Talent Technology Archives - Page 4 of 10 - Recruitment Insights

Global Hiring and Labour Market Trends Affecting Recruitment in APAC

Posted on July 13, 2022January 3, 2023 by akessler

At PeopleScout, we’re committed to providing you with information to help guide your talent acquisition decisions across the globe. This article is part of our series identifying talent trends across the globe.

Asia Pacific (APAC) is home to more than 4.7 billion people, as well as some of the largest global economies. And, because it’s made up of more than 50 countries and territories with varied cultures, languages and job roles, it’s impossible to leverage the same talent acquisition strategy across countries.

APAC by the Numbers

However, according to the International Monetary Fund, APAC is also the fastest-growing region in the world and, as such, represents a huge opportunity for global enterprises to capitalise on this diverse talent pool. For this reason, it’s imperative for organisations to understand the skills shortages, demographic gaps and pandemic recovery challenges throughout the region.

In this article, we’ll cover some of the labour market trends in APAC. We’ll also point out what multinational organisations should be aware of when it comes to immigration, education and diversity, as well as their effect on talent acquisition in the region.

Pandemic Recovery Continues to Vary Across APAC

The COVID-19 pandemic recovery continues to lag behind in Asia. For instance, China is still enforcing its “zero-COVID” policy, while Shanghai and Hong Kong are dealing with spikes in infection numbers and deaths, which is delaying border openings and stifling employment recovery—particularly in economies that are dependent on tourism.

Meanwhile, other countries in the region are showing greater resilience. Compared to other parts of the world, the Great Resignation had been a step behind in APAC—but, as of March 2022, it seems to be in full swing. In fact, 58% of workers in Australia, Singapore, Japan, Hong Kong and Malaysia are planning to leave their current job. The motivations behind these moves seem to be on par with workers in the West; some of the top reasons cited are lack of growth opportunities, salary dissatisfaction and concerns about their wellbeing.

In Australia, the unemployment rate is at a record low of just under 4% as of May 2022, and it’s expected to drop even lower. However, the country is also experiencing an acute labour shortage: The closure of Australian borders during the pandemic meant that overseas migration to the country was negative for the first time since 1946. Pre-pandemic, one in 10 workers in Australia was on a temporary work visa. Then, as lockdowns went into place, hundreds of thousands of workers with temporary visas had to depart Australia—leaving a record number of jobs vacant. Accordingly, with only the local labour pool to pull from, unemployment dropped and vacancies soared, tripling in the retail and manufacturing sectors from 2020 to 2021.

Then, in December 2021, the country’s borders reopened to students and migrants with visas, which is helping to fill positions—especially among casual jobs in retail and hospitality. Now, many Australian organisations are looking to new talent pools, including tapping into globally dispersed talent. As an example, PeopleScout recently helped a hospitality client take advantage of a visa strategy introduced to attract chefs to Australia’s tourism industry: Through a Recruiter On-Demand solution, we were able to source chefs in the United Kingdom who were willing to relocate.

With a large and complex country, the knock-on effect of the pandemic on the Australian labour pool is still yet to be seen. Yet, CEOs in the country are optimistic, with 88% expecting growth in the Australian economy.

Global Hiring: Key Takeaways for Employers

Shifting Demographics Affecting Talent Pools and Global Hiring

Across APAC, many countries are facing labour shortages due, in part, to aging populations and the accelerated rate of retirement during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, Gen Z makes up 25% of the APAC population—and they’re keen to have an influence.

At the other end of the spectrum, a 2021 study from the Japanese government revealed that more than 40% of workers aged 60 and older wanted to continue working, with many citing their desire to stay busy and give back. Even so, experts project that Japan will face a labour shortage of 1.5 million workers by 2030, despite expanded workforce participation and advancements in automation.

Meanwhile, in another part of Asia, India is experiencing a talent surplus: While most countries have seen a post-pandemic drop in unemployment, India is experiencing a decline in jobs, with an unemployment rate of more than 7.8% in April 2022. At the same time, the Indian workforce grew by 8.8 million people in April; so, even with unemployment dropping, available jobs are still not enough to satisfy the demand for work.

In 1991, the Indian government made sweeping reforms to its industrial and trade policies, which led to greater foreign investment due to its youthful population. As a result, India went from a primarily agricultural economy to a services-led economy with a boom in IT-related jobs. Consequently, there are now fewer lower-skilled jobs to absorb the large number of unskilled or low-skilled workers.

Moreover, the vast majority of jobs in India are informal: Just more than 2% of Indian workers are in secure jobs with access to benefits like retirement savings and healthcare. Therefore, these high unemployment numbers could be influenced by the number of educated young people who can afford to remain jobless while they find desirable work, rather than take low-paying positions. On the other hand, the poor—who have limited access to education—are forced to take any work they can get, which often involves pursuing unstable, daily-wage labourer roles in manufacturing and construction.

Key Takeaways for Employers Exploring Global Hiring and Recruitment

Tech Investment is Up, but Women are a Missed Opportunity

The technology sector is having a significant influence on talent trends in the APAC region: India is home to the largest tech companies, like Wipro, Infosys and HCL. The growth of the Indian IT industry has also created more than 16 million jobs that drive the digital transformation for global enterprises offshoring their IT and R&D functions to take advantage of India’s less-expensive software talent. To keep up with the demand for tech talent, STEM university grads have more than doubled in India. Yet, despite IT being a top interest for 21- to 25-year-olds, there’s still a talent shortage.

What’s more, with global enterprises embracing Indian talent, the country has also become a gateway to other markets in Asia. Now, $1 of every $2 in global investment goes to companies in Asia, some of which is fueling their own talent pools. For example, tech giant Apple has committed to building three Developer Academies in Indonesia, which will each produce 200 iOS developers annually.

Meanwhile, as a long-time leader in innovation, Japan’s high-tech and renewable energy sectors are the most profitable industries in the country. As a result, the Japanese education system is now adjusting to keep up with the demand for digital and software skills: In 2020, computer programming languages were introduced to elementary curricula. However, not all countries in APAC are stressing technology education. In Australia, only 3,000 to 4,000 IT graduates enter the workforce each year, which won’t meet the need for 156,000 new technology workers by 2025 to ensure that economic growth is not stalled by skills shortages.

Any company looking to remain competitive—especially those in the manufacturing or technology sectors—must emphasise becoming a top employer in APAC. And, one talent pool they could look to attract in Asia is women. Diversity and inclusion is one area where the wide variety of cultures across APAC shows itself, but the region scored highest on the importance of maintaining gender roles. Of course, it varies from country to country but, in patriarchal societies like Japan and China, females are often underrepresented in the workplace due to traditional views about women taking care of the home, rather than contributing to the household income.

Unfortunately, the tech sector will suffer the most from this, with men making up 84% of STEM graduates in Japan alone. Conversely, companies that invest in reskilling and upskilling women—while also providing flexible work arrangements—will reap the rewards when it comes to attracting and retaining female talent. Indeed, research from McKinsey shows that Asia Pacific could add $4.5 trillion to annual GDP in 2025 by closing the gender employment gap.

Key Takeaways for Employers

RPO in APAC

Despite the challenges of COVID-19 and changing demographics, corporations in the APAC region have showed resilient, expanding profits throughout the last decade. And, enticed by the large labour market, leading organisations are investing in the talent pools of APAC as a means of future-proofing their workforce.

However, the complexity of the region also means that there’s no one-size-fits-all solution for recruitment in APAC. So, increasingly, global enterprises are turning to recruitment process outsourcing (RPO). According to Everest Group, Asia Pacific is the fastest growing region for RPO and is set to make a swift recovery; finding the right RPO partner in APAC can help you navigate the region’s unique talent market conditions—and capitalise on the growth it offers.

Learn more about how RPO can support your global talent acquisition strategy, download our free Definitive Guide to RPO.

