Solution: Employer Brand

3 Strategies for Solving Hospitality Recruitment Challenges with Technology

Posted on by nfuqua

Amongst travel and hospitality recruitment challenges is a clear and persistent issue: staffing shortages. Talent leaders are struggling to fill empty roles amid low unemployment rates.

According to a 2023 survey by Deloitte, more than half of hotel executives (53%) say their properties have between 25–74% of the workforce they had in 2019. The situation at airports is even tighter with 62% of executives saying their workforce is half its prepandemic size or smaller.

On top of this, the unemployment rate sits at 3.8% in the U.S., 4.3% in the UK and 3.7% in Australia. The travel industry also saw a massive exodus of workers. In 2022, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported record quit rates during the Great Resignation, with the quit rate in leisure and hospitality jumping by a percentage point to 6.4%. So, how can talent leaders hire hospitality and travel workers when the available pool is smaller?

Luckily, the right technology solutions deployed at the right times during the recruitment process can help talent leaders source, attract and screen candidates to find the best talent more efficiently and effectively. In this article, we’ll cover three technology interventions that talent acquisition teams can put into place to tackle hospitality recruitment challenges.

Hospitality Recruitment Challenge No. 1: Our open positions receive few applicants, and many of those who do apply do not have the background or experience needed to succeed in the role.

Solution No. 1: Invest in artificial intelligence sourcing technology to fill the top of your funnel.

Amongst common hospitality recruitment challenges that we see is finding talent with a wide variety of specialized skills across diverse and distant geographies. There is no one-size-fits all approach to hiring travel and hospitality talent. Finding a chef for a luxury property in Lake Como, Italy will look very different from a search for housekeeping staff at a family resort in Orlando, Florida. Finding a flight attendant looks very different from filling a baggage handler role.

With such a tight talent market, employers must target passive talent. During the Great Rehire talent leaders focused on filling roles as quickly as possible, but now they need to focus on finding and hiring more experienced workers.

An AI-enabled candidate sourcing tool can identify passive candidates with the right experience for specific roles and can even identify which candidates would be most likely to leave their current employers. Within seconds, recruiters can build a list of these candidates and share the opportunity. PeopleScout’s talent acquisition suite, AffinixTM, includes the AI sourcing feature, Talent Finder, which can connect employers with millions of passive candidates.

Consider the following best practices for using an AI sourcing tool:

  • Before searching for candidates, make sure you have a thorough understanding of the technical and soft skills needed to be successful in the role.
  • Use features, like PeopleScout’s Diversity Boost, that can identify candidates from underrepresented backgrounds to help meet your DE&I goals.
  • Blend AI with the human touch. By having a recruiter reach out to a sourced candidate with a personalized message, employers can create a positive experience.
  • Make sure a human makes all final hiring decisions. AI can make the process more efficient, but hiring managers should make the final call.

Hospitality Recruitment Challenge No. 2: Candidates drop out of our process before reaching the offer stage, either by abandoning the application or ghosting the interview.

Solution No. 2: Improve the candidate experience by making the process quick and easy by embracing tools like SMS or virtual interviews.

Hospitality employers must ensure that their candidate experience sets them apart from other employers at every stage of the candidate journey. For candidates, how they’re treated during the hiring process is a preview of what their experience will be as an employee.

PeopleScout research shows that the hospitality industry has a lot of room for improvement in this area. In our analysis of the candidate experience of more than 215 different organizations, the hospitality sector came in last overall with the lowest average scores in every stage except Follow-Up (in which it was second to last). While hospitality organizations effectively showcased their diversity and inclusion efforts on their career sites, only half gave candidates the opportunity to register their interest.

Your candidate experience should be unique to your brand and help you distinguish yourself from other employers hiring for similar roles or skills. Many talent acquisition teams don’t appreciate that candidates don’t perceive the recruitment process as a funnel. They’re the main character in their own story, and they expect to be treated that way. Candidates want to engage in their job search on their own terms. So, anytime they encounter a roadblock to getting the information they want, especially if they don’t know what to expect in the next stage, they’re more likely to drop out of your process.

There are several ways to leverage  technology to make the process easier for candidates. First, start with a shortened application. According to PeopleScout research, nearly 40% of organizations asked candidates to duplicate information that was already contained in their resume or CV. Make sure your application only collects the information that is most critical for determining who moves along to the next step of the process.

From there, other technology solutions can be used to gather the additional information necessary to make a hiring decision. SMS can be used for an initial text screening, and virtual interviews, like those available in Affinix, allow candidates to answer additional questions at their own pace while feeling as though they’re driving the process.

Finally, automated communication can keep a candidate engaged in the process. The right technology platform can help by sending automated messages to candidates, via email or chatbot technology, updating them on their application status. You can even craft messages letting a candidate know if they did not get the job, so they aren’t left wondering if you ghosted them.

Consider the following best practices for using technology to improve your candidate experience:

  • Make sure your application is mobile-friendly and can be filled out in 10 minutes or less. Test your current application to see how long it takes to apply.
  • Provide candidates with the opportunity to opt-in to receive text messages or emails from your organization to remain in compliance with local spam laws.
  • Tailor the type of virtual interview to the type of role. While video interviews may be appropriate for customer-facing roles, others may prefer the opportunity to answer questions with recorded audio.
  • Make it simple for candidates to understand where they are in your process; this can be something as simple as a progress bar.

Hospitality Recruitment Challenge No. 3: Our assessment process isn’t effective at identifying the candidates most likely to succeed in the role, leading to increased turnover, reduced productivity and disengaged employees.

Solution No. 3: Assess candidates for passion, purpose and mindset.

The travel and hospitality industry is all about guest experience, and hotels, airlines, restaurants and theme parks differentiate themselves with the unique experience that they provide. So, talent leaders need to find candidates who not only have the right skills and experience but also a deep understanding of the brand and how it is reflected in the service provided.

For example, in a major city, you may find three hotels on the same street, one catering to a high-end luxury experience in a historic building, another geared toward young travelers with bold art and hit music playing in the lobby, and a third designed with business travelers in mind—with a large business center, meeting rooms and plenty of quiet spaces for someone to plug in their laptop. Many hotel brands even have this variety of styles within their own portfolios. The service provided in each hotel looks different, and a person who excels at a luxury property may not thrive in a trendy hotel.

