IDS HR Study 819, April 2006

Online recruitment

• Highlights how the Internet now plays a major role in the recruitment activities of employers in a wide range of sectors
• Examines how corporate and third-party recruitment websites are being used to appeal to a more diverse candidate base, while reducing advertising costs
• Considers how technology is streamlining the application process
• Includes five detailed case studies of organisations where online recruitment plays a key role in their attraction strategy

With over 70 per cent of adults having experience of using the Internet, employers are increasingly using the web to raise levels of interest in their vacancies and gain access to a much wider pool of candidates. Dedicated careers sections have become an expected feature of corporate websites. Many organisations also encourage online applications, which usually link into sophisticated application tracking systems. These offer the scope to streamline the recruitment process and generate key management information, providing an audit trail and allowing companies to monitor the relative success of the various attraction methods used.

Online recruitment can offer significant cost savings for employers and reduce the time taken to fill vacancies. But most are wary of missing out on potential candidates by using the Internet to the exclusion of all other media. Traditional recruitment advertising is therefore set to retain an important role, particularly when recruiting locally or for hard-to-fill jobs. Many organisations have found a considered combination of both online and traditional approaches maximises their chances of securing the best candidate.

This publication contains detailed case studies of online recruitment practices at Cadbury Schweppes, West Midlands Police, Nomura, Quarriers and Mothercare, as well as an overview of how a new online recruitment system has aided internal mobility at Westinghouse Rail Systems.