No?

It is an exceptional time, but I’d argue that saying ‘no’ or ‘not right now’ isn’t feasible. When competitors are storming ahead with changes—when they are hiring the best talent—saying no to what must be done is a slippery slope. The answer must be, ‘yes, of course—with this much extra resource’.  

TA leaders must demand more investment from the business to augment their ability to hire if they want to remain competitive in this candidate-led market.

Making the Business Case for More Talent Acquisition Investment

Making a profound business case for investment in talent solutions is an art in persuasion, and those with this skill are likely to find the current environment much easier to navigate.

But you don’t need to be Dale Carnegie to gain traction within your organisation. Here are three steps to building your business case.

  1. Gain Buy-in by Engaging Internal Stakeholders
    Recruiting impacts your entire organisation. The C-suite, procurement and hiring managers will all have different pain points and points of view on how your talent acquisition efforts are meeting expectation or falling short. By understanding each stakeholder’s current challenges and desired future outcomes, you can address these issues through your business case.
  2. Assess Your Current Recruitment Landscape
    You must know where you’re starting in order to improve it. Get to the bottom of your current in-house recruitment teams, third-party agencies, attraction channels, costs, recruitment process, performance metrics, etc. With this in mind, you’ll gain a better understanding of your gaps and the opportunities that investing in a talent solution can create.
  3. Show the ROI of Investment
    How you go about putting your business case on paper will depend on your organization requirements. It should contain a description of the investment options you’re putting forward, the benefits and drawbacks for each, associate costs, risks and opportunities as well as any assumptions you’ve made whilst preparing you document.

Want more information about how to secure investment for TA? Download our guide, Building a Business Case for RPO (includes a free template!).

How We Created a Custom Behavioural Assessment Framework for a Leading British Bank

Posted on by cspivack
HOW WE CREATED A BESPOKE BEHAVIOURAL ASSESSMENT FRAMEWORK FOR A MULTI-BILLION-POUND COMPANY

HOW WE CREATED A BESPOKE BEHAVIOURAL ASSESSMENT FRAMEWORK FOR A MULTI-BILLION-POUND COMPANY

PeopleScout’s talent advisory team created a new candidate assessment centre for a large British bank, resulting in a 58% reduction in recruitment costs totalling £24M.

58% % Reduction in Recruitment Costs

resulting in £24M savings

55% % Reduction in Attrition

in the first year

50% % Reduction in Application-to-Hire Ratio

from 32:1 to 16:1

SITUATION

Arriving at the right assessment solution for a complex, multi-faceted, multi-billion-pound contemporary business is a major challenge. But, this was a challenge that PeopleScout’s team of psychologists was built for when our banking client came to us with a big brief. The company had just launched a crucial new set of values. They wanted us to create a bespoke, joined-up and levelled behavioural assessment framework, along side a full suite of assessment tools to support hiring into core customer-facing roles across the bank.

SOLUTION

We began by carrying out a comprehensive job analysis, involving over 300 colleagues in focus groups, and one-on-one interviews with job incumbents, senior stakeholders and transformation stakeholders. We identified synergies and differences between role requirements and complexity across the bank. The detailed research and analysis revealed three job families across all roles, each with four levels of complexity. We developed definitions and behavioural indicators for each group and each level in the framework.

Following sign-off on the new behavioural framework, we developed the assessment matrix and recommended key assessment methods. We streamlined and simplified the existing multi-stage process, bringing both the process and tools into alignment with the new values. This made it easy to understand and implement across the bank. We recommended a three-stage process across the framework, allowing for tailoring to job family and complexity levels, using specific skills assessment and assessment centre micro exercises.

RESULTS

We built-in various ways of measuring the cost-efficiencies and the overall return-on-investment of the end-to-end assessment solution. The client were delighted with the results:

  • A reduction in the classroom-based training time required as the calibre of candidates was improved.
  • Improved conversion at every stage of the assessment process, meaning less business time was required for assessment. The application-to-hire ratio was cut by half, from 32:1 to 16:1.
  • There was a 55% reduction in first-year attrition.
  • There was a 58% reduction in whole life recruitment cost, saving £24M.