By selecting the right assessment tool, employers can go beyond looking at just capability, behavior and results but also determine whether candidates align with their organization’s purpose, have passion for the work they would do and whether they have the mindset to adapt to new environments.

By building an assessment during pre-screening that accounts for passion, purpose and mindset in addition to the standard skills and experience, employers can use technology to shortlist candidates based on several different attributes at the same time. This way, employers can get a clear picture of the different strengths and weaknesses of candidates in order to make informed decisions about which candidates are best to bring forward to the interview stage.

By identifying candidates who match well with an employer’s brand of guest experience, talent leaders can reduce turnover and build a happier, more engaged team. In turn, that leads to better customer experience and a better bottom line.

Consider the following best practices for building an effective assessment for hospitality talent:

  • Identify the essential behaviors for the role to separate those who will actually be successful from those who simply present well during an interview.
  • Build assessment tools around your organization’s vision and values so applicants have a chance to form a connection to them from the start.
  • Self-evaluation tools can also be used to help applicants consider their own strengths and whether the role will offer sufficient opportunity to use and demonstrate them.
  • Distinguish between good candidates who meet the criteria and great candidates who will take an organization further.

Finding the Right Talent Technology for Hospitality

The travel and hospitality industry still faces an uphill climb in returning to or even exceeding their prepandemic staffing levels, but talent leaders have additional and improved tools available to help identify, attract and screen candidates. However, in a full marketplace, finding the right tools can be a challenge. Consider partnering with an RPO with expertise in technology that can help identify the most impactful ways new tools can solve your most pressing hospitality recruitment challenges.

Get more strategies for attracting and hiring hospitality, travel and tourism talent, with our Recruitment Handbook for Travel and Hospitality.

Reinventing Your EVP: The Secret to Hacking Your Productivity and Performance

Posted on by akessler

By Simon Wright, Global Head of Talent Advisory Consulting

CHROs are a facing a tough balancing act. Employees want flexibility, purpose and belonging. The C-suite wants innovation, productivity and profit. How can you satisfy both without compromising? The answer lies in evolving your employee value proposition (EVP) into a dynamic, human-centric personal value proposition (PVP).

I know, I know, your EVP seemed pretty solid just a few years ago. But let’s face it, times have changed. The pandemic shifted mindsets, the Great Resignation shook things up, and workers now expect a whole lot more from employers when it comes to meaningful work, development opportunities, work-life balance and flexibility. Yet despite these changes, many organizations are still relying on the same transactional EVPs focused on compensation and benefits, leading to low engagement levels and high turnover.

This article delves into the profound changes happening in our workplaces, the shift in employee expectations and how a more human-centric approach to your EVP can help you keep up.

The Productivity Vacuum

One-third of new hires begin looking for a new job within the first six months. It takes approximately eight months for an employee to reach their full productivity. So, if a third of employees leave their job before they’ve become fully productive, organizations experience a productivity vacuum that not only disrupts continuity and knowledge transfer but impedes innovation and business performance.

This productivity vacuum is costing the global economy $8.8 trillion (USD) every year, or 9% of global GDP, according to Gallup’s State of the Global Workplace report. To put this into perspective, $8.8 trillion is the combined market capitalization of the top 10 companies in the world or the third wealthiest country based on GDP.

(Sources: Gallup | Mercer | Microsoft | Gartner)

The connection between employee retention and productivity—and in turn revenue growth—is a compelling driver for organizations to prioritize engagement and retention efforts. Retaining top talent through a compelling EVP is crucial to mitigate disruption, knowledge loss and financial costs caused by attrition. According to Gartner, companies with a strong EVP can decrease annual employee turnover by 69%. Plus, these organizations are four times more likely to have highly engaged employees and two times more likely to have high performers.

Your EVP captures the essence of your uniqueness as an employer and the give-and-get between your organization and your employees.

However, today’s employees are demanding more, and the one-size-fits-all EVP approach must evolve to keep up. Rethinking your EVP with a more human-centric approach that recognizes employees as people, not just workers, can help achieve the balance between empathy and economics. By focusing on shifting the EVP to a Personal Value Proposition, or PVP—so each employee feels it’s personalized to them—organizations can go beyond traditional offerings and provide exceptional life experiences that match employee needs and deliver a positive emotional connection.

Introducing the Personal Value Proposition (PVP)

Lucky for you, we’re sharing how forward-thinking companies are effectively shifting from a generic EVP to human-centric strategy that shapes the individual employee experience. The Personal Value Proposition (PVP) is a personalized, flexible approach tailored to address employees’ diverse needs and aspirations as unique individuals, not just workers.

Think of the PVP like building your own custom sports car versus buying one off the factory lot. You get to select each component to match your preferences—convertible or hardtop, leather or cloth seats, high-powered V8 or fuel-efficient hybrid engine—tailoring a one-of-a-kind vehicle personalized just for you. Similarly, organizations embracing a PVP approach offer employees personal growth opportunities, flexibility in their work arrangements and customized career paths that align to what motivates them.

The result? A 18% increase in productivity and a 23% increase in profitability, according to Gallup.

Getting More Personal to Boost Productivity

The PVP does not replace the EVP; rather, it evolves it. It’s not just about being an attractive employer. It’s about enabling each individual to realize their full potential, and in doing so, empowering your organization to thrive in an increasingly competitive and complex landscape. Give your EVP a fresh new flavor that will leave employees smiling and revenue growing. Because keeping your workforce happy and driving performance doesn’t have to be impossible. A PVP makes it possible.

Intrigued to learn more? Get the inside scoop on evolving to a PVP along with stats on the productivity vacuum crisis and the steps for scaling your PVP strategy in our new ebook, The Human Advantage: Redefining EVP to Fuel Organizational Performance.

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The Human Advantage: Redefining EVP to Fuel Organizational Performance.

