Companies put more jobs on the line

More and more companies are advertising jobs on the Internet reports market intelligence company Key Note in its E-cruitment Market Focus 2003. Commissioned by HR Portal - online recruitment solutions provider - the report shows a clear trend towards sophisticated online recruitment strategies that are integrating into corporate websites.

The majority of companies use online recruitment 'piecemeal'. However, the enlightened few use end-to-end solutions to directly reach the growing number of candidates conducting their job search online. It is possible to significantly reduce recruitment costs by doing this.

The future is bright for e-recruitment - and those embracing it - believes Key Note. By 2007, 10.3 million people will be looking for jobs placed on the Internet. It is time for companies to fully embrace recruiting online.

It's a widely accepted fact that the 'dotcom bubble' that saw impressive growth in the Internet market in the period to 2000 has well and truly burst. Since then we have seen numerous internet and technology companies struggling to maintain their position, with many shedding jobs, severely cutting back or even going in liquidation.

However, new research from market intelligence company Key Note indicates that the online recruitment sector is bucking this trend and, in fact, has gone from strength to strength.

In contrast with many other Internet sectors, online recruitment has a number of profitable jobsites and is now recognised as a strategically important medium to fill vacancies, both by recruitment agencies and, more recently, employers. Greater sophistication and maturity in the market has seen companies seeking to use e-recruitment as part of a wider shift of their human resource (HR) operations to an electronic basis.

The current market
Key Note estimates that in 2002, jobsites in the UK advertised a total of 1.3 million jobs (some are advertised on more than one site) and had an estimated total of around 6.2 million unique users. And the number of users is on the increase. In February 2003, there were an estimated 7.5-million jobsite users in the UK.

Whilst job sites are becoming more sophisticated in the types of jobs they offer and in their geographic targeting they are not expected to replace the traditional recruitment agency but serve to complement offline activities. The growth of online job advertising has attracted many traditional offline players into the market. Publishing groups in particular have been attracted by the rise of online classified advertisements, given that classified advertisements make up a significant share of their traditional print media revenues.

Seeking a job is obviously the prime motivation for using a jobsite, but a range of other factors also drive site traffic, including the availability of job-related information such as on a particular employer, recruitment agencies and on a particular industry sector. Checking salaries is also an important motivation, as is careers advice and obtaining employment news and information on salaries. The expectations of jobseekers have changed too. Traditionally, jobseekers were willing to wait a few weeks before hearing of their job application, today the expectation is a reply within hours or days.

Jobsites are extending their services and offering more sophisticated, tailored solutions to clients. In many instances, sites are becoming systems integrators and software providers as well as online site providers. One key indication of how online recruitment is maturing is the growing proportion of companies that have an HR professional dealing specifically with Internet recruitment.

The future
In the next five years, Key Note expects e-recruitment to continue to grow in popularity among both employers and employees. 10.3 million adults are predicted to be using jobsites and all major companies will be using the Internet to advertise their jobs.

Jobsites will grow in sophistication and the investment required for this will demand greater consolidation in the industry. By 2007, Key Note expects the number of jobsites to have fallen by a half, as employers increasingly advertise jobs via their own websites (plus the surviving jobsites). Most major employers will advertise jobs via their own websites (plus the surviving jobsites), but will buy-in expertise from the jobsites. Jobsites will cease to be purely providers of an advertising medium but will become consultants, technology suppliers AND solution providers. Jobsites are seeking to broaden their geographic spread, often by moving into Europe.

Flexible working patterns, involving more temporary contracts, sub-contracting, and self-employment, are all growth employment categories. As working patterns evolve, candidates are more reconciled to the likelihood of changing careers several times during their working lives and, consequently, are more likely to actively seek assistance from jobsites on career matters. Hence, the tendency of jobsites to include career management services on their sites.