Ghost Hunting: How to Keep Candidate Engagement Alive After Offer Acceptance

Posted on July 12, 2022January 3, 2023 by jpatel

Candidate engagement after extending a job offer is now more important than ever, as employers across most regions are seeing a dramatic increase in the number of new hires who are ghosting on their first day: Data from Robert Half shows that 28% of professionals have backed out of a job offer after initially accepting it, thereby costing employers time and money on a job offer ghosted.

In today’s candidate-driven market—and with the major influence that the pandemic had on the way people view work and personal life—it’s no surprise that candidates are receiving multiple job offers and thinking critically about what they truly want in an employer.

Top 3 Reasons Candidates Backed Out of an Offer They’ve Already Accepted

With candidates in the driver’s seat, employers need to do everything they can to keep new hires from taking an early exit. So, in this article, we offer actionable strategies for your organisation to do just that.

Why Do Candidates Ghost?

With record numbers of job openings, job-seekers are more empowered than ever to be picky about the company they choose to work for. This means that candidates are likely interviewing with multiple companies at the same time—and they may not disclose it.

At the same time, the COVID-19 pandemic was a catalyst for an immense digital transformation of the recruiting process, with everything from phone screens and interviews to offers and onboarding being conducted completely online. Of course, while this has made it easier and faster to apply to jobs (with “easy apply” options and text interviews the norm), it has also informalised the process and made it feel less personal than a face-to-face hiring journey.

As a result, employers who rely solely on these technologies without establishing a human touch might struggle to build a more personal connection with candidates. Furthermore, because the majority of the hiring process now takes place online from behind a screen, it can be difficult for recruiters and candidates to build the same rapport that they would have when communicating in person; when you remove the investment that comes from traveling to meet someone in person and replace it with a simple click, the entire process can start to feel more transactional and less human.

All of this can lead to poor communication overall, leaving candidates feeling like they might not need to provide any formal closure. According to Indeed data, here are some of the consequences of ineffective communication with the recruiter or hiring manager:

And, not only is ghosting happening, but it also appears to be a rapidly growing trend: According to a 2021 survey from Indeed, 28% of job-seekers have ghosted an employer—a 10% increase from 2019 data—and 57% of employers believe it’s more common than ever before.

It’s important to note that the same Indeed survey found that ghosting in the workplace is a two-way street, with 77% of job-seekers saying they’ve been ghosted by an employer. So, while ghosting has become a normalised part of the hiring process (with employers starting the trend and candidates catching on), there are some actionable steps that employers can take to avoid ghosting on both ends and help combat this rising trend.

Strategies to Keep Candidates Engaged After Job Offer Acceptance

In addition to the increasing likelihood that candidates will renege on an offer, employers should also keep in mind the various notice period requirements in countries around the world, which could be anywhere from two weeks to six months, in some places. Clearly, half a year is an incredibly long time to keep someone engaged and excited about your business, especially when that candidate is exploring other offers and evaluating the benefits of each. So, how can you do it? Consider the following:

Focus on Employer Brand

It should come as no surprise that keeping candidates engaged after they accept an offer starts with the work that’s done prior to them even applying; maintaining a powerful employer brand is key to keeping candidates with you throughout the entire hiring process. More precisely, when a candidate receives a competing offer or a compelling counteroffer from their current employer, is what your company offers going to be enough to keep them from changing their mind?

To that end, it’s important that your organisation presents itself—on social media, employer review sites and your careers site—in a positive light. You’ll want the candidate to be reminded of the value you offer—whether that’s in the form of benefits; flexibility; growth opportunities; diversity and inclusion initiatives; or otherwise—everywhere they look. The mental picture a candidate keeps of you in the back of their mind (or when someone mentions your company’s name) is make or break when it comes to them following through on an offer acceptance and showing up for day one.

Make Open Communication Standard

Lack of communication is one of the top reasons candidates ghost after accepting an offer, so establishing strong, open lines of communication from the start can make a huge difference in how the hiring process plays out. For example, encourage recruiters and hiring managers to communicate with candidates frequently by keeping them informed of their application status, providing updates on next steps and simply checking in to see if candidates have any questions. This can help build a sense of familiarity and rapport that is often lost when recruiters only communicate when absolutely necessary.

Your organisation can also stand out from others by candidly asking candidates where they are in the hiring process with other potential employers. Then, depending on your recruitment timeline, you can adjust key interviews and deadlines to avoid losing your candidate to a competing job offer. A personalised offer letter for job candidates will place you ahead of competitors. This will also help you get an idea of whether your candidate is entertaining other offers that they may be more interested in overall; then, even if they do accept an offer from you, this can help you be better prepared for the possibility that they’ll renege and accept a position elsewhere.

Finally, the key is to maintain that line of communication even after the candidate has accepted an offer; if you ghost your brand-new hire, they’ll be more likely to ghost you in turn.

Get the Offer Out Fast

The more time your hiring process takes, the more time candidates have to consider taking other jobs. You’ve received a verbal offer acceptance; that’s great. Now, the time it takes for you to get official paperwork out and signed is critical. Engagement levels are highest at this point, and it’s critical that you get the offer out before the candidate has the chance to get cold feet.

If possible, get all of your organisation’s internal approvals finalised prior to your verbal offer so that the official written offer can be sent almost immediately. If your organisation has a lengthier process that cannot be shortened, then be sure to communicate that to the candidate so their expectations are set accordingly.

Utilise Thoughtful Touchpoints

Perhaps most important, maintain frequent communication with the candidate during the period between offer acceptance (whether verbal or written) and day one. This can include messages of congratulations from the hiring manager and anyone else they may have met and interviewed with during the hiring process.

Additionally, consider pairing your new hire with a current employee who can help them prepare for their first day. Or, in smaller organisations, set up a one-on-one meeting with a key leader to welcome them to the company. This can help the candidate feel connected to the team before they’ve even officially started—and will help keep the organisation front of mind.

Redefine Onboarding & Start Immediately

When competing with multiple offers and long notice periods, beginning your onboarding process before the new hire officially starts can be a great way to keep them engaged and feeling like they’re a part of the team. For instance, if you’re in an office, consider sending your new hire a video tour or inviting them in for a real one. Or, if your team is planning to get together for an in-person or virtual happy hour, invite the new hire to join.

You can also send your new hire more information about your company, culture, employee resource groups and more to help them start feeling like a part of the team. Plus, what better way to foster a sense of connection and pride than by sending a welcome kit and some company swag? Finally, encourage the new hire’s colleagues and manager to reach out frequently to check in and express excitement for them to officially get started on the team.

The Whole Job Offer Package

Essentially, candidate experience is really about the whole package—from establishing a strong employer brand all the way to onboarding. How you present your organisation—as well as how it’s perceived by the public—is paramount. Moreover, remaining front of mind for candidates throughout the entire hiring process (and especially post-offer) is critical so as not to lose them to competing offers or a change of heart. In today’s market, employers can’t afford to slip and miss any opportunity for communication, connection and engagement.

Digital Recruitment Marketing: It’s All About the Online Candidate Experience

Posted on June 20, 2022January 3, 2023 by skatz

In the world of talent acquisition, a brand’s presence online can lead candidates to discover new opportunities. And, employers and brands are taking the hint – maximising the online candidate experience through personalisation and optimisation.

This brings us to the importance of digital recruitment marketing. Digital recruitment marketing is a way for employers to source and attract potential candidates; it can include social media, email marketing, display advertising and more.

Through this article, we’ll share some important aspects of digital recruitment marketing, including building personas, trending digital marketing strategies and channels, and website optimisation.

Understanding & Creating Candidate Personas

Understanding the key characteristics of the candidates your organisation wants to hire provides context to who they are, which is why organisations create candidate personas. Personas are profiles that represent different types of candidates, focusing on individual characteristics. They create alignment across your recruitment and sourcing strategies.