AT A GLANCE

  • COMPANY
    Leading British bank
  • PEOPLESCOUT SOLUTIONS
    Recruitment Process Outsourcing, Talent Advisory
  • ABOUT THE CLIENT
    This client is a leading UK financial services group that includes several retail banking brands. The client has been partnering with PeopleScout for over 20 years, making it one of our longest-standing client relationships.
Contact Us

Co-op Insurance: Significantly Reducing Time-to-Hire for a Leading UK Insurer with a Revamped Candidate Assessment

Posted on by cspivack
EXPERIENCE NOT ESSENTIAL: HOW WE SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED TIME-TO-HIRE FOR A LEADING UK INSURER

EXPERIENCE NOT ESSENTIAL: HOW WE SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED TIME-TO-HIRE FOR A LEADING UK INSURER

Co-op Insurance came to PeopleScout for a new assessment centre and streamlined recruitment process, resulting in a reduced time-to-hire and quality new talent.

Reduction in Time-to-Hire
Reduction in Time-to-Hire
73% % Assessment Centre Pass Rate

up from 41%

Positive Candidate Feedback
Positive Candidate Feedback

Employing 70,000 people, the Co-op is known across the UK as a leader in socially conscious, community-led business. As well as being the country’s fifth largest food retailer, it is also a major general insurer. Co-op Insurance came to PeopleScout with a problem. They were having big issues recruiting the voices of the organisation: high-quality, productive, right-fit Claims Advisors who would stay. Also, the time-to-hire was very slow and a drag on the time of the resourcing team. Their recruitment process needed a complete overhaul.

SITUATION

The process we were presented started with a manual-intensive CV screen. Because of the volumes that were coming through, the Co-op resourcing team was conducting daily CV screens. This ate up immense amounts of time and resulted in the team screening candidates based on experience. That meant they were inconsistent in the way they were screening candidates (about 70% passed the CV screen). Those who passed this CV screen then had a qualifying call. This was not a formal telephone interview, but an introductory call to check the experience on their CV, discuss any gaps and make sure they were eligible to work in the UK (85–95% passed this stage). Finally there was a face-to-face assessment centre—consisting of a computer-based assessment and interview. Following this, was the offer and induction.

SOLUTION

The right solution meant two considerations: what to assess and how.

  1. WHAT – We conducted a period of job analysis to understand what good looked like in the role.
  2. HOW – We needed to identify a solution which would support progressing candidates at speed through the process, providing a realistic job preview and automatically screening candidates so there was less manual intervention by the resourcing team.

We suggested removing the CV screening step which meant there was less reliance on experience only. This allowed us to assess the whole person, progressing candidates who had no experience but great potential. We developed an online tool which incorporated a situational judgement test which tested for attention to detail and a video interview. Candidates completed this in one sitting, further reducing the time-to-hire. We also supported in the design of an assessment centre.

RESULTS

The Co-op’s resourcing team was delighted with the new process. It’s easy to use and gives them back invaluable time to work on other projects. The assessment centre significantly reduced time-to-hire, owing to the speed and efficiency of the new process. The pass rate at the assessment centre stage is 73%—a big increase on the previous rate of 41%. This means that a much higher proportion of the best fit candidates are going further in the process. In addition, new joiners have been identified by the business as individuals who are motivated to succeed, with a propensity for learning and a growth mindset. Candidate feedback has been very positive, with many saying it gave them a proper understanding of the role.

AT A GLANCE

  • COMPANY
    Co-op Insurance
  • PEOPLESCOUT SOLUTIONS
    Recruitment Process Outsourcing, Talent Advisory
  • ABOUT CO-OP
    Co-op Insurance is part of Co-op Group, one of the world’s largest consumer co-operatives, owned by millions of members. As a leading UK insurer, the organisation offers coverage for business, home, life, motor, travel and pets.

Talking Talent: Talent Technology and the Human Touch, Building a Balanced Recruitment Process with Rick Betori

Posted on by nfuqua

Rick Betori’s role as PeopleScout’s managing director of the Americas has a few similarities with a previous leadership position he held as coach of his children’s baseball teams.

“The ball is always going to roll in between someone’s legs,” he told me from his home in the Chicago suburbs. “And, it’s not about the fact that it went through their legs; it’s what they do after and how they respond when things don’t go according to plan. That’s one of the most important things I can do in my role as a leader.”

