Graduate recruitment with CareerFever - 09/2001

With the competition for graduates as fierce as ever, the pressure on UK graduate recruiters to question their current processes has become increasingly apparent. The answer that often emerges is to take a risk with innovative new technology in order to grab the cream of the applicants and widen the pool. Yet how do todayís busy HR professionals navigate their way around the bewildering array of online recruitment methods, pre-screening software and CD-ROMs? One thing is clear; more and more companies are outsourcing at least part of the graduate recruitment process using new technology, with generally positive results for both applicant and recruiter.

The business case for the use of new technology to pre-screen graduates is clear. It releases valuable time to enable HR to focus on more strategic issues and the bigger picture. It also makes the cost of recruiting graduates much more visible and should generally provide for a more value-added, flexible service to the student applicants. Students now expect to go from application to offer in 7 weeks and expect some sort of response to an email application within 24 hours. New technology goes some way towards meeting these, possibly unrealistic expectations.

Once graduate recruitment managers have defined the competencies that they are recruiting against, they should seek providers that they can regard as part of their team and who will deliver a service that involves frequent contact, clear lines of communication and an ability to ìtune intoî the culture and values of their clients.

The market is fast changing with new players entering the market as existing providers consolidate their positions. A good example of a leading edge idea is the virtual interview on CD-ROM being developed by CareerFever Ltd and released next year. Students enter a huge virtual building containing the offices of participating companies and can chose to take a competency-based interview with an animated character. The results are sent to the company at the choice of the applicant and it will be distributed free of charge to final-year students in leading universities in the UK. Some of their clients are using the concept to identify potential high-flyers and fast track them through the recruitment process. Prospects are also extending their product range by developing a more sophisticated web-based version of their current publication.

New technology can also provide much needed help towards relieving pressure on the amount of money consumed by advertising your company with graduates. The CareerFever CD-ROM incorporates a Company-Preference Test where students can discover which potential employers best match their aspirations. In a recent Pilot Study, CareerFever discovered that 90% of students had matches with companies that were entirely different from the ones that they anticipated.This demonstrates the usefulness of this particular concept not only to applicants, but also to companies who find themselves suggested as potential employers to students who would not otherwise have looked at them.

HR professionals consistently have to justify their existence through demonstrating the value they add to the business. New technology allows for much closer monitoring of the process throughout and points the way for potential cost savings to be identified. In addition, students can also be kept informed via email about the process of their application and key dates for their diaries. Jake Esman, managing director of CareerFever, said, ì Utilising innovative new technology in graduate recruitment communicates a key aspect of a companyís brand image to applicants. Companies that underestimate the value of new technology will find themselves sidelined by the best graduatesî.

www.careerfever.co.uk