How has technology transformed the hiring landscape amidst COVID?

The hiring ecosystem has witnessed a huge shift with COVID adding hurdles in the traditional talent sourcing and management processes. Be it sourcing, engagement, selection or appointment, every stage of the employment process has embraced technology to function with the newly surfaced limitations put forth by the pandemic. Virtual solutions have been on the forefront supporting people across business verticals. Let’s take a closer look at how technology is transforming the hiring landscape.

Hiring the workforce digitally

With no choice but to suddenly adopt a remote work culture, organisations have revised their recruitment policies. Interviewing and onboarding digitally is no longer limited to temporary or contract workers but for hiring full-time employees as well. Online talent search has been around for years. Remote recruiters screened and shortlisted candidates sourced through job portals, company websites and other sources. Then, talent acquisition through social media platforms became a success with LinkedIn Recruiter.

Earlier, a recruitment management system enabled candidates to apply for jobs and track their application. Today, integrated technology solutions are sought to create an online ecosystem wherein end-to-end recruitment becomes seamless for recruiters and candidates. Also, after seeing the cost and productivity benefits of having a remote workforce, many huge companies have decided to allow employees to work remotely forever. This shift has expanded the resource pool for recruiters who can now recruit quality talent from any geographic location for full-time positions.

Less commute, more time and cost savings for all

As social distancing becomes a norm, mobility becomes a concern mainly for commuters of public transport systems. Innovative HRM technology is minimising locational constraints. Virtual hiring tools are making real-time recruitment activities easier for head hunters while adhering to the social distancing guidelines. In-person interviews and pre-employment tests are being replaced with video interviews and real-time online assessment platforms.

Today, recruitment continues to take place through online channels without risking the health of potential candidates. Streamlined cloud-based processes with assessment tools and profile management features make the online recruiting experience effortless for Talent Acquisition teams and candidates. Through digital solutions, hiring specialists are using features like live webcam recording and screen capture on the candidate’s device for monitoring virtual assessments.

The pandemic has taken away the scope of finding talent through scheduled job fairs, hackathons, and events. The absence of in-person networking has led to an increase in virtual event participations by employers and job seekers. On the brighter side, the time and cost of managing hiring has reduced compared to onsite events. Also, tracking the participant engagement and data management has become efficient in a virtual environment.

Selection to Onboarding - The virtual way

Automation in the candidate shortlisting phase expedites the hiring process. Recruiters can use a suitable solution to automatically filter the candidates from the application pool during initial assessment. Screening bots are being employed these days to sort candidate profiles and to match them with business requirements. Extracting candidate data from social profiles to auto-fill general information in the application forms saves time for candidates. Technical tests, aptitude tests and other domain-specific tests can be sent out with guidelines to assess candidate skills online. Further, automated assessment reports provide personalised responses to candidates updating them on eligibility for further interview rounds.

Some recruiters are even using advanced data analytics to select the top candidates for job roles. Here, the data points from assessment reports, video interview reports, basic profile parameters, etc. can be analysed visually. The best candidates from the talent pool are recommended by intelligent systems based on qualifications, years of experience, college reputation, and other parameters. There’s another key benefit of using a data analytics platform. It enables businesses with a data-driven hiring process that’s fair and transparent.

Conducting virtual events by collaborating with institutions is making organisations more appealing to fresh talent. Campus recruitment drives were expensive and posed logistical challenges earlier. Now, online placement drives are allowing companies to educate potential candidates about the in-house work culture and opportunities. Managing applications and queries is easier with process automation.

Talent management using virtual platforms is turning out to be more cost-effective for businesses. Today’s hiring experts are trying to find ways to bring the engagement levels of traditional onboarding formalities to the virtual space with digital initiatives.

Finally, with uncertainties still looming around, virtual workplace solutions are making way for a wider technology-driven recruitment landscape. Many businesses have decided to continue with their improved online hiring policies to manage the workforce whenever normal office resumes in the future.