Organisations have a range of technologies available to them, to assist with workforce recruitment. Many experts believe Recruitment is the most important of all Human Resource operations and is the corner stone for business survival. Technologies available to firms today, to assist them with attraction and recruitment, include using professional recruitment firms, pursuing passive candidates, increasing employment incentives, developing an Employment Value Proposition, implementing Strategic Recruitment Practises and accessing internet or E-Recruitment, social media and mobile telecommunications.
To increase candidate attraction, firms need to build enhanced recruitment practises. These strategies, along with pursuing passive candidates from non-conventional backgrounds and aligning the employee incentives more directly to the role on offer will have an impact on recruitment efforts. In terms of increasing incentives for future workers, organisations can look at base wages, components of pay for performance, individual and locational incentives and support for career paths. This approach is highly reliant on the external forces of the economy and labour market. For example, in a buoyant labour market, the organisation may not have the need to include as many inducements for workers. However, in a tight labour market, inducements can attract candidates to the organisation.
A longer-term strategy is to ‘Manage external brand to attract passive job seekers’, also known as an ‘Employment Value Proposition’, or EVP, which is a long-term strategy that assists businesses to grow talent pipelines and attract staff. Additionally a talent pipeline can be invaluable to organisations to manage growth, respond to economic conditions and contend with natural attrition rates. A strong EVP positions the organisation in the minds of future candidates as an employer of choice.
Strategic Recruitment Practises, or SR, is another staffing strategy that organisations employ and involves transforming organisational strategic needs into implementable recruitment strategies. In short, this involves hiring candidates not simply to complete the job, but also to fit within the organisation. SR assists in developing the EVP and building a greater brand to attract applicants to the organisation.
E-Recruitment is an internet-based system, for recruitment where applicants apply for roles though a company website. With any online system, there are inherent disadvantages, mainly in the removal of personal contact in the initial experience for the candidates. Applicant’s may feel anonymous and look for feedback on their applications.
Organisations can protect against this perception by the utilisation of simple auto-responders, which ensure that every applicant receives a personalised email upon submission of their resume. This email can advise the candidate of their progress and further emails can be automatically assigned, to address the individual’s progress through the system. Furthermore, the two-way conversational possibilities generated by social media can counteract the feelings of isolation that candidates may encounter.
There are, nevertheless, inherent risks with Social Media. For example, access to individual profiles means that potential employers may be privy to personal information. Organisations need to be aware of bias and unlawful discrimination around this information, as well as contraindications with privacy laws. Therefore, while utilising social networking for recruitment can be highly desirable, steps need to be taken to ensure employment decisions are based on merit alone.
The use of current technologies may also inadvertently discriminate against older workers who are not conversant with internet applications, social media and mobile telecommunications. Organisations need to be mindful of those they indirectly discriminate against. The illegal activities of discrimination are communicated through State and Federal legislation and prohibited forms of indirect discrimination are grounds for litigious activity even if not intended by the employer.
There are a wide variety of technologies and strategies used by firms to attract new talent to their organisations. Most methods are used in combination and in respect to the target applicants.
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