Personas are organised, analysed and assembled by gathering internal data that reflects candidates’ behaviours, interests, goals and challenges. Let’s dive into how to build your personas.

How to Build Your Personas:

1.Gather Your Data: Focus your data on successful hires and placements within your organisation. Interview professionals who currently work in the type of role you’re seeking to fill to understand what qualities make them successful. Prioritise data points such as:

demographic information
background
personal attributes
qualifications
goals
objections
web activity

Also, try to gather anecdotal evidence or commentary by consulting other recruiters and hiring managers who have hired for that role in the past.

Quick Tip: Aim to gather as much information as possible regarding each position or job opening. The more data you have to work with, the more detailed your personas will be.

2. Identify Trends: Once you’ve gathered your data, it’s time to analyse the information and identify shared trends and traits. This is where your personas will really start to take shape. How do you do this? Start by asking some important questions:

Which characteristics or traits do ideal candidates share?
What motivates the ideal candidate?
Where does the ideal candidate search for jobs?
What are the ideal candidate’s goals and aspirations?

These questions – and those similar – will lead you to draw conclusions about the candidate who will best meet your needs for any given role or job opening.

3. Assemble Your Personas: After collecting and analysing your data, the next step is to assemble your candidate persona profiles. At this stage, you will use the insights you’ve discovered to create a profile of your hypothetical candidate. Some organisations create personas and associate them to profiles with names and pictures to seem more realistic and multi-dimensional; however, be aware of unconscious bias. A good way to avoid bias is to create personas that are based on research and surveys done within your organisation, and to focus only on the specific needs and challenges of potential candidates.

What’s Your Digital Strategy?

Content Marketing

Before you post on your digital marketing channels, focus on the importance of strategically crafting your content. The content you post should be more about your audience, or potential candidate, than it is about your brand. It’s a conversation that says, “We would be lucky to have you as an employee,” versus, “You would be lucky to work for us.”

To have this conversation, your content needs to adhere to your candidate persona’s desires and interests. Your content also has to create a narrative and capture your audience’s attention, while driving home your selling points in a concise way. For example, social media is one trending digital marketing platform. It is a very distracting environment, and you have very limited time to connect with candidates. So, it’s vital to know what you need to say to them via posts, tweets and images, and truly connect the right candidate, or persona, with your open jobs.

Social Media Marketing

I recently hosted a Talking Talent Webinar, “Digital Recruitment Marketing: A Guide for Employers.” During the webinar, I asked attendees to answer the question, “Which recruitment marketing strategies would you like to implement at your organisation?” What was one of the top answers? Social media marketing, of course, with 36.4%.

Conversion rate optimisation – 45.5%
Social media marketing – 36.4%
Email marketing/marketing automation – 36.4%
Pay-per-click advertising – 9.1%
Display advertising – 9.1%
Search engine optimisation (SEO) – 18.2%
Viral digital marketing – 36.4%
None of the above – 0%
Don’t know – 27.3%

Although proven to be effective, not all social media channels are created the same. Each platform has its own particular set of users with their own quirks as to how they interact with content. Candidate personas can help you identify your target candidates and shape your social strategy to fit each candidate’s specific preferences. You can utilise them to prioritise the platforms you use, to personalise your messaging, and to share content that engages your ideal candidates.

A helpful tip when approaching social media marketing is to start by researching all of your top competitors. Check each of their social media pages and see:

what content they are posting
how often they are doing so
how many users are engaging with that content
what platforms they’re using

Once you conclude which social media platform is yielding the greatest results – whether it’s Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, etc. – focus your personalised content on that particular site.

Quick Facts:

80% of employers say social recruiting helps them find passive candidates
70% of hiring managers say they have successfully hired through social media
91% of employers are using social media to hire talent today

Career Sites Matter – A Lot

If your targeted candidates engage with you on digital recruitment marketing channels, often they then arrive at your website. Your website is the backbone to your digital footprint and communications. Not only should an immense amount of effort go into creating a site that has engaging content and is aesthetically pleasing, but it must also be user-friendly for potential candidates.

It’s vital that your website or career site is optimised for job-seekers. Optimising key words in job descriptions, and ensuring your links are working properly and that your site is mobile friendly can help candidates find your organisation and apply to your jobs.

When building a career site, the process, structure and flow of the site must be deliberate. Site flow is a major contributing factor to increasing the number of candidates that move through the funnel and make it through the application process; It’s all about user experience.

What’s Important in the End

Ultimately, an effective digital marketing campaign takes time, patience, planning and teamwork. It’s important to build customised campaigns that cater to candidate personas, be clear on your branding efforts, really push your employer brand’s unique selling points, and optimise your careers site for search engines and conversions. Put together, each aspect creates a strategy that is focused on personas and will be beneficial as you move forward in searching for candidates in the digital recruitment space.

Leading in the New Reality: Keeping Employees Engaged Across Flexible Work Arrangements

Posted on June 17, 2022January 3, 2023 by jpatel

Improved employee satisfaction and overall productivity have proven that the new models of flexible work organisations implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic won’t be going anywhere any time soon. In fact, 83% of U.S. companies surveyed by Mercer are considering implementing flexible working at a greater scale than they were prior to the pandemic. In order to improve employee engagement, just as leaders had to adapt to managing remote teams at the onset of the pandemic, they will again need to readjust their approach as they lead teams across a variety of locations, schedules and unique work arrangements.

At PeopleScout, implementing flexible work to support our people is something we know well. One example of this is Emily Gordon, a single mother to a pediatric cancer survivor and PeopleScout’s vice president of global implementation.

In late 2016, when Emily had her final interview before joining PeopleScout, she was sitting in a hospital hallway while her daughter was finishing her fight with pediatric cancer – or so she thought. Emily’s daughter was nine years old when she battled cancer the first time and almost 11 when it returned. As a result, Emily’s goal was to find a company in which she could both work remotely and continue to support her daughter and family. But, prior to COVID-19, there were limited options for people who needed to be adaptable and still work full-time to support loved ones. Thankfully, PeopleScout’s work flexibility options gave Emily that opportunity.

Emily’s team was willing to work with her on video, which enabled her to be in the hospital with her daughter for more than 100 days in a year, while also exceeding work goals and supporting one of PeopleScout’s largest RPO clients. In turn, Emily has been comfortable hiring people who also need flexibility, such as in part-time or split-shift roles. As Emily’s story illustrates, the need for flexible work options exists outside of COVID-19. These unique situations existed before the pandemic and will continue when it eventually passes; it’s up to organisations to have flexible strategies in place to support their workers.

Even with the variety of benefits of workplace flexibility, the management of it is not without its challenges. Chief among them is how to improve employee engagement, especially during COVID-19. When employees cannot safely interact in close quarters, making sure they remain motivated and attentive is not always easy. In this article, we outline tips for how to effectively manage teams and improve employee engagement through the remainder of the pandemic and beyond.

“My team was already leveraging technology and reporting to support communication, and when COVID-19 hit, we amplified that across the whole portfolio. We meet twice a week for up to an hour to just talk, listen, give updates and support one another. All it takes is a willingness to over-communicate. Flexibility does not mean less work or performance. In my experience, it means people work harder to achieve goals because they are grateful for the support and understanding that work is not one-size-fits-all.”
Emily Gordon, VP of Global Implementation

Focus on Communication

Communication was important before and throughout the pandemic, so it’s no surprise that a strong communication strategy is at the top of the list for best practices in the new work reality. Regardless of whether you’re leading in-person teams remotely, leading a remote team while you remain in the office, or a combination of both, frequent communication is paramount.

