PPS' Corporate Blog

May 17, 2013

Six things to look for in an RPO

Filed under: Corporate Blog, Everest RPO, Job applicants, PPS Works, Recruitment, Talent Pool, Temporary recruitment — Tags: , , , , , , , — ppsworks @ 3:39 pm

The recent release of the Everest - Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) – Service Provider Landscape with PEAK Matrix Assessment 2013 gives some useful insight into what RPO is about in an international context, and also gives us an opportunity to ask how it is different at a local level.

rpo

Recruitment Process Outsourcing

Everest Group defines RPO as transfer of ownership of all or part of recruitment processes or activities on an on-going basis rather than “out-tasking” arrangements (typically handled by recruitment agencies, staffing companies, or executive search firms) that are managed on a project-by-project basis.

This distinction is much more blurred when looking at the local level, with plenty of recruitment agencies looking to add RPO type service alongside their more traditional offerings.

So what should you be looking for if you want to “transfer of ownership of all or part of recruitment processes on an on-going basis” to an external provider?

With the help of Everest research, and PPS’ own experience, we propose the following list:

1) Market segments – make sure that the providers that you consider are specialists in your area. RPO is about the process, but it’s mostly about the recruitment, and so doesn’t differ from other services in requiring a knowledge of the market and the candidate.

2) Account Management – make sure that your account manager knows as much or more about recruitment than you do! And that they quickly come to understand exactly what sort of talent your organisation needs. Expect to be challenged in what you are doing – this is what you are paying for.

3) Technology – this needs to fit your process, rather than the other way around. Applicant tracking and talent pool management systems have come a long way recently, but configuration to your requirements is likely to be more relevant than some of the fancy functionality available.

4) Management Information – this should demonstrate how you are recruiting better talent more efficiently than before, and over the length of your contract. Hiring Managers will need to be persuaded by any change, and direct evidence that the RPO is helping them deliver is essential.

5) Resourcefulness – Twitter, Pinterest, Situational Judgement Tests, video assessment – all aspects of sourcing and screening talent that have emerged over the last few years. What will be next? Are you going to hear about it from your RPO once it is relevant to your business? You should!

6) Your brand – An applicant sourced and screened by PPS for one of our RPO clients recently fed back to us that though they were disappointed to not have been selected for the role, they were so impressed with the company, that they had gone out and bought one of their products. Make sure you select an RPO that guarantees to uphold your brand 100%.

So what do you think? Disagree with any of these? Think that another aspect of RPO provision should have made the top 6? We would love to discuss it with you.

willWritten by Will Shepherd – Managing Director of PPS Works Ltd

Find Will on LinkedIn

Find Will on Twitter

January 4, 2013

A response to ‘How Helpful are References?’

Filed under: CV, Job applicants, PPS Works, Recruitment, Social Media, Talent Pool, Temporary recruitment — Tags: , — ppsworks @ 4:42 pm

PPS’s George Rouse responds to our previous blog post on: ‘How Helpful Are References?’

Having worked on referencing for a social housing organisation, I feel there are advantages to obtaining employment references, but at the same time there is definitely room for improvement.

It can be difficult and time consuming obtaining references for a full 3 year period, especially considering that within some industries such as Care

Are you overwhelmed by references?

Are you overwhelmed by references?

and Support, several candidates will have worked in range of temporary / bank positions. It is not always simple contacting each individual employer to verify what could even been as short as a week’s work. This however is still essential, and it needs to be done. The reason being; from experience, several candidates don’t tell the truth about employment dates, and often claim to have worked for longer than they have. Contacting employers to verify dates of employment clarifies these issues, and provides an accurate reflection of employment duration.

We used an electronic system for completing reference requests. Some employers were happy to cooperate and complete the references using our system (direct or by email), which saved loads of time. Other employers go by the traditional paper post method, and this can delay the reference being received significantly (sometimes by months), and ultimately this will delay the offer process (which is unfair on both the candidate and the potential employer). I definitely feel the way in which references are obtained needs to be more flexible, and if an electronic reference is requested, this should be readily available (it is quick and easy for both parties).

With regards to reference content, this is an area which can cause problems. It should go without saying that employers’ personal opinions on an individual’s personality should be disregarded and should not be included on an employment reference. Judgements and comments on work performance however should be included. The employer would need to tread carefully in this instance and ensure opinions and factual observation would not clash or overlap. From my experience, most employers just give a start and end date, and comment on the amount of sick days and whether the candidate has been through any disciplinary procedures. This does shed some light on reliability, and it is in my opinion beneficial for disciplinary matters and attendance to be disclosed.

