As the climate brightens and jobs start to flow back into the market, Fiona McLelland looks at how recruitment consultancies can help both candidates and employers
The food and drink industry employs one in seven workers in the British economy – that’s 3.6 million people. Despite the breadth of jobs on offer, the industry is rarely listed at the top of anyone’s career choice and most people enter food and grocery by default rather than design, according to the IGD. “We have found that people working in this industry seized opportunities that came their way, rather than targeting food and drink as a career,” says IGD chief executive Joanne Denney-Finch. "But once people join us, they like what they see and usually stay for life.”
Attracting the right candidates into the industry has become even tougher in the aftermath of the recession. Although there has been a significant increase in the number of sales vacancies in the sector since the beginning of 2010, competition for talent has intensified, according to according to Resourcing and Talent Planning Survey 2010.
The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development survey revealed that 41% of organisations in the UK – double that of last year – reported increased competition for suitable candidates due to a sharp fall in the pool of available talent, despite the growing labour market. “This industry provides a world of opportunity as we promote on merit and invest heavily in our people, so we ought to be front of mind as a career choice,” says Denney-Finch. “But there is strong competition for the best candidates and we must keep looking ahead to ensure we are top of mind to attract some of the very best people, retain and develop them.”
Even when the market emerges from the effects of the recession, Denny-Finch believes that employers in the fmcg and grocery market are entering a “pivotal decade” that will continue to place new demands on the workforce. The on-going quest to become quicker and smarter means that the industry will have to attract people fluent in new technologies, the drive for a leaner and more sustainable supply chain creates demand for sharp analytical skills and, as the industry seeks to forge stronger bonds with consumers, great communicators will be in high demand.
A survey for the IGD Skills and Employment summit earlier this year showed that the industry will indeed be investing in skills for the future, with almost 80% of companies expecting to increase training and development budgets per head over the next ten years – a fifth expect to increase it by more than 25%. But how can the industry make sure it is attracting the right candidates through the door in the first place?
WORKING WITH SPECIALISTS
Although the drive to lower recruitment costs in the current economic climate has led to companies adopting alternative hiring practices, over three quarters (67%) of organisations in the private sector still cited the use of recruitmen agencies as the most effective route for attracting applications (Resourcing and Talent Planning 2010, CIPD). Historically there has been a degree of mistrust in the employer–agency relationship: employers complain agencies foist unsuitable candidates upon them, and agencies are in a constant race against a number of competitors working to fill the same vacancies. But the market has changed and there has been a marked shift towards ‘partnership’ relationships, according to ‘A Guide to Productive Partnerships’ produced by the CIPD and Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC).
The new-found desire to build partnerships and work on a more consultative basis will enable clients to make better use of the resources and services available to them through a recruitment agency, says Antony Wroe, chair of REC sales and retail sector group. “When a client simply instructs an agency to send ‘x’ amount of CVs that tick certain criteria by such and such a time, they will not be getting the best service. It's a bit like asking Gordon Ramsay to bake a cake and then telling him how to make it,” explains Wroe “There has got to be quality, two-way communication so that the agency really gets to know the client's needs and can use the full potential of their expertise.” He adds: “Agencies have constant relationships with candidates and will often have in-depth knowledge of their personality and capabilities that extends far beyond what’s written on the CV. Clients should get the benefits of that expertise – it’s what they paying for, after all.”
Wroe suggests that open communication should involve agencies talking to the line managers who are doing the hiring to hear job requirements first hand, rather than having everything relayed through the HR department. By learning more about the job, the agency has a better chance to find the perfect match between candidate and client.
“An agency should be acting as the eyes and ears of the client,” says Wroe. “Armed with the relevant information, the agency can find out if the candidate's job expectations and long-term objectives match what the company has to offer. “A candidate is often more honest with the agency, whereas in the more formal interview environment they will tell a potential employer what they want to hear.” Wroe also believes that the development of better relationships will also open up a raft of services for the client. Rather than acting simply as a processor of CVs, recruitment agencies offer services such as job profiling and benchmarking, they advise on legislative updates, organise assessment centres and run reference checks.
The full offer reflects a growing trend for recruitment process outsourcing (RPO). There has been a significant rise in numbers of large companies opting to outsource the entire HR function in order to concentrate on core activities and control costs.
ADOPTING BEST-PRACTICE
Developing a more fruitful relationship with recruitment partners relies on the client's ability to communicate the company's recruitment strategy, says CIPD adviser for resourcing and talent planning, Claire McCartney. “To get the most out of a relationship with a recruitment agency, you’ve got to be willing to spend a lot of time with them to explain your recruitment strategy and values,” she says. “The agency must have a very clear understanding of their client’s needs as they are often the first point of contact a candidate has with the company”
Establishing an effective strategy is fundamental to a company’s overall recruitment success, yet nearly half of all companies admit they have no formal resourcing strategy in place (Resourcing and Talent Planning 2010, CIPD). Adopting a well-thought out strategy can ensure a company utilises all available tools and technology to reach the widest pool of talent in a cost-effective means, says McCartney.“Putting an effective strategy in place is an important stage in developing bestpractice recruitment,” says McCartney. "The strategy should look at short-term objectives and how these will affect the long-term, and should consider how the internal development of staff will impact on future recruitment needs.”
Cost also has to be an important consideration of any strategy. Recruitment can be an expensive business - the median recruitment cost of filling a vacancy is currently £8,333 for senior managers and £2,930 for other employees (Resourcing and Talent Planning 2010, CIPD). The recession has forced companies to develop more creative and cost-effective recruitment tactics to reach potential candidates. “The use of social networking sites, such as Facebook and You Tube, has been used for several years to varying degrees of success,” says McCartney. “But it is only now that companies have the means of evaluating the effectiveness of social media campaigns.” Some of the most eye-catching viral recruitment adverts posted on You Tube have proved among the most effective uses of new media, according to McCartney. She also cites the innovative use of social networking sites, such as setting up Facebook groups to create a readymade community for new graduate recruits before they even begin.
Companies have also responded to the recession by becoming more creative with their own websites, which are being used as a key source of information by the growing number of job seekers making speculative applications.
“There are some great career sections on company websites now that help attract talent,” says McCartney. “Case studies covering a 'day in a life' can give great insight into what a job entails and can be very effective alongside a checklist of skills needs for the role.”
To overcome the rising competition for talent, companies are developing relationships with potential candidates, even when they are not actively looking to fill immediate vacancies. McCartney explains that companies are 'keeping potential employees warm' by running open days to talk about future job opportunities, gathering interest by asking employees to invite friends, and placing adverts in the local and trade press.
Recruitment has been forced to adapt to difficult conditions in the turbulent jobs market, and change is likely to continue as the demand for new, more sophisticated skills in the food and drink industry come to the fore. “The current jobs market is constantly changing and companies need to be very agile to respond to fluctuating conditions,” says McCartney. “Looking forward, companies need to have strong recruitment strategies in place and become more creative in order to tap into the widest pool of talent as possible.”