Specifically, managers should schedule regular check-ins with the team as a whole to quickly solve challenges, share knowledge, and communicate openly about what’s working and what might need improvement. Likewise, one-on-one meetings are also important so managers and employees can share feedback and stay on the same page even if they’re working in different locations. Keep in mind that, because many of these flexible work arrangements are still new, it might take some time to find the right meeting cadence that works for both parties. For instance, while it might start out as a weekly check-in, you may find that one employee prefers ad-hoc calls while another prefers a set schedule to keep them on track. Try to remain as flexible as possible when it comes to these check-ins; they’re crucial for helping employees feel connected and cared for.

Quick Tip: Remember to trust your people and approach communications with a sense of empathy and a people-first focus.

Improve Employee Engagement Through Collaboration

Because employees may be scattered across different locations, working different hours or job-sharing, it can be easy to feel a little disconnected from each other – especially for workers who are not regularly going into the office. Fortunately, leaders can help solve this challenge by leveraging the following tools and strategies that foster collaboration and connectedness across teams.

Create a Team Brief

Your flexible work model may see some people working special hours to care for kids or loved ones, while others are using a hybrid model to work both in the office and remotely on alternating days. To ensure everyone is on the same page, it can be helpful to create a short team brief that outlines key expectations, covers how and when you’ll communicate, and transparently shares each employee’s schedule.

Quick Tip: Utilise tools like Teams and Slack (or your preferred communication platform) to set messages for when you’re away and when you’ll be back online.

Encourage Video Meetings to Improve Employee Engagement

While some employees are working in-person because their job duties require them to or they don’t have the means to work effectively at home every day, others may be fully remote for safety and family obligations. However, if you’re not careful, these employees can easily feel left out because they’re missing out on the face-to-face interactions and impromptu conversations that naturally occur when people work together in the same office.

Quick Tip: Ensure employees have the tools necessary for high-quality video calls, including proper audio and video equipment.

Fortunately, according to OwlLabs, 93% of people agree that video conferencing is effective at improving the connectedness of remote employees. Therefore, encourage calls to be taken on video so virtual workers have the opportunity to view and share non-verbal reactions, as well as their verbal insight. At the same time, pre-determine which meetings will be on video so employees have a chance to prepare. And, to combat video fatigue, be flexible in allowing people to remain off video if it is not conducive for them on a given day.

Quick Tip: Create a digital space where meeting attendees can post thoughts and notes once they’ve reflected on the call. This can give remote employees the chance to contribute to the “meeting after the meeting” that often occurs in person.

To enhance participation in video calls, show people how to ask questions in the chat, virtually raise their hand, and/or use breakout rooms so everyone has a chance to work and connect with one another.

Utilise Shared Dashboards

With people working various hours and in different places, staying aligned on goals and the work that is being done can be a challenge. However, by leveraging available technology, you can create team dashboards that share which projects are currently in progress and who is working on what. This can then give the whole team insight into the work that everyone is contributing, as well as the progress being made toward goals –regardless of when and where they’re working. Digital project management dashboards are also a great way to assign tasks, track targets and share ideas.

Quick Tip: To boost connectedness, create sub-channels within your communication platforms to group individuals with similar professional skills and personal interests.

Build Community to Improve Employee Engagement

It’s important that neither the in-person nor the remote teams become isolated from the other. As a manager, it’s your job to ensure you’re not mistakenly focusing more on one team over the other. To that end, a great way to build team culture and community is to spend some time each month on a virtual happy hour, coffee break or other team-building activity perfect for hybrid teams. Then, when the pandemic is no longer looming over us, it will also be important to make time to see people in-person when possible. For example, if you are traveling to the same location as an office or remote employee, set aside some time to meet them for a cup of coffee or lunch. Or, if you normally have a virtual check-in at the time you’re visiting, conduct your meeting face-to-face.

Quick Tip: To create equity between your remote and in-person teams, try to find unique ways to extend perks to virtual team members, as well. For example, when providing lunch for a meeting at the office, offer your remote workers a gift card for their lunch at home.

Create opportunities for hybrid teams to connect with each other on a personal level. For example, if it’s “bring your kid to work day” in the office, allow remote employees to bring their child to video sessions. This is an easy way to stimulate real connections between colleagues.

Flexible work models are quickly becoming the norm and are already proving to be an integral part of the way we work during the pandemic. The modes of work established in these instrumental months will pave the way for a future of flexible work beyond the current global health crisis. In that future, leaders will need to prioritise communication, collaboration and connectedness to create sustainable team engagement, productivity and culture.

Improve Your Employer Brand Using Employer Review Sites

Posted on June 17, 2022January 3, 2023 by jpatel

An organisation’s employer brand is often in the hands of its candidates and employees. And, when it comes to employer review sites, the fate of your employer brand is – quite literally – at their fingertips. In fact, according to data from Workplace Trends, 72% of job-seekers share their experience on online employer review sites like Glassdoor. What’s more, recent research from Deloitte found that 80% of candidates who experience an unsatisfactory recruitment process will openly tell people about their experience, and one-third of those candidates will do so proactively.

But, what does this mean for your organisation? Unfortunately, negative reviews from both candidates and employees can have a huge influence on your bottom line. For example, per CareerArc, 62% of consumers have stopped buying from an organisation that treats its employees poorly. Plus, an Indeed survey found that 95% of workers said that if they were considering a new job opportunity, insight into the company’s employer reputation would be somewhat (33%) or extremely (62%) important. As a result, a poor employer brand reputation could cost your organisation millions as productivity decreases due to a reduced candidate pool and consumers stop supporting your business.

So, how can organisations take control of their employer brand and overall online reputation? Well, recent studies from HRO Today and PeopleScout show that organisations globally are planning to invest more heavily in social networking, consistent monitoring of employer review sites, and a greater use of employees as brand advocates.

However, while these steps are important to improve your employer brand, many organisations are unsure of where to start; they may also lack knowledge of best practices for these strategies.

Therefore, in this article, we’ll help you improve your employer brand by outlining how to establish ownership of your organisation’s presence on employer review sites like Glassdoor and Indeed; offer best practices for responding to reviews; share tips on how to effectively leverage employee brand advocates; and highlight some popular employer review sites that organisations should be familiar with.

Establish Ownership & Claim Your Employer Review Site Profiles

The first step in establishing an employer brand plan for review sites is to establish who in your organisation will own the initiative. Specifically, it may make sense to have your HR team manage the employer review site accounts because they are likely familiar with sites like Indeed and Glassdoor that offer job-posting functionality, in addition to candidate and employee reviews.

However, it can also be beneficial to form partnerships across departments to holistically manage your organisation’s employer brand. For example, your communications team can assist HR in crafting responses to reviews that align with your brand standards for tone and voice, as well as provide up-to-date information on awards and accolades. In addition, HR can lean on the marketing team to maintain an active social media presence for your company, as well as work to optimise search results by managing SEO and creating content to combat potentially negative reviews and keywords.

After establishing who will take ownership of the management of employer review sites, claim your profiles. This can be done at no cost by verifying the profile as an employer and creating an employer account to edit and manage the profile.

Plus, with an employer account, you can add valuable information to your profile for candidates to view, such as:

Salary and compensation details
Explanation of benefits offerings
Company mission, vision and values
Overview of company culture
Logistical information (location, total number of employees, revenue, competitors, etc.)
Unique initiatives
Remote and flexible work policies
Diversity, equity and inclusion programmes
Photos of employees, events and offices
Industry awards and accolades

It’s worth noting that, according to Glassdoor, 75% of active job-seekers are likely to apply to a job if the employer actively manages its employer brand. You can do this by responding to reviews, updating your business profile, and sharing updates on the culture and work environment. Furthermore, building a robust profile on the employer review site will allow candidates to gain a better understanding of who your company is, what you stand for and what it would be like to work for you.

