Tag: Technology

Early sign-up numbers indicate high demand for the shortlisting portal

Odro, the video recruitment supplier in the UK and three-time TIARA Tech Star winners, has announced the launch of its latest product, Hiredeck. This new digital shortlisting portal represents a departure from Odro’s previous focus on video-based software products. Moreover, Hiredeck is the company’s first ‘freemium’ model offering and standalone product in the market.

According to the organisation, prior to its launch, Hiredeck generated a high level of interest, with over 375 sign-ups to its waiting list in just three weeks. This strong response indicates the anticipated demand for the product, which aims to revolutionise the candidate submission stage for recruitment agencies.

Ryan McCabe, CEO of Odro, expressed enthusiasm for the launch and the change in direction for the company. Odro has been successful in the recruitment market for over eight years, primarily providing video technology solutions. However, McCabe believes that now is the right time to introduce a new business model and has been impressed by the initial reception of Hiredeck.

Ryan commented: “When we started out, video in recruitment was still a relatively new concept whereas now, it’s a fundamental component of a recruiter’s toolkit. How agencies use video has evolved over time and we understand that not all customers want or need to use every element of our platform. That’s why we took the decision to modularise our offering, and Hiredeck is the first release as part of that new strategy.”

“Video will, of course, be available to use inside Hiredeck. It still has a hugely important part to play in the modern-day hiring process, but we wanted to give recruiters greater flexibility, which is why it’s not integral.

“Hiredeck really elevates the process for our end-users – recruiters –  but also, crucially, for their clients. Hiring Managers, in many cases, spend hours reviewing candidates. Hiredeck takes a lot of the pain and time out of the process. It takes the service offering for our customers to a whole new level and I believe it’s only a matter of time before sending CVs with emails attached is a thing of the past. Hiring Managers should and will demand more as the industry continues to evolve and improve.”

Odro’s product portfolio has previously included tools for two-way interviewing, shortlisting, solo interviewing, and sales messaging, all packaged as a comprehensive solution for agencies’ end-to-end digital management. The introduction of Hiredeck and upcoming standalone products represents a shift in strategy for the Glasgow-based company.

Hiredeck aims to enhance the recruitment process for both recruiters and their clients, particularly hiring managers who spend significant time reviewing candidates. The portal streamlines the process, saving time and improving the overall service offering. McCabe predicts that the traditional practice of sending CVs with emails attached will soon become obsolete, as hiring managers demand more advanced solutions in an evolving industry.

Odro has a track record of introducing innovative products to humanize the hiring experience at scale. Hiredeck, being an example of this mission, is offered as a free product to encourage widespread usage and enjoyment of its benefits. In addition, Odro plans to launch a Pro version at a competitive price of £29, which will include valuable features such as fully customizable branding, increased candidate submissions and attachments, export capabilities, and automation integrations.

The CRM-led product, Hiredeck, has been launched in partnership with Bullhorn, and Odro has already enabled several customers to go live. The company also has future plans for additional integrations.

For more information or to sign up for Hiredeck, interested parties can visit Hiredeck.io.

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A total of £152,871,499 was spent on 4,032 IT staff

According to official data, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has sharply increased its IT staffing budget, rising to a total of £150m! A total of £152,871,499 was spent on 4,032 IT staff in the most recent financial year ending March 2023. This was a 91% increase on 2019’s figure of £79,916,209 where only 2,203 staff were in post. The findings, obtained under the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act by were revealed Parliament Street think tank.

The FOI also revealed that HMRC launched several new initiatives within its IT department, the Chief Digital and Information Office (CDIO) recently. HMRC commented that around 2,000 learning requests for courses and training are submitted annually by staff, with some staff attending multiple programmes.

HMRC also said that it has developed 15 academies for CDIO that deliver professional learning for specific technical roles such as data scientists or for functions and technologies like cloud computing. The FOI response stated: “The academies use a blended approach of externally and internally developed learning content. They are led by internal subject matter experts who ensure we are aligned to industry standards and using the best learning opportunities for our people.”