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The Human Advantage: Redefining Your EVP to Fuel Organizational Performance

Posted on by akessler

The Human Advantage: Redefining Your EVP to Fuel Organizational Performance

Engaged and empowered employees are the key to unlocking productivity and profitability. Employees now prioritize meaningful work, development opportunities, work-life balance, and a sense of belonging over job security and loyalty.

Complete the form to download our ebook, The Human Advantage: Redefining Your EVP to Fuel Organizational Performance, to learn how evolving your employee value proposition (EVP) to a personal value proposition—what we call a PVP—can help you attract, engage and retain top talent.

This ebook provides data-backed insights on:

  • The cost of disengaged and unsatisfied employees in terms of productivity loss and turnover
  • How emphasizing employee well-being and purpose can boost engagement, innovation and performance
  • Shifting from a generic EVP to a tailored Personal Value Proposition (PVP) focused on each individual

Plus, you’ll get actionable steps to implement a human-centric and dynamic PVP strategy.

The Multigenerational Workforce: Has Gen X Been Overlooked in the Workplace?

Posted on by akessler

There’s a new generation moving into leadership roles that’s poised to change how things are done in the workplace. You may not hear as much about them as Baby Boomers or millennials, but Generation X is the silent workhorse that makes up over third of the workforce and over half of managers.  

So, who is Gen X and what exactly are they bringing to the workforce? Grab your flannel shirt, and let’s find out! The last in our series on the multigenerational workforce, this article explores what makes Gen X tick and how they’re stepping up to lead organizations into the future.  

Who are Gen Xers? 

Born between the early 1960s and 1980, this cohort came of age and entered the workforce in the shadow of the larger Baby Boomer generation. Now, as they move into management and leadership roles, some might argue that Gen X is the hardest working generation. Either way, they’re ready to put their own stamp on workplace culture. 

Growing up as latchkey kids in an era of change, Gen X professionals are more independent and adaptable than previous generations. Gen X entered the workforce during the rise of Silicon Valley and the dot com era, making them comfortable with the pace of technological advancement. For them, adopting new technology feels natural, and they are driving digital transformation across sectors. 

When it comes to the workplace, Gen X values authenticity, work-life balance and professional development. They respond better to flexible schedules that allow for caring for aging parents and children and prefer managers that empathize with those priorities.  

According to a study by Stanford University, Gen X prefers to work from home 50% of the time, compared to Boomers at 35% and Gen Z at 45%. Make no mistake, Gen Xers are focused on results, they just believe there are many valid ways to achieve success beyond face time at the office.  

Having watched their parents climb the corporate ladder, Xers are focused on carving their own path at their own pace. This cohort is extremely hardworking with an innate sense of independence. If you want something done, hand it off to a Gen Xer and let them run with it. 

Gen Xers don’t pay much attention to rank and hierarchy. They prefer direct communication and are more likely to casually ping you on Slack than set up a formal meeting. But don’t mistake their informal style for a lack of drive. Generation X is extremely entrepreneurial and forge their own career paths rather than expect opportunities handed to them.  

Are Gen X Overlooked at Work? 

Gen X may be overlooked in the workplace due to their easy-going approach. In fact, 79% of Gen X says they’re forgotten in the workplace, overshadowed by younger and older workers. It’s hard to blame them, when Gen Xers are promoted at rates 20% to 30% slower than millennials, despite being strong candidates for leadership roles.  

As employers have paid a lot of attention to nurturing millennial talent in recent years, Gen X has gone underappreciated for their contributions to the workforce. With Gen X leading the Great Resignation as 37% more left their company in early 2022 compared to the year before, employers should concentrate on retaining and engaging this valuable cohort as they enter the second half of their careers.  

Move Over, Boomers: Here Comes Gen X 

As Gen X moves into boardrooms and leadership roles, we are starting to see their impact on workplace culture. Transparency and direct communication are in. Bureaucracy and hierarchy are out. Gone are the days of formal business attire and rigid top-down management. Today’s workplaces are more casual, flexible and egalitarian.  

Gen X leaders prefer to mentor and develop talent rather than micromanage. They lead by example and earn respect by rolling up their sleeves alongside their employees. Gen Xers believe the best way to achieve success is by empowering their team.  

How to Keep Gen Xers Happy in the Workplace 

Here’s how to help your Generation X colleagues gain success at work as they move into leadership positions: 

  • Offer flexibility: Gen Xers appreciate flexibility in their work hours and locations. Consider options like remote work, flexible schedules and job sharing. Plus, autonomy over their time is key. Don’t expect 24/7 availability from Gen X employees. They value their personal responsibilities outside of work and crave work-life balance. 
  • Provide opportunities for career development: Gen X is highly self-sufficient but still values feeling appreciated. Provide both informal and formal recognition—including promotions and leadership opportunities. Invest in professional training, mentoring programs and clear paths for career progression. 
  • Limit bureaucracy: Gen X resists rigid corporate structures and prefers collaborating in relaxed settings. Eliminate unnecessary bureaucracy that can hamper productivity and innovation. Empower Gen Xers to accomplish tasks independently. Provide opportunities to work on new initiatives and pilot programs. 

The Future of Work with Gen X at the Helm 

While perhaps overlooked when sandwiched between two larger generations, they bring a perfect blend of independence and adaptability to evolve workplace culture for the better. Talent leaders should take notice of Gen X’s entrepreneurial spirit and prioritization of work-life balance and career progression.  

The skateboards may be gone, but Generation X is still the same pragmatic, diverse and ambitious cohort. Only now they are grown up and calling the shots.  

Read the rest of our Multigenerational Workforce series: 

The Power of Employee Advocacy in Recruitment

Posted on by cevans

By Ayo Ogunde, Strategy Director of Digital Innovation

Employee advocacy is an effective tool for promoting your organization through your employees. It also serves as a great way to boost your employer brand and attract candidates who want to hear from employees directly, giving the inside scoop on what it’s like to work for your organization.  

PeopleScout’s recent research, Inside the Candidate Experience, found that 35% of organizations don’t feature their real employees on their career site. This is a problem since the number one obstacle for candidates in the application process is not knowing what it’s like to work at an organization. The research also revealed that 86% of candidates value stories from employees and that it helps to influence their job search. In particular, 92% of Baby Boomers said it would influence their choice to join an organization. One third of women also agree that this is an important deciding factor.

