We all know recruitment is a fast-paced industry, and that sometimes means you miss some of the important recruiter news stories from around the world, or you don’t realize how useful they can be for your own development.
Here are three recent campaigns and reports that you need to know about.
1. Britain: British Army Recruitment Drive to Increase Diversity
The British Army’s new recruitment campaign looks to bust some of the main myths surrounding army life, as many would-be troops assume they cannot be gay, emotional or religious if they want to sign up. CNN reported that this campaign is a shift away from the typical army demographic: white, male, and aged 16-25.
Ultimately, the number of ethnic minority soldiers in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland is deemed too low, and this could be a good way to change the status quo. The overall number of people in the army also needs a boost, with 4,000 recruits needed to reach the desired goal of 82,000 employees, and there are proposed plans change the army’s slogan, which is currently ‘Be the best’, because of criticism it isn’t inclusive enough.
Though there has been a criticism of the campaign for suggesting the army is ‘soft’, there are plenty of takeaways for recruiters here. The advert used stereotype-breaking soldiers to answer questions, explaining how their faith, orientation or personality was respected by the army.
Could you actively use current staff to appeal to candidates? Could you feedback candidate concerns to an employer to alter the language of their future vacancies or the information on their website? It’s certainly worth considering if you’re trying to promote a stigmatized or stereotyped employer.
2. China: Alibaba Targets Senior Citizens
Online shopping hub Alibaba, based in China, is looking to appeal to an older market by hiring the over-60s for their specialist knowledge. The recruitment drive centers around a new position, ‘Taobao senior user study consultant’, and specifically aims to hire older people who have connections with their peers, such as through community groups or hobbies, as well as an interest in younger generations (perhaps through having their own child).
The company is a big deal in China – earlier this year, it reported that 30% of all Chinese-based digital jobs are set to be with Alibaba by 2035, fuelled by investing in cloud computing and digital entertainment. Also by 2035, the digital economy is set to make up 48% of the entire Chinese economy.
Within a day of these new vacancies being posted online, the company was inundated with CVs, proving that senior citizens are keen to keep working. Like many countries around the world, China is struggling to provide for an aging population, so it’s important to keep older people active and healthy for as long as possible.
In your own recruiting life, have you considered hiring older candidates to bring something new to a role? What about mature students looking to move into a different career? Perhaps now is the time to start scanning their CVs…
3. India: AirAsia Hit by Recruitment Scams
Whilst AirAsia India is genuinely looking to hire candidates right now, many job hunters have been targeted by fake emails supposedly sent from the company. These emails, signed as ‘AirAsia Airlines Limited’, have involved requests for money from candidates: RS9,600, which the senders claim will be used for vague purposes such as ‘interview processing’ and ‘maintenance’.
In reality, you should never be asked for money when job hunting, yet many people have been taken in by these bogus emails, sometimes sent by recruitment companies. AirAsia has clarified it never uses recruitment agencies, conducting all its recruitment in-house.
The AirAsia India example is part of a larger problem with recruitment scams in India, as reported by the Guardian at the start of 2018. Tales of mysterious employment offers no confirmed address or phone number are common; stories of payments for training are also on the rise.
Candidates are advised to be wary of suspicious URLs in emails, as well as confusing job adverts and suspiciously high-paid jobs. As a recruiter, you should be able to reassure candidates that a job is genuine, and you should watch out for scammers trying to use you as an intermediary.
Hopefully, those three stories will inspire you to re-examine your recruitment strategies in 2018 and source the very best candidates.