James Campanini, CEO, of VeUP commented: “It’s encouraging to see HMRC investing in IT skills and cloud support, areas which will enable it to vastly improve public services and reduce costs in the long-term. By embracing cloud, organisations of all sizes can better manage large volumes of data, optimise costs, and dramatically improve their performance.”

Tech expert Joanna Reynolds, MD of Bordeaux & Burgundy added, “Enhancing digital skills is crucial for creating a now and future-ready workforce. HMRC’s new academy programme is an excellent example of sharing knowledge and expertise throughout their organisation. By prioritising investment in tech skills, we can position the UK as a centre for Private Equity and Venture Capital investment and a hub for the development of tomorrow’s most innovative technology companies. Skills such as these are a key differentiator, and forward-thinking organisations will appreciate technology’s value and use it accordingly.”

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STL leverages AI for integration

STL, one of the world’s leading fiber optic providers with approximately 8,000 employees worldwide, has been expanding rapidly since the pandemic began, acquiring businesses globally. To ensure a successful M&A process and true integration, the company has increased its use of AI in human resources functions. By leveraging technology, STL aims to strike a balance between the use of technology and the human touch. The company believes that AI should be used in a meaningful way that creates a common experience and scale across the organization.

STL has been transparent with employees about the benefits of implementing AI processes to reduce uncertainty and ambiguity. Some of the use cases that resonated with employees included standardizing experiences across the organization, scaling at speed while maintaining the human touch, and increasing employee inclusivity. One of the company’s most powerful tools has been an AI-based CV stack ranking tool that eliminates unconscious bias in the recruitment process, making it more inclusive.

According to  Anjali Byce, AI brings different processes together with speed, bringing solutions together with experience, making true meaningful integration happen. Overall, STL believes that using AI in a meaningful way is critical during the growth period and can lead to a common experience and scale across the board.

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TALiNT Partners and Stratigens are proud to announce a strategic partnership which will provide an unparalleled range of talent intelligence solutions to the needs of our members, partners and clients.

Alison Ettridge, CEO of Stratigens said “Companies do research on their customers, their markets and their competitors to inform decisions all the time. With Stratigens, they can now do research on the greatest asset –access to the workforce and people they need to deliver their strategy. Our partnership with TALiNT Partners will support our mission of putting human capital at the heart of business decision making. We are really excited about working with the team to overlay the insight that TALiNT Partners’ network brings with labour market data to empower HR, TA and business leaders to make critical strategic decisions.”

Ken Brotherston, CEO of TALiNT Partners added “for some time we have been looking for a partner to support the insight generated by our network with global workplace data to bring a unique offering to the market. Stratigens is the perfect partner to help us achieve this and together we look forward to continuing to help raise capability in how employers find and keep the people they need, and how staffing and talent solutions providers can better support their clients.”

About Stratigens

Stratigens software is helping the world’s best companies make smarter decisions about where to grow, who to hire from and the diversity of their workforce. We join the dots between the labour market, economics and locations. Putting human capital intelligence at the heart of decision making.

We live in a world rich with skills and geo economic data, but the data is messy, unstructured, big and in thousands of places. Stratigens uses the latest in machine learning and big data to gather, extract, categorise and label the data, and put it into a format that’s easy to digest. So our clients can make smarter, faster, more informed decisions.

Stratigens – https://www.stratigens.com

About TALiNT Partners

TALiNT Partners connects the talent ecosystem. We bring together a global network of leading employers and solution providers to make better talent and technology decisions. Providing intelligence, insight and peer-to-peer networking that drives quality, innovation and improves inclusion across the talent ecosystem

TALiNT Partners – https://talintpartners.com/

 

If you would like to know more about the partnership, please contact Ken Brotherston, CEO of TALiNT Partners, ken@talintpartners.com

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UK government gives thumbs up to screening and identity services firm

Background screening and identity services firm, Sterling, has become the first such organisation to become a certified digital identity service provider (IDSP), under the UK Digital Identity & Attributes Trust Framework, for UK Right to Work and DBS Criminal Record checks.