One of the great things about leveraging your employees as brand advocates is that it brings the diversity of your people and culture to the forefront. By its very nature, employee advocacy in recruitment naturally encourages an increase in the team’s sense of belonging.

Getting Started with Employee Advocacy for Your Brand

Employee advocacy in recruitment could be an employee speaking at an industry panel or sharing user generated content (UGC) across social channels. This helps to boost the reach and engagement of your employer brand

We found that a third of employers do not post recruitment content to their social media at least once a week. Yet, two-thirds of candidates research potential employers through social media, so organizations are missing a trick.

Some employees may want to take part but don’t know where to start. To encourage employees, create a unique, engaging employee advocacy program that rewards participation and engagement.

Incentivize everyone to participate in their own unique ways. Some of your employer brand advocates will excel at content creation, while others will thrive representing your company as a conference speaker or through podcast opportunities, for example. Rewarding participation is a smart way to build momentum, especially when rewards can be redeemed against holidays, events, training, swag or other perks.

A successful employee advocacy program will include a lead who sets the strategy for content and topics to attract the kinds of talent you need. This also helps you control your organization’s overall content and brand messaging, while still giving employee advocate enough freedom to showcase their authentic personalities.

Plus, one of the key learnings we’ve found is that bringing your employees into the process early on creates buy-in and boosts personalization which goes a long way on social media.

Benefits of Employee Advocacy in Recruitment

There are many benefits to implementing an employee advocacy program, for both employees and for the organization.

  • Empowered Employees: Employees who are empowered to act as advocates often feel a stronger connection to the company. They feel valued and integral to the company’s success, leading to a sense of belonging and increased job satisfaction. This empowerment directly correlates to higher engagement levels and improved retention rates.
  • Organizational Transparency and Trust: Advocacy programs require a certain level of transparency from the organization’s side, which, in turn, helps to foster trust between employees and management. Employees who trust their employers are more likely to feel engaged and less likely to leave the organization.
  • Career Development and Personal Branding: Employee advocacy programs can play a crucial role in personal branding and career development. As employees share their work and achievements, they are simultaneously enhancing their own professional reputation. This not only benefits the employees but also increases their attachment to the organization, nurturing a mutually beneficial relationship.
  • Boost to Employee Morale: Advocacy can help to create a positive work culture. By encouraging employees to share their experiences and achievements, companies demonstrate that they value their employees’ work and contributions, which boosts morale and productivity.
  •  Improved Internal Communication: Employee advocacy programs can improve internal communication. As employees become more involved in advocacy, they often become better informed about the company’s goals, products and services. This improved understanding can lead to employees feeling more aligned with the company’s mission and objectives.
  • Increased Brand Awareness: Beginning an employee advocacy program is a great way to organically increase the organization’s brand awareness reach. Utilising social media naturally generates opportunities to network, which can therefore drive leads, as the positive content posted by employees will be passively acknowledged by potential clients.
employee advocacy in recruitment

How to Leverage Employee Advocacy for Candidate Attraction

If you’re just starting out with your employee advocacy program, here are some tips to help you begin.

Use the Voice of Your People…Everywhere!

It’s magic, it’s authentic and it works.

Embrace Storytelling Through Employee Experiences

One of the most effective ways to manage perception and shift views is through authentic storytelling. Showcase real-life employee experiences, achievements and testimonials to highlight the positive aspects of your workplace. You can use a variety of content formats like videos, podcasts, blogs, and social media posts. This approach humanizes your brand and makes it easier for potential employees to imagine themselves in your company culture.

Promote Your Thought Leaders

Create and share thought-provoking content on industry trends, company values or insights on your work culture. This can position your brand as a leader and innovator in your industry. Feature your employees as subject matter experts, giving them a platform to share their knowledge and experiences. This not only enhances your company’s credibility but also provides an opportunity for your employees to build their personal brands, boosting their engagement and loyalty.

Try Interactive and Gamified Content to Boost Engagement

Create interactive content that allows potential candidates and current employees to engage directly with your brand. This could include webinars, live Q&A sessions, virtual tours of your workspace, or interactive quizzes about company culture. Gamified content also works well.  for instance, an online game or challenge related to your company’s work, with the winners getting a chance to be featured on your company’s social media. This type of content not only makes your brand more memorable but also gives an insight into your company’s innovative and engaging work culture.

Measure and Keep Improving

Use social listening tools and analytics to monitor the success of your employee advocacy program for marketing and recruitment and to see how particular pieces of content are performing. This will help you focus your efforts on what’s working and give you valuable insight into what’s important to your talent audiences.

Attracting Older Workers to Retail and Hospitality Jobs

Posted on by cevans

According to a global study by Bain & Company, workers aged 55 and older make up over 25% of the workforce in G7 countries by 2031, making older workers one of the most in-demand talent pools for employers today. In the UK, the government launched a “returnership” initiative to inspire those over the age of 50 to come back to work or to seek a career change. This scheme involves three programs that help older workers retrain and learn new skills, providing workers with a clear roadmap back into the workplace and encouraging organizations to hire them. In Western Australia, the Job Reconnect program provides grants to both employers and employees to cover costs related to licences, upskilling, and even work clothing, transport and childcare.

It’s crucial for retail and hospitality employers to know how to entice older workers back to work and to make the most of their valuable talent. Known as the ‘sandwich generation’—defined by caring for their elderly parents and also dependent children or grandchildren—older works have a strong work ethic. Customer facing and front of house roles enable them to fit work around caring for family and other responsibilities.

Keep reading for key insights from our panel discussion and get the latest research to understand exactly what older workers want and what retail and hospitality organizations can do attract this in-demand demographic.

What Do Older Workers Want?

What do over 50s want and need from an employer? Does your organization know how to attract and engage this older workforce and how to hire and retain them?

Flexibility

Unsurprisingly, monetary concerns are coaxing older workers back into the workplace due to the cost-of-living crisis. However, when it comes to choosing an employer, flexibility takes precedence over money.

Hospitality roles typically attract a younger demographic of workers. However, the flexibility offered by these jobs also appeals to the older working generation. Given that the over 50s are the largest age group with caring roles, flexible and part-time work is a powerful motivator for them to fit a job into their routine.  

