The current economic situation has led to a growing number of candidates on the market, which in turn has meant many organisations have seen an increase in the volume of applications received.
Many organisations have struggled to cope with the increased workload as the recruitment process has buckled under the strain of applications.
Recruitment activities have noticeably dropped over the last year in many organisations as they focus more on redundancy and restructuring in response to the downturn. This has enabled organisations to take a long hard look at the current recruitment processes and systems that they have in place.
‘Email us your cv’ or ‘fill out a simple application form online’ is no longer enough – the experience for the recruiters can backfire with high volumes of applicants, serial job seekers sending their cvs out to anyone who makes it easy enough, and the best quality applicants hard to pick out amongst the crowd. Many HR and recruitment professionals are taking stock and using the lull in recruitment to focus on evaluating the situation and making process improvements so that once activity starts to pick up again the organisation is better placed to make the best hires in an efficient and effective manner.
Barratt Homes found themselves in this position in autumn last year, as the downturn in housebuilding meant that practically all recruitment ceased. However, internal resources were used to focus on the future so that they were prepared for when recruitment activity picked up again and a “Planning for Recovery” strategy was put in place with the resourcing element emphasising the use of online techniques.
Attracting applicants is the first step in any recruitment strategy and with competition high for quality people within the construction industry. Barratts focused on redesigning the careers website to incorporate an online application process that would not only give all candidates a great experience but that would also provide recruiting managers with relevant information to make the hiring decision easier.
The online application process includes a high degree of screening for all roles through the use of “differentiators”. Applicants complete a number of focused and job specific questionnaires which assesses their suitability to the role and gives immediate feedback. The initial results in the first two months have been impressive with an increase in quality of suitable applicants. On average 52% of applicants are self selecting themselves out during the online process as they realise they may not be suitable. This has meant that recruiting managers are significantly reducing the time spent screening applications.
The second key element of this new online strategy that is saving time and improving the process is the implementation of a Talent Bank System. This new recruitment tool is proving a great time saver with elements such as built in candidate communications and the ability to provide a consistent process for all candidates whichever role they apply for. For the first time the business is able to provide accurate reporting and measurement on all recruitment activity.
A fundamental driver for this project was the ability to build a qualified talent pool with which Barratts could develop a relationship. This is becoming a reality and Barratts is now able to keep in contact and communicate regularly with potential employees easily. In this way overall costs will be reduced as it is anticipated that future vacancies will be filled from this talent pool and the need for reliance on agencies reduced.
Lisa Astbury, Changeworknow
