We meet again: personalising global recruitment

Global organisations looking for new talent can be forgiven for relying on technology to connect with people. In a digital world, it’s easy to call potential candidates, email them or interview them over Skype.

But face-to-face human interaction will always be essential, according to Jacques van den Broek, CEO of global HR services and consulting firm Randstad. “In our business of working with job candidates and clients (companies looking for talent), you still need a human moment where people sit down together to discuss their requirements or reasons for wanting another job,” he says.

“On average, people change jobs four times in their lives and it’s a big decision to leave one company for another. Someone thinking of joining another business is able to reach out to peers or contacts already working there to find out what it’s like.”

Technology that brings people together

While emphasising the importance of face-to-face interaction, van den Broek says technology actually helps create more “human moments”. This idea supports Randstad’s ‘Tech & Touch’ strategy, with the company using the latest devices and software to interact with clients and candidates on a human level. For example, all temporary staff represented by Randstad can download its ‘new work’ app to manage when and where they work. The app allows users to update their job preferences, indicate when they are available to work or request extra short-term roles.

Randstad consultants access that information to find suitable roles for their candidates: “The contact our consultants have with workers isn’t a superficial one where they call them to say, ‘Can you work next Monday?’ The human interaction comes from them meeting with the candidate and using the information that person has fed into the app to find the right role for them,” van den Broek says.

The ‘Human Forward’ initiative was introduced in 2017 to “offer job seekers a rich experience that combines the best of technology and humanity”. Van den Broek adds: “Research from the US shows that people find HR firms overly impersonal and too tech-driven. With us, there will always be that human contact when working with clients and candidates.”

As part of the Tech & Touch strategy, Randstad launched the Transformational Leadership Programme in 2017, partnering with London Business School to guide senior leaders through the organisation’s cultural change. The programme shows executives how the company can better serve clients and candidates using the latest technology.

Reaching out to candidates in the digital age has never been easier. Chief Human Resources Officer Jos Schut says Randstad can ascertain whether someone is in the market for another job by viewing their public social media accounts. (He is quick to add that they never check someone’s Facebook page or Twitter feed without their consent.)