I generally agree with the point “I don’t believe references give a good indication of likely performance nor how reliable a person will be, there needs to be recognition that the type of job applied for will determine the type of information required and therefore what the reference should look like” (Adam Abdulla, HR Customer Operations Manager, Turning Point). Aside from attendance and disciplinary matters, the employment references I have obtained give no reflection of an individual’s previous performance at work. There should be a more consistent approach to accounting for and recording work performance on an employment reference. The solution would need to be standardised. A more comprehensive employment reference would need to steer clear of comments regarding a candidate’s personality or an employer’s perception of an individual which can easily be overlapped with factual observation of work.

What is your opinion? Comment and share!

george

Written by George Rouse, Account Co-ordinator at PPS Works.

Find George on LinkedIn

If you would like to attend the next #SocialCareConnect roundtable event, where we will discuss CQC guidelines in relation to referencing and other issues, please contact our Marketing Team and email Hannah Adkins at: hannah.adkins@ppsworks.com for more information.

November 13, 2012

5 Low Cost Ways to Improve Candidate Experience

Filed under: Applicant tracking, Corporate Blog, Graduates and Industrial Placement, IT at PPS, Job applicants, PPS Works, Recruitment, Social Media, Talent Pool, Temporary recruitment — Tags: , — ppsworks @ 9:29 am

Candidate experience is a hot topic in HR and Recruitment circles right now.

Organisations spend huge sums of money getting their branding and customer service right.  Yet when it comes to attracting the right people to you as an employer, there can be huge failings.

The Guardian has offered us some insight into the top 3 candidate frustrations which include:

-       Lengthy application forms;

-       Lack of response and feedback;

-       Lack of company information.

If applicants are getting a poor impression of you as an employer, you can be pretty sure they are not talking about you favourably as a brand.  More worryingly, these are likely to be the very same people who live and work in the communities in which you operate.

 

FIVE low cost ways you can immediately improve the candidate experience

 

  1. Use www.surveymonkey.com to gain feedback from all your applicants – not just the ones you hire!  Find out where their frustrations are, encourage their ideas and prioritise which ones you can quickly fix.  Cost – £nil;
  1. Use social media channels so candidates can take a much closer look at what it’s like to work in your organisation.  Take some pictures of the team, communal areas, buildings, even the desk they will be sitting at and incorporate them into a Pinterest or Facebook page.  Cost – £nil;
  1. Communicate with every applicant.  Yes – each and every one of them!  If you have no recruitment technology in place, create a simple thank you template in Outlook and manually respond, no excuses.  Cost – £nil;
  1. Allow candidates to book themselves into their interview slots (and free up an administrator’s time), using a ticketing website such as www.eventbrite.co.uk.  Cost – £nil;
  1. Keep your application form as short and sweet as possible.  Ask yourself what information do we need to know now and what information could we afford to ask later?  Cost – £nil.

 

PPS – we help housing organisations improve the way they recruit – forever.

We can help you implement any of the techniques outlined above and change the way you recruit forever.

If you would like to talk to us or any of our clients about how our work has changed recruitment for them, please get in touch by email or on 07939 297 337.

Written by Lee Burman, Business Solutions Manager at PPS Works

November 9, 2012

The Best Recruitment Articles This week

Filed under: Corporate Blog, Recruitment, Social Media, Temporary recruitment — Tags: , , , , , , — ppsworks @ 12:25 pm

PPS have been searching the internet for the best recruitment articles of the past week and we’ve decided to share our top five with our blog readers.

What a week it has been! The web has been brimming with news that impacts our nation, such as these following delights:

Hot news and recruitment tips from the world wide web.

  •  Marks and Spencer’s have not just had any profit drop, they’ve had a M&S mighty 9.7% drop in profits;

As far as a standard Autumnal week goes, I’d say this one has been fairly impressive.

In regards to the recruitment world, news has also been coming in thick and fast over the past seven days. Here are the five best recruitment articles we’ve come across – and not one of them is hedgehog related, I promise:

NHS Recruitment News:

  • This article echoes the importance of workforce morale in the NHS. In the health service “value walks on two legs”: NHS Recruitment.

Scare Yourself into Better Recruitment Policies:  

For You And Your Company:  

What Really Does Make a Good Recruitment Team?

What Do Moby Dick and RPO Have in Common?

  • To celebrate the 161st anniversary of Melville’s classic novel, Pinstripe Talent posted this interesting article: Call Me Ishmael RPO.