As well as permanent roles, seasonal and flexible roles are available within the hospitality and retail industries, which can be more attractive to the older working community. Working harder in those seasonal months creates work-life balance, allowing older workers to take time off during quieter periods to recover and be with their friends and family.

Sense of Belonging

Workers in this age rage are still searching for rewarding work. Older workers wish to find a place where they can feel a part of their local community and give back. Over 50s enjoy creating social connections that a customer-facing job in a restaurant or supermarket can provide.

Customer-facing roles in hospitality and retail give individuals the chance to serve and connect with their community. For older customers, seeing employees in shops and restaurants that represent them can boost the customer experience. 

Myths About Older Workers

There are plenty of misconceptions out there from employers and colleagues about hiring and working with older workers. Consider these myths busted.

Myth 1: Older Workers are Resistant to Technology

Certain words can be viewed as a turn off for an over 50s audience, including “tech-savvy”, which some see as a way to ward off older candidates. There are older people who will feel excluded because others wrongly perceive that they’re less capable with technology, when in fact they are part of a generation that has seen huge advancements in technology. Bill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft, is in his late 60s, and Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple is in his early 60s.

Recognise that all colleagues work differently with technology, so you must be thoughtful in your use of training. In hospitality and retail, workers are likely to be using tills and sales computer systems. Regardless of whether a person struggles with technology, an organization should have a strong program in place to support workers as they learn how to use these tools. For example, consider implementing a buddy system of workers and leaders who will happily help new employees in their first few weeks as they learn point-of-sale systems.

Myth 2: Absences are Higher Because of Health Issues

As people get older, their health can decline. However, this doesn’t mean that absenteeism is higher amongst older workers. In fact, older workers are more likely to have higher everyday attendance rates due to their strong work ethic. When you do see sickness or absence, it is typically in the form of long-term leave, rather than the odd day here and there.

Myth 3: Older Workers are Less Productive Than Younger Workers

A study demonstrated that there was no different between younger and older workers in terms of productivity. This study found that with their years of experience and memories, older people perhaps dismiss new information when they process things and instead use past information. It’s therefore important to acknowledge that older workers aren’t doing things worse, they just do these things differently through their years of experience.

What Can Organizations Do to Attract Older Workers?

So, how can retail and hospitality organization tap into this hard-working talent pool? Here are four questions to ask to ensure your talent acquisition program is over-50s friendly.

Are Your Candidate Attraction Materials Inclusive for Everyone?

To attract older workers, you must think more creatively and broadly.  Use community-based websites to engage with people who live close to your locations. Show how the job will fit into their lifestyle and what it would be like for an older person to work there, rather than a generic message. Create testimonials from your current employees to support this.

Make sure that your imagery is diverse, featuring people of all ages. Look at your marketing materials and ensure that it reflects the community so that over 50s can see that jobs in hospitality are here for them. Take advantage of local community-boards in community centers and supermarkets.

How is Your Candidate Experience?

Retention and attraction are very different. Employers can encourage people to apply for jobs through their advertisements, yet ultimately, it is down to the experience the candidate has during the recruitment process, induction and beyond. The candidate experience is what will make them accept the position and stay at the company. 

When younger workers leave education, they’re taught how to answer competency-based interview questions and how to write a resume. The older generation of workers likely won’t have a resume and may not have experience with this kind of interview. Is your interview process age inclusive and relevant to them?

Are You Giving Them What They Want?

Now that we’ve shared what older workers want, is your organization serious about flexible shift patterns? Over 40% of the part-time workforce is aged over 50. Not only does this part-time schedule work in hospitality, but also in retail, in which the holiday season creates a huge demand for workers.

Different shift patterns in retail can support individuals in their family commitments and lifestyle. Look at your employees’ caring responsibilities, for partners, for children, for elderly parents, and take this into account when creating your shift offerings.

But what else does this generation want from you? Everyone responds well to positive feedback. Both the retail and hospitality industries are great at celebrating successes, shown through brilliant behavior and examples across organizations.

Finally, show that your organization values them by offering benefit packages. Health is a priority for everyone as we get older, and health benefits can help to attract them to your organization.

Does Your Anti-Bias Training Include Age?

Ageism usually gets the least amount of focus across the DE&I plan. Train your leaders and hiring managers on unconscious bias particularly as it relates to age. Ensure there are no biases lurking in the recruitment process to open up talent pools instead of closing them down.

FUTURE OF WORK

DESTINATION 2030: 10 PREDICTIONS FOR WHAT’S NEXT IN THE WORLD OF WORK

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The Multigenerational Workforce: Keeping Millennials Motivated

Posted on by cevans

In this article, the third in our Multigenerational Workforce series, we’ll be focusing on millennials in the workplace, including what matters to them and how best to engage them.

By 2025, millennials will make up over half of the workforce, essentially replacing retiring Baby Boomers. They’ve already made a huge impact on the way we work, including leveraging technology to revolutionise productivity. As the older millennials enter their 40s, they’re moving into leadership roles and will have even more influence on how organizations operate into the future. So, how can employers harness the power of millennials to drive their businesses forward?

Who are Millennials?

Millennials, less commonly known as Generation Y, follow Gen X and precede Gen Z. Millennials were born between the early 1980s and the mid-1990s during the rise of personal computers and technology, making them tech-savvy. They’re the first generation to come of age in the new millennium, hence the name millennials. They are also known to be values-driven.

Workers from this generation are bound together through their shared experience of financial challenges, including the 2008 Great Recession, which caused a 19% unemployment rate and massive student loan debt among millennials. As a result, members of this generation are more likely to find themselves underemployed or self-employed.

Perceptions and Misperceptions

This generation have been characterized as lazy and narcissistic, labelled as “Generation Me.” Other common perceptions include being easily bored and hopping from job to job rather than staying with one employer. However, this could be due to the anxiety caused from the global financial crash.

Despite these stereotypes, millennials have been described as self-sufficient, solving their own issues and teaching themselves through the internet rather than relying on others for help. They are also known to be confident, curious and open-minded.

What Matters to Millennials in the Workplace?