The company, which meets the requirements of the trust framework, can employ in-session biometric and document verification to confirm a job candidate’s identity. This fulfils the standards to digitally process DBS Criminal Record and UK Right to Work (RTW) checks. In addition, the company can provide employers with a statutory excuse for UK Right to Work.

The digital nature of these checks is set to reduce turnaround times, improve accuracy, and reduce the chance of identity fraud.

Steve Smith, President International at Sterling, commented: “We are delighted to announce that Sterling is the first identity and background screening service provider to become a certified digital identity service provider (IDSP). IDSP’s can carry out digital identity verification to a range of standards or levels of confidence, and this development will improve the experience for both the job candidate and the employer.”

“In addition, Sterling’s certification as an IDSP is well timed, particularly as the competition for talent intensifies and with growing concerns around identity fraud. While some businesses may not immediately recognise the advantage of using an IDSP, the introduction of digital identity should be viewed by employers as a positive change: Working with a registered IDSP will allow firms to benefit from technology that can significantly improve the candidate experience, as well as the speed and accuracy of their background checks.”

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Brazilian tech company wins international Work for Tomorrow award 

Brazilian start-up Labora Tech were announced as the winners of Work for Tomorrow, an international competition looking for the best innovations responding to longer and changing working lives.

The Work for Tomorrow competition was launched by The International Longevity Centre-UK (ILC) and is supported by the Innovation Resource Center for Human Resources. They received more than 60 submissions from organisations and individuals across 17 countries.

Labora Tech provides end-to-end HR technology, revolutionising recruitment by matching people to jobs based on their soft and hard skills and provides training, reskilling, and mentoring to ensure employees thrive in their new roles.

Through large scale recruitment drives, its approach reduces bias and supports career changes and flexibility at work.

With more than 20,000 adults already on the platform, the Sao Paolo-based company is looking to expand its business globally to encourage more employers to “retire the CV”, favouring a skills-based approach.

Considering the UK is battling skills shortages like never before, train-and-deploy as well a focus on hiring for soft skills could very well be what employers need to do to mitigate the lack of candidates in the job market.

Sérgio Serapiao, Co-Founder and CEO of Labora Tech, commented: “I am delighted and honoured to win this competition. The competition has shown the quality and power of initiatives all over the world. I am sure we can contribute a lot to codesign the future of work.”

“I truly believe Labora has developed a social technology that can reach a global scale, and make a positive impact to millions of people and thousands of companies, redefining how we work of tomorrow. This award reinforces that we are on the right track.”

Lily Parsey, Global Policy and Influencing Manager at ILC, said: “The world of work is shifting – and quickly. As our working histories become more complex, we’re more likely to change careers and reskill, we need to think about hiring in a new way. Labora Tech takes blind recruitment one step further by really putting skills, not biases, at the heart of recruitment. It’s long overdue that we move from judging people on their CVs to valuing what someone actually brings to a job.”

The second award given at the event was a “Community Award” given to Brave Starts. This UK based community platform helps adults try out new careers by providing them with information, linking them with professionals, and helping them build the right skills for their career leap.

Jodi Starkman, Executive Director of IRC4HR, said: “It has been an honour and a pleasure to support the Work for tomorrow programme. We have been inspired by the creativity and passion demonstrated by all of the competition participants and are especially excited to recognise Labora Tech and Brave Starts. Their innovations are critical to the work of today and tomorrow as we address the opportunities and challenges presented by longevity in all the places where people come together to accomplish shared goals.”

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Amazon hires more alumni from Russell Group universities than any other major tech company

According to analysis from TonerGiant, there are universities in the UK that are more likely to set up graduate careers at the world’s biggest, most valuable tech companies.

Using LinkedIn, TonerGiant discovered where more than 500,000 employees of the world’s most valuable tech companies studied at university to find out which universities are more likely to get you hired by a tech giant. Its analysis looked at 26 of the biggest tech companies including Google, Facebook, Amazon, and Microsoft.

By teaming up with tech recruitment expert, Misha Yurchenko at Carrus.io, they were able to find out more about the hiring process at tech companies to quantify the research.

The university where graduates are most likely to get hired to work in tech companies is the University of Cambridge with an impressive 4,219 alumni now working at one of the big tech giants.