Keep checking the PPS blog for the next update of the best recruitment articles.

Written by Hannah Adkins, Marketing Executive at PPS Works.

Find Hannah on Linked In

Find Hannah on Twitter.

October 12, 2012

Recruitment and RPO: What? When? How? Why? – Continued.

Filed under: Applicant tracking, CV, Graduates and Industrial Placement, IT at PPS, Job applicants, PPS Works, Social Media, Talent Pool, Temporary recruitment — Tags: , , , , , , — ppsworks @ 3:32 pm

Last week Dave Beesley, Account Manager at PPS Works, spoke about the top five FAQs PPS comes across on a regular occurrence. Here, he adds another five to the ever-increasing pile!

View last week’s top five here.

6. How important is the telephone interview?

Now that you’ve got your attraction right, you’ll be receiving applications a plenty. The application screen and

Telephone interviews are an important tool to challenge candidates beyond the content of their CVs.

telephone interview are both vital. Your recruitment partneruses these tools to challenge candidates beyond the

information provided on a CV.

The telephone interview allows for a consistent assessment of relevant competencies. It provides the opportunity to examine a candidate’s motivations and passions – what they know about you as a company, and what excites them about your role.

A well-prepared candidate will be researched, and will demonstrate excellent examples to back up the skills laced throughout the CV. They will perform well at interview, and ultimately in post.

Telephone interviewing helps you in advance of face-to-face interviewing. Our assessors prepare a write up summary, which explore areas of strength and those that need probing further at the next stages.

7. Can I reconsider candidates for future recruitment campaigns?

A successful recruitment campaign will not only source your ideal recruit. It will provide a pool of candidates that can be held and considered for future vacancies.

PPS manage ‘talent pools’ for clients. These significantly reduce advertising spend for future campaigns, and allow offers to be made faster.

The key is to communicate with your talent pools. Company updates, news and events are a great way to keep candidate interest heightened.  Regular communication will go a long way in ensuring that you are seen as an employer of choice.

8. Why has a candidate withdrawn their application?

Take a look at your vacancy list, and I guarantee others around you will be recruiting into a similar position. It’s a common misconception that candidates won’t ‘drop out’ because of high competition for a shortage of vacancies. There are plenty of positions out there, and believe it or not candidates do have choice.

Candidates may withdraw their application for a number of reasons. They may have been offered another position, be relocating, or their salary expectations may not align. Whatever the reason, it’s important to monitor this.

PPS’ in-house applicant tracking system measures the reasons why candidates withdraw. But it doesn’t just monitor. It acts. Candidates are communicated with individually or on bulk, at the click of a button. We use simple measures to prevent loss of interest.

Providing candidates with the outcome to their application – good or bad – is essential. Do this and they won’t be deterred from applying to you again in the future. Candidates are often customers of your business. Fail to reply and you are more likely to lose this custom.

9. Do I need to give feedback to unsuccessful candidates?

Feedback is a gift. It’s great for candidates who let’s face it, only want to improve so that they can secure a position with a

Do you give feedback to unsuccessful candidates?

company like you.

Your recruitment partner provides candidates with feedback at every stage of the recruitment process. PPS ensure candidates understand the feedback and are able to develop as a result.

Providing hints and tips are great for supporting candidates with their preparations. It’s a simple service, and it’s good service.

If I had £1 for every time a pleasantly surprised candidate told me we’re the only company to respond to them and provide feedback, I’d be very wealthy indeed!

10. Why are people leaving my organisation?

Many companies ask us why attrition remains a battle for them, usually in certain departments while others aren’t affected.

I’m afraid I can’t give one definitive reason why people might be leaving your company. It’s completely contextual and could be for a number of reasons – not just one. Our starters and leavers’ surveys can give you these statistics.

The starter survey is conducted after induction and probation periods. They highlight any potential issues at an early stage. You can step in to put the wrong’s right, before it’s too late.

With your leavers – did they need additional support or training? Was it down to salary? Lack of progression? PPS contact recent leavers to gain open and honest feedback. We report on reasons for leaving, whether they’ve been hired by competitors, and what could have retained their employment. After all – if you don’t know these things, you can’t fix them.

 

So there you have it. Some frequently asked questions that we love answering at PPS. I could go on to tackle a further 50 but my colleagues too like a good challenge – so why not get in touch. Ask us your best recruitment based questions. We challenge you to challenge us.

Written by Dave Beesley, Account Manager at PPS Works

Older Posts »

Theme: Customized Shocking Blue Green. Blog at WordPress.com.

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 487 other followers