Respond to Reviews – Both Positive & Negative

Responding to reviews is perhaps the most important method in creating a strong brand presence on employer review sites. And, while both types of reviews can be easy to view and dismiss, leaving thoughtful replies is a guaranteed way to show candidates and employees that you care – regardless of whether the feedback is positive or negative. In fact, 80% of job-seekers who read reviews on Glassdoor say their perception of a company improves after seeing an employer respond to a review.

Some best practices to keep in mind when responding to reviews:

Address the reviewer by name (for non-anonymous reviews) to establish a personal connection
Thank the reviewer for their feedback
Acknowledge positive feedback
Address any concerns mentioned
Offer advice on any relevant next steps

Here are some examples of how to reply to common types of reviews:

Leverage Employee Brand Advocates

While organisations have little control over who will leave reviews – especially reviews with primarily negative feedback – they can proactively build up a strong body of positive reviews by leveraging employee brand advocates. These are employees who advocate for an organisation and generate a positive image of the brand via online and offline channels. It’s important to note here that, when encouraging employees to leave reviews, you should emphasise the value of honest, candid reviews; employees should not feel pressured to paint a certain image of your organisation.

Consider the following ideas to encourage employees to leave truthful, positive reviews that will help improve your employer brand:

New Hires

New hires are a great place to start when gathering positive reviews. That’s because the application, interviewing, and onboarding process is still fresh in their minds and they recently chose your organisation as their new employer. So, ask new hires to leave a review on their hiring experience when they first start, and encourage them to update it after their first 90 days.

HR, PR & Marketing

Another good place to start is by requesting that members of your HR and marketing teams write reviews. Members of these departments already have a good understanding of the importance of employer review sites and are likely willing to leave honest reviews that highlight your organisation’s strong points.

Promoted & Awarded Employees

If your organisation recognises employees for outstanding work with awards or honors, these workers can also be an excellent source of positive reviews. The same can be said for employees who have recently been promoted. A good practice is to establish a system that reaches out to these employees with a congratulatory message alongside a call to action to post online about their experience working at your company.

Employee Resource Groups

Employees who voluntarily join employee resource groups in addition to their daily responsibilities are already likely to be highly engaged within your organisation. So, tap into these groups of employees and request that they leave reviews based on your organisation’s culture and commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion – something Glassdoor provides ratings on and many candidates are interested in.

Regular Requests

Finally, managers should be empowered to regularly encourage their team members to leave reviews. This can become a regular practice during performance meetings, as well as after the completion of a big project or when hiring season is afoot. Likewise, if your organisation offers flexible work arrangements or other unique perks, employees should be encouraged to share emotive experiences of how these benefits have affected their lives.

Employer Review Sites to Consider

Because there are a variety of employer review sites out there, it can be hard to keep track of them all. So, we compiled this list of the top 10 you should monitor to improve your employer brand for long-term success.

Glassdoor: Current and former employees can anonymously review companies; submit and view salaries; as well as search and apply for jobs.
Indeed: Candidates can upload a résumé and browse reviews and salaries, while employers can post jobs, search résumés and more.
Comparably: Includes information on employers, brands, salaries and company culture.
FairyGodBoss: Women’s career community for career advice, job openings and company reviews.
Kununu: Employer reviews, salary data and culture reviews from those who know best: employees and applicants.
Google Reviews: Business reviews appear next to your company’s listing in Maps and Search. These can help your business stand out on Google, which is the leading search engine.
InHerSight : Here, candidates can find company reviews and ratings; get matched to jobs; and connect with a community of women navigating the workplace.
Vault: Known for its influential rankings, ratings, and reviews on thousands of top employers and hundreds of internship programmes.
CareerBliss: Candidates can find jobs, research salaries and read reviews with a focus on company culture.
TheJobCrowd: This UK-based employer review site is focused on helping recent graduates in their early careers.

As recruitment processes and the world of work continue to take digital shifts, employer review sites will become increasingly important in making or breaking a candidate’s decision to join your organisation. And, while you certainly can’t control every review, you can be proactive in taking charge of your employer review site presence by regularly responding to reviews, leveraging employee advocates, and monitoring what candidates and employees are saying about your organisation online. In doing so, you’ll improve your employer brand by creating a strong employer brand and a positive presence where it counts – and where it makes a difference.

PeopleReady: Increasing Reach, Candidate Engagement, Conversion and Automation

Posted on June 17, 2022January 3, 2023 by jpatel

PeopleReady, one of the top industrial staffing agencies in North America, required a digital recruitment solution powered by PeopleScout’s proprietary talent technology, Affinix^TM, to attract and engage candidates.

SOLUTION HIGHLIGHTS

Direct sourcing solutions with increased reach via SEO
100% automated application, selection and onboarding process
Mobile-first, easy application complying with all North American state and province laws

SCOPE & SCALE

PeopleReady attracts more than one million candidates annually to staffing and short-term labour positions. The client required a digital recruitment solution that increased reach by creating virtual talent communities of prospective candidates, while also providing a seamless online application experience that could be completed on a mobile device in under 20 minutes.

SITUATION

PeopleReady has invested heavily in innovative, mobile-first work scheduling and dispatching technologies but lacked a digital online sourcing solution to attract and engage candidates. PeopleReady selected PeopleScout’s Affinix recruitment technology platform to replace its existing solution. Affinix enhances the online candidate experience and increases conversion rates by solving the following challenges:

Simplify the previously complicated job posting process by distributing job openings to multiple sourcing channels immediately by creating just one post in Affinix
Implement direct sourcing to channels such as Indeed, Google for Jobs and niche platforms
Improve email integration with assessment vendors that previously had high drop off rates

SOLUTION

An engaging, mobile-optimised apply experience that guides candidates through application, online selection, employment form completion, WOTC, W4 and I9 processes via a safe, remote process
Direct integration with four external vendors to ensure the entire application process can be completed within the browser, with no interruptions from external emails or links
Highly localised job recommendations

RESULTS

TARGET LAUNCH ACHIEVED

Solution launched within 15 weeks, on time and under budget

RECEIVED MAJORITY OF MOBILE APPLICATIONS

80% of candidates apply via a mobile device

INCREASED CONVERSION RATES

15% increase in conversion rates within the first two weeks of go-live

CLIENT FEEDBACK

“The PeopleScout team allowed us to design a candidate flow that met the needs of our business. The team was quick to pivot and solution as areas of opportunity were identified for improving the candidate experience. Launching a solution with operational reporting allowed us to immediately monitor candidate flow to allow for quick adjustments of sourcing strategy. Very positive partnership with the entire implementation and technology teams.”
Tina Radosti, VP Talent Acquisition, PeopleReady

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Managing Candidate Volumes During the Great Rehire

Posted on June 17, 2022April 25, 2023 by nfuqua

As employers continue their recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, many face the same two challenges: Applications are up and talent acquisition teams are lean, which leaves a smaller team to sift through mountains of job applications.

At the same time, the pressure to find and hire the best candidate is high. After all, top talent can help speed a recovery. And, while the hiring process needs to be fast, it can’t leave out top candidates. So, let’s examine strategies for managing high candidate volumes that can help employers stand out during the Great Rehire.

HR Outsourcing

Challenge: Our organisation needs to scale quickly to make a large number of hires, but our team doesn’t have the bandwidth to handle the volume.

One key pillar of value for HR outsourcing solutions – like RPO; on-demand or project based RPO; or Total Workforce Solutions – is the ability to scale seamlessly as hiring demands shift. Conversely, in an internal talent acquisition team, it can be difficult – if not impossible – to scale up quickly to handle a higher number of hires and then scale back down when hiring volumes shrink. Consequently, many organisations find themselves initially making a large volume of hires to staff up new locations or during a peak season, but then hiring volumes return to normal.

What’s more, businesses in industries hard hit by COVID-19 will see especially high numbers as the economy continues to recover. For these organisations, RPO providers – specifically, on-demand or project RPO solutions – can help fill the gaps by providing focused support based on the needs of individual organisations.