In second place is Cambridge’s rival, the University of Oxford with 3,410 alumni and in third place, is The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) with 3,378 alumni.

Ranking  Name of University Number of Alumni
1 University of Cambridge 4219
2 University of Oxford 3410
3 The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) 3378
4 The University of Manchester 2548
5 University College London 2454
6 London Business School 2403
7 Imperial College London 2358
8 The University of Edinburgh 2063
9 University of Leeds 1676
10 The University of Nottingham 1673

The UK universities where graduates are least likely to get hired by a tech giant 

According to the analysis, Queen’s University Belfast is the university in the UK where its alumni are least likely to be hired by a tech giant with only two recorded alumni working for one as of January 2022.

Ranking University Number of Alumni
1 Queen’s University Belfast 2
2 Royal Agricultural University 4
3 Regent’s University London 5
4 The University of Law 6
5 University of East Anglia 7
6 St George’s, University of London 14
7 Harper Adams University 17
8 Newman University, Birmingham 20
9 Leeds Trinity University 29
10 University of the Highlands and Islands 32

Which UK regions are most likely to produce alumni for the world’s biggest tech companies?

London came out on top with a massive 27,678 alumni now working for a tech giant. South East England ranked in second place with 12,683 alumni and Scotland in third place with 8,269 alumni.

Northern Irish universities were found to be the worst to attend if students want to work for a tech giant afterwards with only 620 alumni now working for one of the top 26 biggest tech companies.

Region Number of Alumni
London 27678
South East England 12683
Scotland 8269
North West England 7980
East of England 7464
West Midlands 7216
Yorkshire and the Humber 6557
East Midlands 6513
South West England 6035
North East England 4184
Wales 3060
Northern Ireland 620

Amazon hires more alumni from Russell Group universities than any other major tech company

According to the study, Amazon has more employees (17,427) that graduated from a prestigious Russell Group university than any other of the most valuable tech companies in our analysis.

Accenture comes in second place, with 13,660 graduates from Russell Group universities working there.

The full breakdown of which universities each tech giant is most likely to hire is available here. ​

Company Number of Russell Group alumni
Amazon 17,427
Accenture 13,660
IBM 11,702
Google 9,207
Apple 7,340
Oracle 4,803
SAP 3,389
Cisco 3,250
Microsoft 3,076
Huawei 2,514

 

 

 

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New data released by CareerWallet, a recruitment and employment technology company has highlighted the massive impact the pandemic has had on the recruitment sector as job applications in the last quarter of 2021 were 369% higher than the same time in 2020.   

CareerWallet, who processes 10 million applications a day believes this increase in applications is due to a renewed confidence in the job market and a backlog of employees who stuck out less than perfect roles due to furlough schemes or fears of changing roles in the midst of the pandemic. According to the report, November 2021 was a record month for applications with almost five times as many applications as November 2020 and the surge continued in December with over three times the applications during the festive period compared to last year.  

Craig Bines, CEO at The CareerWallet Group, commented: “Our national report has highlighted how UK employees are returning to the job market in their millions across the UK and this number seems to be continuing to rise month on month. The skill shortages issues have been well documented and as economic fears from the pandemic subside it is now clear that employees are becoming aware of the abundance of new potential jobs available to them.” 

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Emails are most monitored form of communication
A recent study by Instant Offices revealed that there are a number of different employee monitoring trends happening in the new hybrid workplace.

According to the study, new hybrid working models have led to an increased need for employee surveillance software, with demand for the software skyrocketing in 2020 by almost 60%.

Similarly, according to Google Trends, worldwide searches for ‘employee monitoring software’ increased by 35% in 2020 compared with the year before. Key findings from the survey revealed that 78% of companies have reported using employee monitoring software to track worker performance and online activity; 73% say they have stored the recording of calls, emails and messages and these have affected team members’ performance reviews. Frightening findings have revealed that over 50% of employers have implemented non-traditional monitoring techniques and 94% of employers track emails.

The business areas using surveillance tools include financial, legal, retail, technology, healthcare, manufacturing, energy and government sectors.

