Blog

Downturn forcing Recruitment Cost Upwards

Posted to Recruitment 2012 on August 26 2010.

A recent study conducted by Opinion Matters in the UK found that recruitment departments are experiencing increased expense owing to the unprecedented rise in job applications since the economic downturn.

The key findings, from this survey of over 500 in-house recruitment professionals, include:

A quarter have taken on more people to cope with the increased demand, with more than one in ten (12%) taking on two or more extra staff.
Almost half (49%) of those questioned admit to incurring further costs for people time, technology or external suppliers, in order to help manage the increased number of applicants.
A quarter of employers have added more stages to their recruitment process and 70% have introduced additional methods of selection.
A fifth (20%) say this has led to a longer time to hire leaving a gap in the business and almost a quarter (23%) say it is leading to candidates accepting offers elsewhere.

Here in Ireland, we're all too au fait with this inundation: Dublin Airport Authority being the case in point receiving over 9,000 applications for 500 positions recently advertised. We're also well aware that screening has become the hot topic among recruiters and hiring managers these days but at the same time candidates need the assurance that their application/CV is going to be given the same odds as the next man. That's why Sonru's Automated Video Interview Tool is proving so popular as not only does it reduce the time in screening candidates but it also provides a fair, standardised and structured recruitment process making it fair for all applicants.