For instance, at PeopleScout, we bring expertise and insights from across our client base, as well as the people needed to handle hiring spikes. Our industry-specialised flex team of recruiters can be activated on short notice, and our global delivery centres provide 24/7 support and recruiting capabilities that enable a faster recruitment process.

An RPO provider can also provide broader solutions – like bringing technology expertise to add automation or virtual interviewing solutions; or providing talent advisory services to improve employer branding, assessments or job posting strategies.

Technology Solutions

Challenge: Our team is too bogged down in repetitive work; the process of screening candidates and scheduling interviews takes too much of our recruiters’ time.

COVID-19 has exposed technology gaps for many employers. In the early days, many scrambled to implement virtual hiring solutions so that they could keep their talent acquisition functions moving. Now, as the pandemic passes the one-year mark, employers face a different challenge: Is their technology built for scale?

When facing high candidate volumes, recruiters can easily get bogged down in repetitive administrative tasks. For example, they might get caught in a game of phone tag trying to schedule interviews; answering simple questions from candidates; sending emails to keep their talent communities warm; and sourcing candidates for hard-to-find skillsets. As a result, that leaves little time for higher-value activities, like communicating with top candidates.

However, robotic process automation (RPA) can lift some of the load. This technology utilises bots to replicate human actions for time-consuming, but straightforward administrative tasks. And, while it can be used to screen résumés, it can also go far beyond that.

For example, RPA can be used to deploy chatbots to answer simple questions from candidates 24 hours a day. A chatbot can also be used in automated candidate screenings to ask questions about a candidate’s skills, education and experience – either online or via text. Best of all, in addition to saving time for the recruiter, this technology also improves the candidate experience by allowing them to get answers more quickly and feel as though they’re driving the recruitment process forward.

RPA can also be used to automate emails, social media posts and other employer branding campaigns. Right now, many organisations are building candidate pipelines and keeping talent communities warm as they prepare to make hires. In this way, RPA can be used to send messages to these communities – keeping candidates engaged and keeping your company top of mind.

Interview scheduling tools can also prove to be a significant time-saver for recruiters. As an example, with Affinix – PeopleScout’s proprietary talent technology – recruiters can avoid the back-and-forth of scheduling interviews with candidates by automating the process instead. Specifically, a recruiter can sync their calendar with the tool and provide candidates with a link to schedule the interview at a time that works best for them.

These tools can then be combined into a virtual solution that spans from recruitment marketing tools all the way through onboarding. And, as the recovery continues, many employers are finding lasting benefits from adopting these strategies.

Candidate Generation & Assessment Strategies

Challenge: We’re seeing high applicant volumes, but we want to make sure the people we hire are interested in the role for the long-term; we’re worried about high turnover as the economy improves.

As employers hire in 2021, they face a mountain of applications. This includes both candidates who are excited about the role and see it as a long-term step in their careers, as well as candidates who are looking for the role now, but don’t necessarily want to stay in the role or at the organisation for the long haul. But, how do you differentiate between the two?

One option is to adjust your candidate generation and assessment strategies to attract and hire the employees with the passion, purpose, and mindset that best match for the organisation and the role. For instance, to showcase an honest and authentic employer brand, write honest and authentic job postings. By tailoring your employer brand and job postings to attract only candidates who are truly qualified and interested in the role, you’ll save recruiter time by eliminating the résumés of candidates who aren’t qualified or aren’t excited about the role.

As an example, one PeopleScout client previously wrote job descriptions with an overly positive view of their open positions – without mentioning the more challenging elements. And, although they received a high number of applicants, as those applicants moved through the process, many realised that they didn’t want the job. Meanwhile, others accepted the job, but the turnover rate was high, which was expensive and wasted time for both the recruiter and the hiring manager.

In response, PeopleScout worked with the client to make the job postings more realistic about the challenges, in addition to providing a real preview of what the job would look like. In the end, the client received fewer applicants, but turnover in the role dropped significantly. The client also saved hundreds of hours in hiring manager and recruiter time.

Employers can also adjust their assessment process to identify candidates who can succeed and grow in the role by evaluating their passion, purpose and mindset. This means assessing candidates to find out if the candidate has the enthusiasm for the work; finds purpose in the role and at the organisation; and has the right mindset to grow and learn.

Bringing It Together

Combining these strategies in the right way for your organisation can help manage the high candidate volumes we expect to continue during the economic recovery from COVID-19. Furthermore, many of these tools and strategies will continue to show their value when unemployment is low. RPO providers and on-demand or project-based RPO can help manage yearly hiring spikes; technology tools will continue to free up recruiter time; and job posting and assessment strategies that guarantee the right cultural fit will continue to result in better talent and higher-performing teams. And, for talent leaders in 2021, solutions that deliver immediate results and lasting benefits will drive success.

Your Guide to Virtual Interviewing Solutions

Posted on June 17, 2022January 3, 2023 by nfuqua

As we move forward in 2021, it’s clear that safety, flexibility and a positive candidate experience are still the most critical factors in the interview process. Additionally, many talent acquisition teams are still running lean, but will see increasing hiring volumes as the COVID-19 recovery continues. Consequently, these factors necessitate an effective technology solution to support the interview process.

When the pandemic hit, many organisations fully transitioned to or increased their use of virtual interviewing technology. But now, just one year later, it’s an essential part of a long-term hiring strategy. Specifically, virtual interviewing solutions speed up the hiring process; provide a great experience for candidates and hiring managers; and save on travel budgets – in addition to the safety benefits.

So, consider this article your guide for designing the right virtual interviewing solution for your organisation and the types of roles you’re hiring for.

What is a Virtual Solution?

Before we focus on specific tools, it’s important to recognise where the virtual interview falls in your overall recruitment process. This graphic demonstrates an ideal virtual solution. At PeopleScout, we believe that the candidate experience should be at the core of your recruitment process, and a strong candidate experience should be part of each aspect.

In an all-encompassing virtual solution, we start with recruitment marketing. This is your opportunity to share your employer value proposition and employer branding materials with candidates. For example, you can do this virtually with a tool that allows you to send automated and personalised messages to candidates through email, social media and text messaging.

Then, candidates move to the application. Here, they expect a mobile-first process that can be completed quickly – preferably within just 10 to 15 questions. The mobile-first nature of the application is especially important as most candidates search for jobs on their smartphones and tablets. In fact, one of our clients sees more than half of applicants come in through a mobile device.

Next, consider assessment as an extension of your application or the start of your interview process. One option is to prescreen individuals via text to identify top-tier candidates. Then, candidates can drive the process forward themselves by self-scheduling their interview, which can be completed through a variety of virtual interviewing tools. All of this ends with the hiring and onboarding process.

Virtual Interviewing Tools

There are five main options for virtual interviewing technology, which can be mixed and matched depending on your organisation and the types of roles you’re hiring for.

On-Demand Text or SMS Interviews

What is it?

Candidates answer a series of yes/no, multiple choice or short-answer questions via text on their own time.

How does it work?

After completing an application, candidates receive a text message or email asking if they’d like to opt in to a text or SMS interview. Then, they’re sent a series of questions that they can answer on their own time. This process is customised and automated to move candidates quickly to the next step of the process.

What is it best for?

We recommend this option for entry-level or hourly roles. It also works well as an initial screener for high-volume roles.

Why should you consider it?

Candidates are unlikely to answer phone calls from unknown numbers – which turns an initial phone screen into a long game of phone tag. Alternatively, text interviews are quick and have high rates of completion, with some PeopleScout clients seeing completion rates as high as 80%.

On-Demand Audio Interview

What is it?

Candidates answer a series of questions by submitting audio recordings on their own time.

How does it work?

