Assignment 4: Resourcing Talent.

Neal Roleston

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Activity A: Write a short report on Talent Planning in organisations. There are a number of factors that affect an organisations approach to attracting talent both internal and external. The economic climate will have a big impact on recruitment as indeed we have found out in Menzies Distribution. When we are advertising for Customer Service advisors we regularly get 250 applications from people, many who are over qualified for the role whereas 4 years ago we found it quite difficult to attract people as we were in competition with other Call Centres. As it stands when times are hard, it makes it easier for us to recruit for the type of position that is normally difficult to fill. Likewise when an organisation restructures, they may need to do job evaluations with a view to changing job specs. Previously where two people did a job because it always was that way a company may find that one person is sufficient. In Menzies Distribution we have had a large restructure in the past year and we have seen roles disappear, new ones created. This was essential for our business to survive, as we had to make savings and strip back unnecessary functions. The benefit to us as an organisation is that we promoted internally to fill the new posts and these people were already aware of the company culture and values. The gaps left were filled with entry-level staff. An organisations brand can have a massive impact on recruitment. Ikea is accompany that prides itself with their environmental record, they encourage staff to cycle to work and provide finance to staff to be able to buy bicycles and each member of staff gets their birthday off and a large gift at Christmas. As a result they have a low rate of staff turnover and a huge influx of applications when they put vacancies up on their corporate website. They do not have to advertise externally. Likewise Marks and Spencers have always had a reputation of being goof to their staff by providing onsite hairdressers, doctors, excellent holidays and staff benefits. On the other side we have Call Centres who have a massive turnover due to strict targets, low pay and short contracts and therefore are always nearly permanently recruiting to keep up staff levels. For an organisation to function it is important that it has a stable workforce. A company that has a high turnover can see low morale and decreased performance within its workforce. Employees can become demotivated. When a company retains staff it is also retaining

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knowledge and experience, this can save money on the long run as the company would therefore not have to continually employ and retrain new staff. A diverse workforce is essential. A company that has a mix of race, age and beliefs will encourage creativity. By employing an age-diverse workforce, businesses will be better placed to respond to a wider range of customer needs therefore ensuring customer loyalty. At Menzies Distribution we have a wide range of races employed and it is especially useful, as a lot of our customers do not speak English as their 1 st language. A varied workforce means a pool of differing opinions and range of skills thus offering the company variety. There are many factors that can affect an approach to recruitment and selection both internally and externally. Any type of recruitment will cost money so the organisation will have to budget accordingly. We budget to recruit 3 times a year but if we need to do more than that we need to save costs elsewhere. We also need to take into consideration the varying methods of recruitment and the costs attached to those methods. Expansion or indeed the opposite can influence the way a company will approach recruitment. A manufacturer or an outsourcer may win a new contract and will therefore have to recruit whereas a company that is reducing in size may decide to have a recruitment freeze or merge roles to cover shortfall left by leavers. Another factor that can influence the way companies approach recruitment is the way the company is perceived by potential candidates. At Menzies Distribution, we are perceived to be an old fashioned company. This is something we are trying to change by making our adverts eye catching, investing heavily in training and involving local back to work organisations to source candidates. Organisations have a range of recruitment methods they can choose from when deciding to recruit. Job Adverts in the press can be successful as you can choose the publication according to its market and popularity. You can also choose how you would like the advert to appear and you can highlight all the positives you want put across to the reader according to your budget. Online advertising is becoming more popular with sites such as S1 and Monster. Online
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advertising is cheaper; reaches more people and some sites offer various methods for an applicant to apply to suit the organisation. They can also give you statistics to give you an idea who is applying and from where etc. Some sites will also match candidates to your position and alert them that your vacancy is live on their site thus publicising your company and your vacancies. Recruitment agencies can be used, as they will oversee the whole process for an organisation: from sourcing candidates, carrying out any assessment required to giving news to unsuccessful candidates. This can take a lot of pressure off an organisation and can be cost effective depending on the volume of recruitment required. For example, British Gas will carry out bulk recruitment through Capita Recall and they will see 150 candidates in one day. This is a lot more cost effective than doing it themselves. The Job Centre is also a useful tool for employers as it is a free service and vacancies can be advertised nationwide. You can choose how an applicant applies such as email cvs directly or fill out an application form. Organisations can advertise as many jobs as they like and have full control over closing dates etc. via an online dashboard. Once an organisation has advertised for candidates they need to decide what selection process they will use to select their candidates. Shortlisting will be carried out beforehand using some sort of sift with criteria taken from the Person Spec. An assessment centre is a good way of assessing a lot of candidates in a short space of time. You can test a broad range of skills which are related specifically to the job using role plays or Group scenarios. Trained assessors will monitor the process and candidates will find out in a short period as to whether they have been successful or not. They are also a good way for the candidate to decide if they want to work for the organisation, as they will get a feel for the place while they are participating in the event. Interviews are probably the most used selection method. A candidate will be interviewed either on a 1-1 basis or a panel depending on the role being applied for. They can be asked a series of questions ranging from general to competency-based questions. The interviewer is free to probe for more information as and when required using a series of open, closed and probing questions. Sometimes a rep from HR will be on the panel.
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Psychometric testing is a good way of selecting candidates that have a fit you require for your organisation, as you will have used your best employees as a base for your assessment. You will be dealing with facts rather than any personal opinion. A lot of employers will use this method as a pre interview selection stage. A lot of time and effort will have gone into recruiting and selecting new employees so it is therefore essential that the company protect their investment by providing the new employee with a good grounding. The new employee will also form an opinion on the organisation so it is vital that a good impression is formed. Along with dealing with legal requirements such as Health and Safety legislation new employees will benefit from induction in the following: Instilling Company Values: It is important that the new employee is made aware of the culture of the organisation and where they will fit. At Menzies Distribution we have the SPIRIT project and this is delivered in induction to all new employees. Here they discover what the organisation is about, what our values are and how they fit into the grand scheme of things. They are made aware that their contribution is vital to the companys success, they are rewarded when they come up with ideas that benefit the company and they are encouraged to become an active part of the organisation as a whole. The benefit of this is that they feel from day one that they are a part of something bigger and that they are playing an important part. As a result they feel valued, respected and part of a team and engaged. Helping them to settle in quickly: New employees can feel overwhelmed when they join a new company. At Menzies Distribution we have a comprehensive 3 week induction that provides all the answers that a new employee will have. Who will they be working with, who is in their team, what is expected of them, what are their objectives, opportunities for development and basic housekeeping information such as what to do in an emergency, how to book holidays etc. We find that new employees that have gone through our induction are well prepared when they join their teams and hot the ground running. They are confident aware of their responsibilities and are able to make a contribution straight away. This benefits the company as we are seeing positive results earlier than compared to staff that have not gone through the induction. Lower attrition: I carried out an ROI on our new induction 6 months ago and compared the
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results against a period before the induction was in use. We found that we are retaining staff for longer. We have an average of 2.8% compared to 11%. This has meant that we are retaining people for longer thus saving us money on recruitment costs and we have a more stable knowledgeable workforce as a result.

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