Common surveillance methods and practices include:

Keylogger software on company equipment (alerts supervisors when workers use devices for personal activities); webcams to track biometric data; screen monitoring and screenshots to gauge productivity and stress levels and employer-provided smartphones equipped with geolocation software to track employees’ whereabouts.

The only way to successfully implement these tools is through complete transparency. More than half of workers feel anxious about their companies surveillant communications. Still, when the employer explains the reasons for the monitoring, over 50% of employees say they are more at ease with it.

 Mark Turner, Chief Technology Officer at the Instant Group commented: “The rise in remote working and an influx of new technology means monitoring has ramped up. When used strategically, this tracking benefits all– businesses can identify resourcing issues, streamline processes and identify gaps, while employees can use the data to prioritize, manage workloads and track productivity. The key to using monitoring tools successfully is transparency and communication. If you can show your teams that using a piece of tracking technology not only benefits the business, but them too, then you’re on the right track.

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Manpower Group recently launched Talent Solutions, combining three of its offerings. TI sat down with Talent Solutions to learn more about the launch of their Talent Solutions Brand in 2021 and how it came about. Here’s what they had to say.  

TI: Can you tell me a little more about Talent Solutions (size, number of employees, locations served etc)? 

With 40+ years of experience delivering client-focused, technology enabled, innovative workforce solutions to the market, Talent Solutions delivers expertise to organisations across the talent lifecycle.  

We manage over £10 billion of spend in our Managed Service Programmes; we deliver 250+ Recruitment Process Outsourcing solutions to clients around the world; and we’re supporting some of the world’s largest organisations on their journey towards Total Talent Management. 

Our ability to capitalise on new thinking, new workforce models and new possibilities has made us the most recognised and respected workforce solutions provider in the world – as benchmarked by leading industry analysts. 

Across the UK, we have over 550 people working for Talent Solutions, with offices in Altrincham, Bristol, London, Edinburgh and Southampton, as well as client sites throughout the UK. 

TI: ManpowerGroup recently launched Talent Solutions (combining three of its offerings). What was the company’s reasoning behind that? 

Talent Solutions combines three of ManpowerGroup’s global offerings – RPO (Recruitment Process Outsourcing), TAPFIN MSP (Managed Service Provider) and Right Management – providing innovative solutions and end-to-end, data-driven capabilities across the talent lifecycle through one brand.  

TI: What opportunities does the new offering bring to the group? 

This new combination of offerings will leverage deep industry expertise and a strong understanding of what talent wants, delivering new solutions to address organisations’ complex global workforce needs. 

TI: Were there any challenges when it came to launching it? 

Talent Solutions was introduced in the UK on the 31st March 2020, a week after the UK was put into lockdown in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, we took the decision to adjust our plans in the UK, taking a much lower-key approach to the introduction of the new brand.  

Whilst this wasn’t how we envisioned sharing the new brand, it was appropriate given the difficult times everyone was facing. Since then, we have been working on raising awareness of our new brand and the value we can bring to our clients.  

TI: What makes this offering unique? 

With the combination of RPO, TAPFIN MSP and Right Management, Talent Solutions is able to provide seamless delivery of end-to-end workforce solutions that help clients to navigate risk, cost, efficiency and quality while facing changing and uncertain markets.  

Employer brand 

TI: How has the company been developing its employer brand in recent years? 

With the launch of Talent Solutions, we’ve introduced new imagery which focuses on learnability and the opportunity for individuals from all backgrounds to progress in the organisation. Across the wider business, we highlight the breadth of opportunity for new experiences across the organisation, whether that’s with our different ManpowerGroup brands, or working directly with our clients across the UK. 

TI: What role does employer brand play in the attraction and retention of talent? 

An effective employer brand strategy is one of the most important aspects of a successful recruiting function and we believe that this will become even more important in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. To build a compelling employer brand, you should focus on being authentic in sharing communication of your purpose and the connection that you develop with your candidates, and being consistent in your communication and approach with every candidate. 

Attracting and retaining talent 

TI: What are you looking for in a potential member of staff for your team? 