Rick thrives when there’s a challenge to tackle, when there’s a problem to solve and when there’s the opportunity to connect the right person with the right job in a difficult labour market. It’s an important quality as employers face a talent landscape that has been transformed by the pandemic.

Although Rick joined PeopleScout in 2021, he has been a part of the TrueBlue organisation since 2011, most recently leading delivery operations at PeopleReady, where he helped spearhead the company’s digital transformation. As such, he understands how technology, combined with human expertise, can solve the toughest talent problems. We talked to him about the role of talent technology in 2022.

You’re not new to TrueBlue, but you are a relatively new face here at PeopleScout. What makes you really excited about talent acquisition right now?

I’m excited because I believe that we can truly help companies that are facing some of their largest hiring challenges in their histories. Talent acquisition teams need creative partners to help them succeed, and I’m thrilled to be a part of finding those solutions.

I’m also passionate about our talent technology platform, Affinix™, and what it does to help candidates seamlessly move through the application process. Candidates have so many choices today; when they’re searching for a new role, they expect a great experience, and they want it to be fast. I also think that now more than ever, data and analytics will be key in helping employers stay ahead of their competition in a difficult talent market.

And finally, I’ve been a part of the TrueBlue family since 2011, so I’ve been able to witness the passion and energy of the PeopleScout team working to put our clients first. It’s been great to dig in with the team in these last few months. They bring this infectious energy to do what’s right for our clients and their applicants. I’m proud to be a part of this organisation moving forward.

Throughout the last couple of years, we’ve seen a lot of employers add technology to their recruitment process out of need. For talent acquisition leaders, where do you think their relationship with talent technology stands today?

I hate to start the answer to a question with “it depends,” but it really does vary.  We have seen many employers add technology solutions to deal with increased workload, compliance concerns, and to eliminate or simplify administrative tasks.

More recently, employers feel the pressures of attracting top talent, so they’re taking the next step, focusing on easing and improving the process for candidates. More companies are starting to leverage technology to reduce friction for candidates in the application process and at the same time, building a stronger employer brand.

Finally, we’re seeing leaders stepping back and asking, “How can technology, data and analytics inform our decision-making from a talent standpoint?” These leaders want more information around changes in roles; how the market is responding in their specific area; and how factors like the rise of the gig economy and the COVID-19 pandemic have influenced their prospective talent pools.

The right technology can really make the recruitment process feel even more personal and enhance an organisation’s employer brand. How can you make that happen?

It’s about more than the right technology; it’s about the right technology at the right time. Employers can make the greatest impact by targeting specific points in the candidate’s journey.

For example, we know that candidates want to feel a sense of control in the process, and they want to feel as though things are moving forward. That means employers need to keep candidates feeling engaged and empowered. So, the right technology intervention could be implementing a pre-screen that candidates can complete by text or adding an interview self-scheduling tool. These give candidates the ability to feel like they’re taking the next step in the process, rather than waiting to hear back from someone.

Employers should also evaluate specific tools to ensure they fit with their brand. For example, candidates applying to a technology company would expect the process to include more advanced technology, more automation and a more cutting-edge approach to the recruitment process. On the other hand, candidates for positions where the work is focused on manual tasks or face-to-face interactions may expect a different experience. It’s not one size fits all.

Why should employers reevaluate their technology stacks now?

In the current market, talent acquisition teams need to move faster than ever to identify and secure talent. The days of long recruitment processes, multiple interviews and multiple steps are over.

Candidates have so many opportunities facing them today…and it’s not just different employers. Think about the impact of virtual work. It used to be that companies simply competed with other organisations in their area, but now, they compete for top talent with companies across the globe.

Add that to that the fact that many employers are reporting a record numbers of job openings and they can’t ramp up their internal teams fast enough to keep up with the number of requisitions they’ve got to fill. The right tools, and the right partner, can make the process easier and even provide them a competitive advantage.

Adding new technology to an established process can be scary. What advice do you have for talent leaders to help them gain buy-in in their organisations?

First off, I’d say, if there wasn’t any fear, I’d be surprised. It’s human nature. But that’s not a reason not to automate.

