FEATURE » Recruitment “A challenge which is always in recruitment is making the right decisions. This means we have to be very careful, there have to be assessments and a foolproof structured methodology drilled down to what actually is done,” she says. Yet another challenge is to be sure of the competencies needed to successfully carry out a role as well as to know what type of candidate you want to hire. “The other thing is that first, you have to be sure of what you are looking for. The second question is, how much of each aspect is needed to be effective in the role? “For example, you define some competencies that the person would need, but at that level, how much of that and what level of proficiency would be needed? “I think that hiring is a very scientific process, so you have to prepare well before going into the hiring discussion. Sometimes I feel the preparation part doesn’t get done well.”
“A challenge which is always in recruitment is making the right decisions. This means we have to be very careful, there have to be assessments and a foolproof structured methodology drilled down to what actually is done.” – Shalini Bhateja, Schneider Electric’s director of talent management for Asia Pacific and the Middle East
With a shift in workforce demographics, catering to the needs of each generation, and not just Generation Y, is another challenge that is faced by recruiters. Despite feeling that Millennials are not that different from other generations, May Lo, group human resources director at Grace International, notes there are some traits of Millennials that set them apart. “In my opinion, Millennials are generally not so different from the other generations. Things like job security and to be challenged at work, to work for a good company, all of them apply across the generations. “However, we also take note of certain traits of Millennials and we try to cater to those. Obviously, I don’t want to change the policies
because of them. That doesn’t make sense because then it will mean that I’m just catering to one group of people, but we will acknowledge they have certain traits.” Additionally, Groeneweg notes the onboarding process for Millennials can pose a challenge as this workforce generally has higher expectations. “Millennials’ expectations are much higher, they expect everything to be ready and working from day one when they arrive at the office. “But the onboarding process needs to start even before the first day at work. Companies need to prepare their touch-points to keep their candidates warm throughout the process, given that it can take up to two months from when they are selected to when they join.” Godelieve van Dooren, Mercer’s market business leader for ASEAN for information solutions, agrees and adds: “These are not unreasonable requests as it’s what this generation is used to.” She is also of the opinion organisations have to speed up their decision-making process in order not to lose the best candidates. “There’s also a lot of discussion around the number of rounds that candidates need to go through to get hired. I think there are too many! “One of the larger internet companies has eight rounds of interviews before a candidate is hired. However, the best candidates might be snatched away by the competition in that time.” van Dooren also feels that companies, especially those in competitive markets, have to be in contact with candidates throughout the recruitment process so as not to lose the connection with the candidate. “Malaysia is madness when it comes to hiring. It is a very competitive market and you find that between rounds of interviews, companies complain about their candidates being snatched or even worse, people not showing up on their first day. “That is why companies need to be in contact throughout because if the process is too long they will lose that connection.”
The sought-after skills With so many new trends in recruiting, what are the skills companies seek that make it worth overcoming these challenges?
20 » Human Resources » June 2015
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