Whilst knowledge of the industry is an important attribute, with any new employee, we look for individuals with high levels of learnability and adaptability. This increases the likelihood that they can adapt to new opportunities and changing environments and job requirements. 

Given the size of our organisation and the different brand structures, it’s also vital that a potential member of staff demonstrates a positive attitude to team working. A collaborative approach helps to drive better results in our business. 

We also don’t just recruit those with experience working for recruitment organisations, considering the relevance of their external knowledge to our market and the market of our clients. 

TI: How does the company go about attracting emerging talent? 

We have a wonderful Talent Team that operates across ManpowerGroup, helping us to attract the right talent for our organisation. In 2021, we also launched our internal talent academy, designed to bring people with no experience of recruitment into the business, put them through an initial training programme and support them as they start their career with ManpowerGroup. 

TI: How does the company use training and development to retain staff? 

We’re very fortunate that ManpowerGroup puts a considerable amount of investment into training and development to help employees progress in their careers.  

As well as having access to an extensive library of online training, we also offer our employees access to Advanced and Higher Apprenticeships as well as leadership programmes with organisations such as Harvard Business School and INSEAD. 

Outsourced hiring 

TI: What benefits does outsourced hiring bring to a company? 

Run correctly, outsourced hiring can offer companies a number of benefits. At Talent Solutions, we focus on providing customers with greater predictability and flexibility of costs, a more efficient recruitment process, an improved candidate experience and importantly, improved talent quality.  

TI: How do you ensure you’re delivering maximum value to your clients? 

Across ManpowerGroup, we focus on the 4 B’s – Build, Buy, Borrow and Bridge – when working to develop effective talent strategies and deliver maximum value for our clients. Each stage involves: 

  • Build – Invest in learning and development to grow your talent pipeline 
  • Buy – Go to the external market to find the best talent that cannot be built in-house in the timeframe required 
  • Borrow – Cultivate communities of talent outside the organisation, including part-time, freelance, contract and temporary workers to complement existing skills 
  • Bridge – Help people move on and move up to new roles inside or outside the organisation 

Enhancing hiring 

TI: Where do you think improvements are needed in the hiring process? 

One of the areas that we see most frequently which needs improving is how organisations manage their silver medallists through the hiring process. Whilst that individual may not be the best candidate for the specific role businesses are hiring for at the time, companies could benefit from reviewing whether there are any other suitable roles for them in the organisation. If nothing is available, then they should be kept on file (subject to data restrictions) for any future relevant roles. 

Crucial here, as with all hiring, is getting the candidate experience right. This is often something which is neglected in our busy work environments. Candidates are ultimately consumers too, so even if they’re not the right fit to work in your organisation, they may still be a customer, but only if you treat them with respect throughout the process. Introducing technology at the right stages of the hiring process can help you to streamline the process more effectively, allowing more time to provide the human touch.  

TI: How could technology be used to enhance hiring further? 

From Robotic Process Automation, to our Talent Solutions PowerSuite, which creates the flexibility to tailor our offerings to meet evolving client and candidate needs, we’re continuously developing our technology capabilities and working with our partners to provide clients and candidates with the best technology to support their hiring processes.  

Some of the key areas where we see further opportunities to enhance the hiring process using technology are through improved use of chatbots, On-Demand Interviewing and Search and Match technology. 

Hiring trends 

TI: What hiring trends has the company been witnessing recently? 

The most obvious trend having an impact on hiring at the moment are the talent shortages we’re seeing across the board. We’re seeing a continued increase in hiring intentions, with a 30 year high of +32% (ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey, Jan 2022). However, in many cases, clients are unable to meet their hiring needs due to a shortage of talent. We’re working closely with our clients to help them find the skills they need, by thinking differently about their talent strategies.  

TI: How do hiring trends and patterns differ across the countries you operate in? 

Operations in each country are assessing the changing trends in every location to make sure they are aligned to the customer needs.  

TI: What is Talent Solutions doing to counter skills shortages in certain sectors? 

Talent Solutions has a number of different solutions to support clients facing skills shortages. We support our clients to develop talent pipeline management, to ensure they have the individuals they need, when they need them. This can be done through a range of techniques including bridging their current employees into other areas of the business through training or providing Employed Consultants. Employed Consultants are highly skilled specialists who are permanently employed by Experis (part of ManpowerGroup), and then supplied on an interim basis.  