It starts with having a good, strong, proactive communication plan around the process—explaining what they’re doing and why they’re doing it. It should be transparent and easy to understand. The plan should clearly demonstrate the benefits for the team, and then, it’s important to gather feedback. There must be open lines of communication. It’s about letting people weigh in as you fine-tune the process. Finally, it’s great to recognise and celebrate the early adopters. We’ve seen a lot of success in highlighting the employees who engage and really embrace the change early on.

With internal buy-in, it’s tough, and you can’t underestimate the challenge. However, a good, solid plan executed by leadership goes a long way.

Are there any final thoughts you’d like to leave us with?

I want to put an exclamation point on something I said earlier about the importance of speed in the current talent market. I know the types of pressures that talent leaders are under right now. I don’t have a crystal ball to tell you how long it will last, but I can say that when you find the right partner, they can help you start this process in a way that feels manageable, and that can also help you prepare for whatever challenge lies ahead.

On-demand Webinar: Resourcing Revolution – How to Hire in a Candidate-led Market

Posted on by cspivack

Tables have turned. The roles have revolved. For the first time in decades, candidates rather than employers have the upper hand in controlling their fate.

Those involved in recruiting new staff, whether it’s the hiring manager or the professionals working in talent acquisition and HR, are facing candidates in the driving seat: prospective hires who are able to command more negotiating power when it comes to not only salary, but the entire package.

In the era of hybrid working, your next hire may also want to dictate where they work and when.

This Personnel Today webinar, in association with RPO specialist PeopleScout, will provide insights into how you can succeed in the current candidates’ market. Watch now, on-demand.

Disrespect & Demand: Why Candidates Abandon Recruitment Processes

Posted on by akessler

Talent shortages and the effects of The Great Resignation are now well-established narratives in the recruitment space. Yet, organisations are still putting up barriers between great opportunities and great talent. New research shows that candidate abandonment rates are over 65% due to a poor candidate experience. Candidates are dropping out of every stage of the recruitment process, not just the application process.

Often this results in “ghosting”—when the candidate drops off with no communication to the recruiter or hiring manager—with 28% of job seekers admitting they’ve done it. But, it’s a two way street—77% of candidates say that employers have done the ghosting.

Other barriers to candidate engagement that are contributing to abandonment include:

  • Overly complex or repetitive applications
  • Screenings, tests, or assessments take too long or require unreasonable amounts of time and effort to complete
  • Recruiters or hiring managers schedule interviews but never show up (ghosting), or reschedule several times, or are disruptive during the interviews themselves
  • Job offers take weeks or months to materialise
  • Lengthy and arduous onboarding practices (which get worse in heavily regulated industries)

Tips to Reduce Candidate Abandonment

Evaluating your candidate experience, particularly the number of steps and how much time each takes to complete, is imperative. Recruiters should work with hiring managers to prepare them for final stage interviews to ensure that experience is positive for candidates.

Think about any steps that can be eliminated. In times past, we’ve advocated strongly for assessments and even design them through our award-winning Assessment Services team through our Talent Advisory offerings. But, sometimes eliminating or scaling back assessment steps can actually help deliver more qualified candidates at scale and speed. We’ve seen this work particularly well in recent entry-level hiring projects, like customer service roles.

RPO Delivers an Excellent Candidate Experience

Advocating for changes like this can cause some discomfort – but it can also get results. This is an area in which an RPO partner can make a big difference. We can bring the agility and insight needed to problem solve in this candidate-led market. 

Infographic of how to hire in a candidate-led market. Only 12% of companies use candidate feedback to improve the candidate experience. Only 30% of organisations survey new joiners to assess their experience. 8 out of 10 organisations don't have time or resources to improve the candidate experience 54% of organisations surveyed have never benchmarked their candidate experience Only 5% of candidates rate their experience as excellent

Any organisation recruiting right now must meet candidates where they are. The best solution is the one that engages and retains qualified candidates at every stage of the process. Shorter applications, streamlined assessments, commitment to best practice interviewing, clear guidance and additional support in onboarding should all be a priority for your business. Focus on candidate experience through a combination of responsive teams and tech and strengthen the employer brand wherever possible. That’s what gets talent to stick with, not abandon, your recruitment process.