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BPR.......for Recruiters!

Yves Lermusiaux and Alice Snell

Strategic change within a corporation is prescribed in one of two situations:
(1) things are going badly and modifications are necessary or (2) things are
going well but the external world is changing. Although provoked by seemingly
opposite conditions, there is a common thread here — pressure. And in
recruiting, the pressure is on!

The good news is that study after study, and quote upon quote reinforce the
importance recruiting has assumed. But, as the perceived value of recruiting
has soared, so too has the pressure to recruit well, to recruit fast, to recruit
cost-effectively. Take, for instance, the recent Watson Wyatt Worldwide
Human Capital Index study based on an analysis of HR practices at more than
400 publicly traded companies. Those study results link "recruiting excellence"
to a 10.1% increase in market value(!). Pressure. And the comments from
highly successful business leader Michael Dell that "bringing in great talent
should always be a top priority. It is also the hardest objective to meet."
Pressure. And the CEOs who, when asked about the source of their night
terrors, have repeatedly responded that it’s recruiting and retention that
worry them most. Pressure. Finding and keeping the right people have
emerged as key corporate strategic issues. Recruiting is no longer a purely
reactive function; but must now be considered as a significant component of
corporate strategy. Pressure.

Historically, recruiting has not received intense scrutiny at a strategic level.
But–whether rooted in the perception that the good times are rolling/let’s
capitalize fast or the more sober view that it’s a war out there/how can we
win–the times, they have changed.

The stress the recruiting function is now under has created the need for a
high-level re-evaluation of the entire recruiting process. That endeavor is
known in the jargon as BPR, Business Process Re-engineering.

Corporate recruiters, Human Resource and senior corporate management need
to analyze their recruiting methods. What will hasten the recruiting process,
provide superior sourcing and deliver it all at low costs? Advances in powerful
technology tools have developed concurrent to the labor shortage. For
example, the low supply, high demand for talent equation dictates a
comprehensive review of candidate sourcing strategies. The Internet has
provided an unprecedented new venue to identify and attract candidates.
Here, taking the strategic view means understanding how to use that tool
most effectively while integrating its use into the entire recruiting process.

Haphazard job posting and scattered electronic resume input merely add more
layers to an already inefficient process. Corporations are starting to
understand how to attract talent to their website by using marketing
techniques, but too often they are lacking the follow-through to capture and
process that talent effectively.

Strategic value is recognized when big picture issues are addressed.
Companies need to see beyond the day-to-day applications of Internet
recruiting and understand the implications: how can this powerful technology
improve their recruiting process. So, before thinking about how to improve
sourcing, first ask: How can I improve my process? Emerging opportunities can
come in the form of utilizing automated applicant pre-screening, centralized
information databases and candidate skills profiles. These kinds of solutions
present a strategic response to the prevailing pressure.

When businesses are prompted to review their key practices, buzzwords
quickly materialize. The lexicon for strategic discussions can include workflow
management, just-in-time inventories, change management and business
process re-engineering. So how does this apply to recruiting? For recruiters,
business process re-engineering (BPR) means changing the existing methods in
order to hire the best talent for the task…quickly and economically. As the
Human Capital Index study proves, recruiting’s corporate impact is a Big
Picture issue. For recruiters under pressure, BPR: Business Process
Re-engineering should translate into BPR: a Better Process of Recruiting.

Think BPR, Think Better Process of Recruiting!

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