Candidates receive a link to complete the on-demand interview, in which they can respond to questions that are simply printed or recorded by the recruiter or hiring manager. Then, when the candidate is finished, they submit their answers to the recruiter for review.

What is it best for?

We recommend on-demand audio interviews for high-volume call centre roles, for example, or for positions in which candidates may be currently working in non-typical shifts.

Why should you consider it?

On-demand audio interviews provide more flexibility for both the recruiter and the candidate; there’s no need to schedule a time when the recruiter and candidate are both available.

In the current world of work, it’s even more difficult for candidates and recruiters to complete an interview during a typical 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. window. Alternatively, the on-demand audio option typically takes candidates 15 to 30 minutes to complete and takes recruiters just five to six minutes to review. At PeopleScout, our proprietary talent technology – Affinix – also allows you to calibrate your interview scoring process to ensure the right numbers of candidates make it through. On-demand interviews have a completion rate of between 40% and 60%.

On-Demand Video Interview

What is it?

Candidates answer a series of questions by submitting video recordings on their own time.

How does it work?

Similar to an on-demand audio interview, candidates receive a link to complete the interview and answer questions that are written or recorded by the recruiter or hiring manager. Then, once the candidate records their answers on video, they submit them to the recruiter for review.

What is it best for?

We recommend on-demand video interviews for roles in which candidates must demonstrate their professionalism in person, such as customer service roles or flight attendants.

Why should you consider it?

Similar to on-demand audio interviews, on-demand video interviews provide flexibility for both the recruiter and the candidate. Video interviews also allow you to see how a candidate demonstrates their professionalism “in person.” In this way, it’s an ideal choice for customer-facing roles. Much like their audio counterparts, on-demand video interviews have a completion rate of between 40% and 60%.

Live Audio Interview

What is it?

Similar to a phone interview, candidates speak directly with a recruiter or hiring manager to answer a series of questions.

How does it work?

Think of the live audio interview as a phone interview with extra features. Candidates can dial in, and hiring managers and recruiters can use a conference line to bring in either multiple candidates or a panel of interviewers. The interview can also be recorded. Plus, automated reminders can be scheduled and sent out using the tool so that no one loses the number or shows up late.

What is it best for?

We recommend this for later-stage interviews with top candidates – especially when most of their work will be completed on the phone, like call centre or virtual customer service roles.

Why should you consider it?

Compared to a traditional phone interview, you gain extra features and increased privacy for both candidates and interviewers with this option.

Live Video Interview

What is it?

A live video interview is the best replacement for an in-person interview. In this situation, candidates speak on camera with a recruiter, hiring manager or panel of interviewers.

How does it work?

A candidate receives a link to the virtual interviewing platform. With Affinix, candidates don’t have to download or install any applications; they simply click to join the interview. Recruiters and hiring managers can also programme automated reminders for interviewers and candidates.

What is it best for?

We recommend live video interviews for professional- or executive-level roles, or as a replacement for a final, in-person interview.

Why should you consider it?

With so many safety and travel concerns, live video provides a safe option for a variety of interviews that were previously in-person. In this case, the interviews can be one-on-one; with a panel of interviewers; or with a group of interviewees. Some PeopleScout clients have also used the technology for virtual job fairs. Plus, in the event of multiple participants, it also provides additional privacy protections so that candidates can’t see the contact information of other candidates, for example.

Affinix also includes chat and screen-share options, as well as the ability to record interviews. Going forward, live video interviews also provide an alternative to travel.

Interview Scheduling

While many of these options allow candidates to complete the interviews on their own time, the live options still require the process of scheduling. Fortunately, instead of the time-consuming back-and-forth, candidates can now self-schedule interviews.

An invitation to self-schedule an interview can be automated after an application or SMS interview; it can also be initiated by a recruiter. It works by allowing recruiters and hiring managers to sync their calendars with a scheduling tool or provide certain timeslots for candidates to choose from. This allows candidates to move the process forward themselves, thereby enhancing the candidate experience and saving time for the recruiter.

Putting It All Together

Depending on your organisation and the roles you’re hiring for, your virtual interview process will likely include a number of stages and tools. This graphic shows one way that these can fit together.

Implementing a Virtual Interview Solution

At PeopleScout, we recommend four steps for implementing a virtual interviewing solution. The process can be quick; in fact, in some cases, we can set up a virtual interviewing solution in as few as 72 hours.

Evaluate what you need. What portions of your process are already virtual?
Work with your RPO provider to implement the technology tools you need.
Gather branding materials and questions you need.
Train your hiring managers and talent acquisition team.

Once your virtual interviewing solution is up and running, it’s important to keep evaluating the process and testing to find the right workflow for your recruiters, hiring managers and candidates. In particular, your solution should meet the needs you have now, as well as evolve for the future.

Is Your Global Talent Acquisition Strategy Fit for the New World of Work?

Posted on June 10, 2022January 3, 2023 by akessler

In an unprecedented development, the number of open positions now exceeds the number of people looking for work in many parts of the world. In the U.S., job openings numbered at over 11 million in February 2022—five million more vacancies than available workers. It’s a similar situation in the UK, with vacancies outnumbering unemployed people for the first time ever. In the face of these labour shortages, it’s imperative for employers to tap into new talent pools to fill their vacancies and remain competitive.

As employees seek greater workplace flexibility and opportunities to work from home are in greater demand, organisations can now access a new talent pool. Geographic borders are blurred, and many organisations are expanding their recruitment reach by engaging with globally dispersed talent. Enterprises still using a siloed, regional approach to talent acquisition will struggle to reach their recruitment goals in today’s talent landscape. A global talent acquisition strategy will not only help you to compete locally but also win to top talent on a global scale.

Embracing Global Workforce Planning as a Talent Acquisition Strategy

In the U.S., 60% of employees say they enjoy working remotely. In fact, between January 2020 and March 2022, U.S. job postings for remote work went up 319%, with searches exceeding that 458%. Meanwhile, in the UK, remote job postings have increased by 329%, whilst the number of searches has skyrocketed by 790%. So clearly, candidates seeking remote work outweigh the remote opportunities offered.

Some enterprises have been embracing a borderless workforce for many years. Yet, many are still resisting remote employees even though it offers them a number of opportunities, including expanding access to talent, boosting diversity, and increasing brand presence in new markets.

By embracing a location-flexible approach to your workforce planning, you give yourself a greater chance of winning the competition for talent. For example, before the rise of remote work, you may have been looking for 30 roles in your offices in France and Belgium. But now, if you think about it as simply 30 French-speaking roles, you can widen your search area (i.e., French ex-pats living in the UK) and access new remote talent you didn’t consider before. In today’s ultra-competitive talent landscape, dropping geographic limits means reduced time-to-fill, cost-to-fill and ultimately, productivity loss from positions remaining open.

Plus, it can also eliminate the need to open a legal entity in new countries to remain compliant. In our French-speakers example, rather than going through the effort and expense to open an office in France or Belgium to gain French language skills, you could look for French speakers in the countries where you’re already established.

Where Talent Acquisition Strategies Fall Short

Traditionally, companies recruiting in numerous countries or continents have multiple talent acquisition teams, each focused on particular geographies. Even if an organisation is leveraging recruitment process outsourcing (RPO), this typically means using multiple vendors to achieve global coverage. For example, they may use one RPO provider in North America and a different one in Europe.

Whether through different regional talent acquisition teams or regional RPO providers, these disparate teams can lead to disjointed processes, candidate experiences and technology systems—and a lack of visibility into your recruitment program across countries or regions. As the pandemic recovery accelerates and talent continues to become more decentralised, a siloed recruitment model won’t keep up with the future of work and an increasingly geographically disparate workforce that is unattached to traditional offices.