We also work with clients to build Train to Fit programmes, taking individuals who already have a range of technical and functional skills which are valuable to their business, and have the aptitude to develop further. We create a training programme in partnership with the client, helping individuals advance their knowledge to the right level and meet the needs of the role over an agreed period of time.  

On top of these solutions, Talent Solutions also has the benefit of skills development programmes across the wider ManpowerGroup business, including the MyPath programme in Manpower, which helps associates upskill and develop along their career path. MyPath associates are provided with personalised guidance, career development, training and continuous access to jobs – helping them to achieve their ambitions and meet employers’ needs today and in the future.  

Diversity and inclusion 

TI: Are companies doing enough to be truly diverse and inclusive? 

There is always room for improvement in this area. But it’s clear that businesses are waking up to the need to be truly diverse and inclusive. It’s now on the agenda for every leadership team, with many businesses taking big steps towards active inclusion, rather than just paying lip service. At ManpowerGroup, we created seven steps to conscious inclusion in the workplace: 

  1. Change yourself first 
  1. Leadership has to own it; don’t delegate it 
  1. Flip the question – ask, “Why Not?” 
  1. Hire people who value people 
  1. Promote a culture of conscious inclusion: programmes alone don’t work 
  1. Be explicit; when and where?  
  1. Be accountable; set measurable and achievable outcomes 

Managed correctly, one of the potential opportunities to come out of recent turbulence could be the removal of some of the barriers to the workplace for more diverse groups. For example, the increased acceptance of remote working and flexible hours could help businesses to become more inclusive for those with care responsibilities. 

TI: What is Talent Solutions doing to support improvements in this (both internally and for clients)? 

We’re working with our clients to share advice around implementing the seven steps to conscious inclusion. We’re also advising them on strategies for reaching and attracting diverse groups when advertising for new roles. 

We’ve also recently strengthened our commitment to inclusion and diversity globally, committing to: 

  • Reaching our primary global diversity goal of 40% female leadership by 2024 
  • Investing in our inclusive culture to retain and develop diverse talent 
  • Advancing employment security for the long-term; reskilling, upskilling and improving wellbeing and employability for all 

In the UK, we’ve also launched our Supplier Diversity Initiative, a commitment to developing relationships with diverse suppliers who enhance the solutions we offer to our clients. We will be supporting diverse suppliers to accelerate their growth and ability to succeed in the marketplace, as well as helping others to become more diverse and inclusive. The result is optimal client solutions and partnerships within a world of diverse and high-performing talent. 

Looking to the future 

TI: What are your plans for the company over the year ahead? 

As building talent increases in importance in workforce planning and development, we will continue to support our clients and candidates through the further development of our Academy offerings – ensuring that we are upskilling individuals for the jobs of the future and providing the skills that our clients need to grow and progress. 

Using our expertise in ESG, we’ll enhance our support for clients around Diversity, Equality and Inclusion, helping them to improve in these vital areas at the same time as accessing potentially untapped talent pools as part of the strategy for overcoming skills shortages.  

In response to ongoing volatile market conditions, we’ll also continue to increase the flexibility of our solutions, using our Centres of Recruitment Excellence (CoRE) to ramp requirements up and down as needed and supporting across the Total Talent Management lifecycle. Our Agile RPO solutions will continue to expand, meeting the need for short to medium term support for internal recruitment teams. 

We will also continue to work with our new and existing clients to help them meet changing workforce requirements post COVID-19.  

TI: What outsourced hiring trends do you expect to see in the year(s) ahead? (Will there be an increase in in-house hiring?)  

With the increased pace of change in customer demands impacting upon workforce strategies, we anticipate an increased need for businesses to speak to external experts for advice to help them continue to run their organisations as efficiently as possible. This will provide them with an outside in perspective from people who have a view of the wider market.  

Understandably, we also expect to see demand for flexibility from candidates continue, as many will have experienced the potential benefits during lockdown.  

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