Digital & Tech Skills

Having been the first generation to grow up in a digital world, millennials have widespread experience of the development of technology, being both the “pioneers and the guinea pigs”.

This has affected the way that they communicate, with 41% of millennials choosing to communicate electronically instead of face-to-face according to a study by PwC. However, they’re also the last generation to have grown up in a world without the internet in every household.

When considering a job, 59% of millennials claim that technology in the workplace is an important factor. Employers are responding to this by encouraging professional use of social media at work and introducing smartphones as an employee benefit.

Mission and Purpose

Millennials thrive in a workplace that is mission-driven, keeping them motivated and inspired. In our recent report, Inside the Candidate Experience, we found that mission and purpose were the second most important factor for millennials when considering a new job. Those who work for companies with this as a priority feel more accomplished. Millennials want to share their employer’s goals and values in order to feel they are contributing to the world.

Millennials in the workplace
(Source: Inside the Candidate Experience 2023 Report)

Collaboration

The move to a more collaborative working environment has been driven by millennials through the use of technology as it’s become more sophisticated. A collaborative environment allows workers to speak their ideas freely and feel a sense of belonging as part of a team. One way that employers are emphasizing collaboration is through mentorship programs, which have been proven to increase the happiness of workers and their productivity.

How Do You Engage Millennials at Work?

As millennials slowly take over as the majority of the workforce, employers must learn strategies to keep them motivated and feeling valued.

1. Be Open and Transparent

Millennials want openness and transparency from their leaders, ensuring their confidence through factual information that can be validated.

Keep millennials productive by creating clear targets are regular opportunities for feedback and praise. In fact, according to the same PwC study, 51% of this demographic believe that frequent or continuous feedback is a must on the job, making up a huge part of what keeps them motivated and engaged in their work.

2. Embrace Teamwork

To manage a multigenerational workforce, leaders must recognize that each generation may need different methods of management. Among millennials, 74% expressed that they are as happy working alongside other generations as with their own. So, it’s unsurprising to find millennials now managing older workers.

However, 34% of millennials felt that their personal drive could be perceived as intimidating to other generations. Effective programs that encourage interactions between different generations are necessary to overcome these misperceptions. For example, millennials thrive in opportunities such as “reverse mentoring,” in which they are able to learn from and teach skills to older workers.

3. Invest in Employee Development

Millennials look at their work as a means to learn and develop, which may be the greatest differentiator between them and all other generations. Indeed, a whopping 87% of millennials say that growth and development opportunities are important to them in a job, compared to just 69% of non-millennials. Offering opportunities to develop technology skills and interpersonal skills will not only help you retain millennial employees, it will help you ensure this important segment of your workforce is ready to step into leadership roles.

4. Trust Them

While millennials want to be supported through feedback and praise, they also want the freedom to “be their own boss.” Flexibility is important to millennials in the workplace.They’ll happily put in the long hours if they believe their work has a purpose, but those hours may not be during the traditional 9-to-5.

Millennials believe that success should be evaluated through productivity, rather than the number of hours they are seen in an office. If they meet the deadlines you set, don’t be concerned about the hours they clock in and out. Focus on creating a flexible work culture to maximize millennial engagement, allowing employees to have more control over their working hours and location.

5. Lead with Your Values

Millennials are searching for more than “just a job” and want to achieve something worthwhile. Akin to Gen Z, millennials believe that companies and their leadership should be contributing positively to society. Strong corporate ethics will encourage loyalty among millennials.

A report from Deloitte found that 54% of millennials research a brand’s environmental impact and polices before accepting a job offer. To keep up with today’s candidates, it’s vital that organizations have updated employer value propositions (EVP) showcase the companies intentions to address social and environmental concerns.

In our multigenerational workplace, each generation will shape the world of work in their own way, and each will need different things from their working lives. Millennials bring commitment and collaboration to the workplace. In return, they want opportunities to grow and collaborate. Organizations that can effectively empower millennials to provide ethical leadership hold key to keeping them engaged.

Find out our top 10 predictions for what we think the working world will look like in 2030 and the best practices to prepare for the future in our Destination 2030 report.

Future of Work

Destination 2030: 10 Predictions for What’s NEXT in the World of Work

Read the Report

Shifting Perceptions of Tech & Digital Talent for a Leading Retailer

Posted on by akessler
Shifting Perceptions of Tech & Digital Talent for a Leading Retailer

Retail Employer Brand

Shifting Perceptions of Tech & Digital Talent for a Leading Retailer

A renowned grocery retailer turned to PeopleScout for a new employer brand and recruitment process to help them change perceptions and become an employer of choice for tech, digital and data analyst talent.

13,000 views of digital, tech and data job postings per month on average
17,000 tech, digital and data pros have joined a new LinkedIn community led by the client
39 % increase in LinkedIn impressions

Situation 

With the rise of ecommerce and consumers seeking more digital experiences, this leading grocery retailer needed to shift their workforce to support web and mobile app development, data analytics, cloud computing and more. They anticipated that 50% of their new hires would go into digital, tech and data-focused roles, yet their legacy employer brand and recruitment journey was designed for volume in-store hiring. 

However, tech and digital talent couldn’t see past the shop floor. In a highly competitive and disruptive market, millennial and Gen Z digital natives simply didn’t think a retailer could match their needs or ambitions, despite the retailer’s vast capabilities and breadth of opportunities. 

The organization turned to PeopleScout to help them evolve their employer value proposition (EVP) and employer brand so that it would speak to candidates with tech and digital skills and experience. Because of the stiff competition, the new brand had to work hard. It needed to bring their culture to life, define what was unique about the retailer and do justice to their innovation and variety of roles.  

It also had to launch within 50 days to coincide with the conclusion of the launch of a new Digital, Tech and Data business unit. 

Solution 

In response, we created a dedicated brand platform for digital, tech and data roles. This brought all these roles under one umbrella, delivering integrated solutions across the company. With this bold new direction, the client could offer greater opportunities and take a new value proposition to market. 

Curate 

It was vital to understand the motivations of our audience. What was important to them, and what could the retailer offer that was a good fit? 

