Developments in online recruitment
In today’s fast-paced, information-ready world, the most influential player in the future of recruitment is the internet. As a communication tool it's already opened up the application process to more candidates than ever, widening the talent pool as a result. However, this in turn has led to increased pressure on hirers and firers to sift through the mounting numbers of CVs from candidates for any given vacancy. Even before taking into account speculative applications HR professionals deal with on a daily basis, CV processing has become more time consuming than ever.
This is most evident in the entry-level job market. Recent national news headlines claim that one in five 16 to 24 year-olds are now unemployed. Where the suitability of more senior applicants often hinges on experience, comparing the vast numbers of entry-level applications arriving by email and through online jobs boards can pose a more difficult challenge. When it comes to freshly qualified graduates, experience may not necessarily be a pre-requisite, so the challenge is - how do we differentiate between candidates?
How does a video CV work?
More often than not, the deciding factor for those recruiting at entry-level is potential. We need to know that the person we are hiring has the key basic skills, which can then be shaped to help them succeed in the role. Hirers need to recognise that the ideal graduate trainee might not necessarily hold the ‘perfect’ qualifications or CV, but might hold other desirable qualities that make them the best candidate for the role: such as strong communication skills, and the right personality.
This is where video recruitment has proved to be the ideal solution. It allows employers to assess non-quantifiable qualities alongside skills and experience – something that has become a necessity in the competitive market. Where some entry-level, particularly graduate, CVs can be a bit ‘vanilla’ – promising an applicant who is ‘enthusiastic’ and a ‘confident communicator’ – video CVs allow employers to see for themselves whether this is actually the case. Where gaining an understanding of a candidate’s personality and charisma early on in the process is a top priority, this method is becoming increasingly popular.
An effective recruitment solution
Our national research showed that 80% of Britons believe that employers do not read every CV they are sent, and with graduate applications averaging at 69 per vacancy, it's not a surprise that selectors are looking for an alternative way to screen candidates. Many are outsourcing the task to graduate recruitment agencies, which normally charge thousands of pounds in placement fees, yet do not provide the tailored service that most companies need. As an alternative, some choose to post vacancies on online jobs boards, which can be a lengthy process with little return on investment.
We are urging employers to discover a more cost-effective and efficient solution for the digital age. HR professionals who have successfully used video as part of their hiring process have described the method as helping them find candidates with certain desirable qualities – who “just have that certain something” they were looking for. Recruiters will agree that finding that ‘something’ can often be a difficult, time-consuming affair, so video technology is now a well-structured, quantifiable and welcome solution for many companies.
A recruitment revolution?
With today’s technology, hirers do not need to break the bank to find the right entry-level employee. Online video recruitment is a quick, economical solution to find the right people for the job. Video profiling allows employers to effectively ‘meet’ and even ‘first interview’ applicants from the comfort of their own desk, delivering results at around a fifth of the cost and a quarter of the time compared to traditional graduate placement agencies.
As online technology continues to shape the modern world, there is no reason why recruitment shouldn’t move with the times. MeetTheRealMe.com uses video to do exactly that, and gives HR professionals a fresh and innovative alternative to time and cost-heavy CV processing.