How a Talent Acquisition Program Benefits from the Global RPO Model

According to Everest Group, a growing number of multi-national companies are embracing a global recruitment process outsourcing model, in which one RPO partner takes responsibility for fulfilling positions—or augments your in-house teams—in any country where the company has multiple openings. This helps organisations to gain better insight and control, obtain the best talent at the global level and achieve efficiencies that come from standardisation and centralisation.

Often organisations are unprepared for global recruitment. In fact, 30% of business leaders say their organisation’s top management team lack knowledge of hiring for international markets. Global RPO partners can help you create a recruitment process that is consistent but can still be flexed to account for the cultures and candidate expectations in each market. Leading RPO providers offer global delivery centres that help you expand your geographic reach and hours. Plus, some even offer proprietary technology to support virtual interviews for remote candidates.

A single global RPO partner can boost your talent acquisition strategy by:

Giving you more agility and allowing you to scale up or down as your hiring needs and market conditions fluctuate.
Expanding your hiring capacity through on- and offshore recruitment teams
Providing a wide variety of language capabilities
Helping you navigate compliance issues and cultural nuances in all countries where you’re hiring

Consolidating under a single RPO partner gives you more control over your global talent acquisition outcomes by eliminating the need for multiple relationships, raising the quality of your hires while saving time and money. The economies of scale gained through a global RPO model can help you achieve your recruitment goals in all your locations. Plus, with work-from-home models becoming more popular, a global talent acquisition program provides an opportunity for organisations to expand across borders to access new skilled talent to accelerate recovery and growth.

To learn more about how global RPO can help your organisation tap into new talent, check out our ebook, The Definitive Guide to RPO.

Are You Ready for RPO? 3 Questions to Ask

Posted on May 25, 2022January 3, 2023 by akessler

Shrinking talent pools, widening skills gaps and high turnover rates are driving companies across industries to look for new ways to boost their global talent acquisition program—including recruitment process outsourcing (RPO).

Whether your organisation is thinking of outsourcing some, most or all parts of your recruitment, an RPO partner can help. It’s not just about outsourcing your recruiting, it’s important to find the best partner to help manage the people, process, technology and strategy behind your talent acquisition function, which touches every employee, team and department within your business.

So, how do you know if RPO is the right choice for your organisation? In this article, we’ll cover three questions to ask to understand how your company can benefit from RPO.

Why RPO?

RPO is a cost-effective and scalable talent acquisition solution. Whether you’re looking for a regional solution or a multi-country partnership, RPO has been proven to boost the ability to hire at speed, manage the employer brand, streamline the candidate experience and maximise economies of scale across geographies.

Here are just a few of the benefits of RPO:

Improved Candidate Quality

Your RPO partner can help you boost your number of qualified candidates and the quality of hires. In fact, according to Aberdeen Group, 81% of best-in-class organisations say RPO helps to fill their skills gaps. This keeps hiring managers happy and helps your organisation achieve its goals while also boosting retention.

Better Candidate Experience

You want your recruitment process to leave every applicant, regardless of whether they get the role, with a positive experience. Your RPO team will provide consistent and honest feedback throughout the recruitment process, so they know exactly where they stand and what comes next.

Improved Hiring Manager Experience

Your RPO team reduces the administrative burden on your hiring managers by taking over résumé and CV screening, candidate assessment administration, initial interview steps, candidate communication and feedback tasks. RPO partners prepare hiring managers for interviews, provide them with feedback and identify any candidates at risk of dropping from the process so managers can make informed decisions.

Reduced Time-to-Fill

The longer a position goes unfilled, the more likely your business is to experience productivity loss—and loss of revenue. RPO teams are able to find candidates and fill roles faster by building and maintaining talent pipeline, providing quick access to qualified talent. By streamlining and optimising recruitment processes, improving the time-to-hire and retention rates, RPO providers can increase your recruiting return on investment and deliver real cost savings to your bottom line.

Improved Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

In their global Diversity Wins report, McKinsey revealed organisations in the top quartile for ethnic and cultural diversity outperformed laggards by 36% in terms of profitability. So, it’s imperative that recruitment is an element of your DE&I journey. RPO teams are knowledgeable about different talent attraction options and can expand to new job boards, social media groups, online forums and events to engage more diverse candidates. Plus, RPOs understand the regional nuances of DE&I issues. For example, in some countries like Poland, it is not legal to ask candidates their ethnicity, gender, etc.

Is RPO Right for Me?

So, how do you know if RPO is right for your business? Here are some questions to ask yourself:

Is your talent acquisition approach slow and clunky or failing to meet your organization’s talent needs?
Do you lack the ability to scale your recruitment efforts up or down quickly as your business needs change?
Are you seeing high candidate dropout rates or low offer acceptance rates, which could indicate a bad candidate experience?
Are low conversion rates more pronounced for candidates from diverse backgrounds?
Are you hearing complaints from hiring managers about the quality of candidates?
Are new employees leaving your organization less than a year after joining?
Do your assessments and other selection tools need to be updated?
Do your in-house teams lack the cultural literacy to support recruitment in all regions?
Are your hiring costs going up?
Is the time it takes to fill positions getting longer?
Is your usage of talent acquisition technology immature or out-of-date?
Do you lack access to the right data to make workforce planning decisions?

If you answered “yes” to even a few of these questions, RPO can help you meet your talent acquisition goals.

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Is RPO Right for You?

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What Should I Look for in an RPO Partner?

If you’ve decided to that RPO will be a good for your organisation, you may be wondering how you go about choosing the best provider. Below are just three things to consider in order to make RPO a truly transformational model for your business.

Partnership

If there’s one thing we’ve learned in 30 years of developing talent acquisition programs, it’s that no two organisations are the same. That’s why it’s important to look for an RPO partner that is collaborative, that will listen to your ideas and take the time to truly understand your business and pain points.

We hear a lot from clients who have worked with other providers who tried to squeeze them into their standard program, and it just doesn’t work. RPO creates efficiencies and improvements to the candidate experience through repeatable processes, but these processes should be adapted to your unique needs and challenges. Look for an RPO partner who understands the balance between consistency and customisation.

Talent Advisory

The success of your recruitment program starts with your employer brand. Many RPO providers offer talent advisory solutions that help you to develop and improve your employer brand, EVP, recruitment marketing approaches, candidate assessments and more.

So often we see companies who have agencies that execute recruitment marketing campaigns separate from their RPO program. However, with this siloed approach, the agency is less likely to be held accountable for their campaigns leading to high quality candidates entering later candidate journey stages like interviews and assessments. On the other side, the RPO partner has limited means to provide feedback on the campaigns and the impact the ads have on recruitment outcomes. By having both functions under one partnership, you get a holistic program that not only attracts candidates—but truly delivers against your hiring goals.

Look for a partner with in-house resources (not one who outsources to an agency) who takes a consultative approach to maximising the effectiveness of your whole talent acquisition program, beyond just filling vacancies.

Technology

Digital transformation has hit HR and recruitment, bringing an influx of new solutions to the market that offer a range of benefits. RPO partners increasingly offer tech consulting and can show you how emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, machine learning and predictive analytics can boost your ability to attract top talent.

Some RPO partners have proprietary technology, like PeopleScout’s Affinix™, while some offer expertise in well-known platforms. Look for a modular approach that can integrate with your existing systems, so you can continue to benefit from existing investments and grow your recruitment tech stack as your needs change. Any technology you implement must comply with data privacy regulations in all regions where you’re recruiting, including any rules about where data can be stored. A SOC 2 certification is a great way to tell that a vendor takes information security seriously.

In this era of tight competition for talent, augmenting your recruiting capacity and ability with an RPO provider could be a crucial step for the future of your business. When it comes to RPO, there is no single best option, only the option that best aligns with your organisational needs. By understanding your current recruitment challenges and requirements, you can find an RPO partner with right capabilities to support your global recruiting goals.

Learn more by downloading our RPO guide.