To make sure we really knew our target talent’s needs and wants, we had to gain key insights from tech-focused colleagues of all levels, plus external contacts who fit the “digital native” demographic. It was also crucial to ensure all our insight came from a truly diverse pool of respondents. 

We started by conducting interviews with leaders and visionaries to establish a clear view on the current situation and strategic direction for the future. We then held focus groups with team leads across data, tech and digital, as well as a series of workshops with their teams. This gave us a clear picture that helped us shape our prototype proposition. 

Our external research consisted of in-depth interviews with DevOps specialists, software engineers and data scientists working for competitors for talent in digital, tech and data. Additionally, we surveyed potential candidates on market perception of the retailer. Our proposition was tested on all external candidates before finalizing. 

Our key insights told us that external talent wanted: 

  • Challenging problems 
  • Collaborative cultures 
  • Freedom to experiment and learn 
  • A flexible work environment 
  • Training and development 
  • To see their work implemented 

We found that the client’s offering matched this head on. We needed to highlight these things in the new employer brand platform: 

  • Size, scale and complexity of challenge 
  • Values and culture 
  • Opportunities to develop 
  • Tangible impact 
  • Ability to work flexibly 

Create 

We combined our findings into employer value proposition (EVP) pillars that positioned the retailer as the perfect blend of nimble start-up with big business backing and future-facing retail giant. Using these pillars, we devised bold, exciting creative that brought our proposition to life. Steeped in the organization’s longevity and far-reaching impact from serving 71% of the public, the EVP focused on the journey to become a nimble tech-forward organization that creates incredible digital experiences. 

The new platform also included a fresh color palette, a new tone of voice and a suite of edgy, tech-inspired characters with a sense of fun to be used across all tech, digital and data branding. Derived from tech and data symbols, they served to disrupt notions of the client as a purely retail organization. 

These creative elements were then rolled out across a huge range of recruitment tools, including a brand book, presentation roadshow, social media video content, event materials, careers pages, lanyards, PowerPoint slides, a LinkedIn channel and external media. The tech teams are even dressing their offices using the new creative, applying images of the brand characters to walls and lockers and producing large 3D brand symbols situated across various spaces.  

Community 

The brand was well received internally and externally, driving engagement and inspiring teams. In order to build buzz, we built a communications and engagement strategy to drive awareness, which also resulted in existing employees becoming brand ambassadors. 

With the brand in place, we developed a more intuitive candidate experience with a simplified application process. We also designed an email nurture program to convert interest into applications. These communications harnessed the power of our new brand ambassadors and immersed candidates in personalized content. 

The new employer brand messaging now permeates all communications coming from the division, including the specially built LinkedIn community which acts as a digital talent pool for the retailer. 

As part of the new brand launch, we ran interactive workshops and sessions to generate brand awareness at the annual Women in Data conference. This gave the client an opportunity to build relationships with women in the tech space and speak about their available opportunities to prospective candidates. 

Results 

Across LinkedIn, strong results from the launch of the brand show we’ve cut through to successfully appeal to our audience. 

In the month after the launch, the LinkedIn content garnered: 

  • 216K impressions 
  • 4,100 engagements (a 39% increase from prior to the new brand launch) 

The LinkedIn community has grown to over 17,000 followers in the three years since the launch.  

On the client’s career site, there are an average of 5,000 proactive searches per month related to software engineering, showing that the brand has been successful in positioning the retailer as an employer of choice for software development professionals. The client experiences a monthly average of 13,000 views of digital, tech and data job postings.  

In addition, over the last three years, there’s been a 66% increase in visits to the company’s digital, tech and data careers landing page.

At a Glance

  • COMPANY
    Leading grocery retailer
  • INDUSTRY
    Retail
  • PEOPLESCOUT SOLUTIONS
    Talent Advisory
  • LOCATIONS
    600 supermarkets, 800 convenience stores and ecommerce platforms
Let’s Connect

[On-Demand] Harnessing Social Media & the Creator Economy to Amplify Your EVP

Posted on by akessler

Harnessing Social Media & the Creator Economy to Amplify Your EVP

During RecFest 2023 Robert Peasnell and Ayo Ogunde delivered a session on the Resourcing Leaders stage titled: ‘Harnessing Social Media & The Creator Economy to Amplify your EVP’.

Many joined us for the live session in July, including four guest speakers – leading talent acquisition professionals from Selfridges, ERM, RPS Group and Direct Line Group.

Now influencers are key to telling a brand’s story – how are you telling yours?

Fill in the form to watch our session recording for all the insight around EVP & influencers.

ESG and Life Science Recruitment: Why ESG Initiatives Will Make Your Competition Green With Envy  

Posted on by banderson

A plethora of social, economic and environmental impacts are contributing to the emerging global “polycrisis.” Beyond the pandemic, the future impacts of climate change, biodiversity loss, pollution and overexertion of natural resources will affect global health in the long term. This will impact the work of life science organizations as climate change is increasingly linked to diseases like cancer, diabetes and heart disease. Plus, the life science industry is among the largest carbon emitters, with biotech and pharma as the leading contributors. It’s no surprise that life science companies are focusing on Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) initiatives. For talent acquisition leaders, this poses unique challenges and opportunities when it comes to life science recruitment. 

In this article, we review the industry’s impacts on the environment, how those impacts affect life science recruitment, and how a green EVP and employer brand can be leveraged as a critical differentiator in your ability to attract talent.  

Life Science’s Impacts on the Environment 

The average carbon footprint of one life scientist ranges from an estimate of four to 15 tons of CO2 per year. This doesn’t even include the use of consumables, chemicals, production resources, equipment, transportation, energy, and construction and building maintenance materials. There’s no denying that the entire industry’s workforce footprint is quite significant. 

Moreover, pharmaceutical production is highly water-intense, and waste is poorly managed with only nine out of 118 pharmaceuticals removing their waste sustainably during the treatment process. Approximately 4,000 active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) are administered worldwide in prescription and over-the-counter medication as well as therapeutic and veterinary drugs. Residues from these drugs are released into the environment, contaminating the soil, rivers and lakes. With drug waste polluting the environment, the Global Leaders Group has created a call to action for all countries to improve measures for the management and disposal of antimicrobial-containing waste, declaring it as a “major threat to public health.” 

Four out of the top five (80%) global risks forecasted for the next decade are related to global health and climate change. The opportunities created by the industry to improve their environmental impact through ESG initiatives are huge.  

(Source: World Economic Forum, The Global Risks Report 2023) 

Gen Z and Millennials Care About ESG Initiatives

By 2029, Gen Z and millennials will account for 72% of the world’s workforce. This workforce has placed greater importance on ESG issues than previous generations. Considering the industry’s impact on the environment and the global force of this growing talent, millennials and Gen Z will keep the life science industry on its toes. To stay on top, it’s crucial that life science recruitment teams and hiring managers understand what this workforce wants, what they value and how these components contribute to their employment decisions. 

Around the world, young scientists are demanding that “climate justice” be at the top of the global agenda, with environmentalists stressing the need for organizations to radically reduce their carbon emissions. They are tired of politics influencing scientific decisions, slow global engagement and action, and “poor public communication concerning the state of our understanding of climate change.” 

As this talent seeks purpose in their careers, they prefer to work for employers that have set actionable ESG initiatives towards improving their sustainability efforts. Organizations with ESG practices and policies show top talent that they are purpose-driven and progressive, which is a top consideration for this younger STEM-based workforce when applying and working for your company.  

According to a study by Swytch, nearly 70% of Gen Z and millennial respondents say that a strong sustainability plan would affect their decision to stay with a company long term. About 30% of respondents report that they have left a company due to its lack of a corporate sustainability agenda with over 11% doing so more than once. Additionally, a 2023 report by KPMG UK showed that ESG initiatives are influencing employment decisions for almost 50% of UK employees, with millennials and younger workers driving the growing trend of “climate quitting” in search of more environmentally friendly jobs. 

Employers must understand that candidate attraction is more than high salaries and fancy titles. This workforce wants leaders to fearlessly and publicly take a stance on their ESG initiatives and to make it a part of the workplace culture. Failure to do so will make it difficult to attain top talent, further adding to current life science recruitment challenges due to workforce shortages and widening skills gaps. 

Intertwining Your ESG Initiatives into Your EVP and Employer Brand Strategy

With no time to waste, life science organizations need to invest in a “green” employer value proposition (EVP) and employer brand strategy.  

“Today’s labor market wants to join companies that make a difference in a real way.”

Cynthia Burkhardt, Global Head of Talent Acquisition, Kimberly-Clark 

With Gen Z and millennials viewing social and environmental responsibilities as a key differentiator when considering where to work, it’s no surprise that an employer’s ESG initiatives have become a crucial component of the life science recruitment process. Whether your organization is already incorporating sustainable practices into your operations and mitigating risks to climate change or planning to do so, this is the opportunity to showcase that. Here are steps you can take that will appeal to your current and future workforce: 

1. Define Your ESG Voice 

Sustainability buzzwords are not enough, and top talent isn’t buying it. In fact, the European Commission’s National & Consumer Protection survey found that more than 42% of online corporate “green” claims were exaggerated, false or misleading. With “greenwashing” or “green-laundering” on the rise, employers need to establish ways to gain the trust of Gen Z and millennials. Your voice must showcase your purpose and intent. For example, using keywords like “zero discharge” and “risk mitigation,” rather than vague and misleading terminology such as “eco-friendly” or “sustainable,” will have candidates viewing you as more honest and authentic than the competition. 

“Sustainability plays a big role for me. An employer that is supposedly committed to it, but hardly knows what to do with the topic behind the scenes, has no future for me.”

—Gen Z respondent from Austria 

2. Communicate Your Mission 

Build your internal and external employer brand messaging around the organization’s ESG initiatives such as corporate sustainability efforts and climate change initiatives. Keep in mind that the internal launch of an EVP and employer branding platform plays a critical part in laying the foundation for the success of the external launch. Bring your EVP to life through transparency and stakeholder alignment. Your employer brand message must be aspirational, future-focused and agile enough to sustain any changes that may come.  

3. Weave ESG Initiatives into Your Life Science Recruitment Marketing Materials 

Incorporate your ESG-centric mission and values into your career site and explain how those objectives are part of the organization’s DNA. On social media and other attraction channels, feature content that is relevant to topics like green training and development, environmental advocacy, waste minimization and corporate reduction of CO2 emissions to attract a wider variety of STEM-related talent. 

4. Showcase Your Investment and Metrics 

Remember that acting on your ESG initiatives is more than providing donations or partaking in “volunteer hours” that gain you a gold star. Let candidates know how much landfill waste you’ve reduced through your recycling program or that you’ve reduced your carbon footprint by 10%. Organizations that actively monitor their social and environmental impacts yield greater candidate attraction and positive impacts to their triple bottom line.  

5. Highlight Employee and Leadership Involvement 

Leverage your employees’ passions, concerns and ideas as a compelling way to address the organization’s initiatives. You can take the output from this to generate recruitment marketing materials, such as employee testimonials, quotes and even videos of leadership involvement or team building initiatives. For candidates, this effort exemplifies a company culture that genuinely wants to make an impact.  

6. Green Up the Candidate Experience 

Alignment of values is top priority for today’s candidates. However, it can be difficult for them to determine if a potential employer’s ethics align with theirs. To improve candidate experience, incorporate ESG initiatives into your job descriptions. For example, call attention to how the role will help achieve sustainability initiatives and feature any employee green benefits like locally sourced perks or green travel packages.  

Most importantly, make sure your recruiters and hiring team are aware of your green values. According to HRD Australia, often times the hiring team is not well-informed on what the company is doing in these areas. A life science recruitment team that is aligned with the organization’s ESG initiatives will ensure smooth communication and a good first impression with potential candidates. 

Can You Keep Up? 

With Gen Z and millennials shaping the future of work, employers cannot afford to trail behind the curve when it comes to ESG. Additionally, as early-career candidates and graduates are a top source for talent in the life science industry, organizations that do not have visible and measurable ESG metrics risk alienating this top talent. Focus on incorporating your ESG initiatives into your organization’s EVP, tweak your employer brand messaging to reflect what your workforce wants.