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With the increased need to control risks and costs, talent acquisition teams seek innovative solutions to balance minimizing expenses and attracting top talent.
Business process outsourcing (BPO) is a transformative strategy to control costs, ensure operational efficiencies, and refine talent acquisition strategies.
Although managing recruitment costs is essential, sacrificing candidate quality leads to higher expenses down the line. BPO saves on recruitment costs and provides candidates who match your specific culture and long-term goals.
This article explores common recruitment challenges and the role of the BPO in improving the talent acquisition process.
Common Challenges in Recruitment and Talent Acquisition
Various talent acquisition challenges can hinder recruitment processes in the ever-changing business landscape. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports almost 10 million job vacancies, which suggests that talent acquisition is experiencing a problem.
From finding qualified candidates to enhancing the candidate experience, each step of recruitment requires strategic solutions. Let us look at common challenges hindering this function:
- Tedious search for potential candidates. A job listing may draw in many applicants, but this does not guarantee that they are suitable for the position. Your job postings might not be catching the attention of top-tier talent.
- Long hiring process. Many talent acquisition teams get overly fixated on finding ideal candidates, often leading to lengthy hiring processes. According to a study by Robert Half, almost 57% of candidates lose interest in the job opportunity when the hiring process becomes excessively long.
- Overlooked candidate experience. Ensure an exceptional candidate experience is of importance. However, when recruitment is remote, the candidate experience often goes unnoticed. Sixty-seven percent of HR professionals state artificial intelligence (AI) positively impacts recruitment, including the candidate experience.
- Disorganized interview process: A highly chaotic interview procedure raises significant concerns for job applicants. When interviews are frequently rescheduled and interviewers consistently appear unprepared, candidates perceive these issues as warning signs.
The Role of BPO in Recruitment and Talent Acquisition
An excellent solution to recruitment challenges is BPO, which employs qualified global talent for your business processes at a reduced expense. So, what is BPO for recruitment services? BPO in recruitment and talent acquisition, also called recruitment process outsourcing (RPO), is subcontracting all or part of the recruitment processes to an external provider.
An RPO provider can bring its own resources and practices or adopt the client’s. Regardless of the approach, RPO significantly differs from hiring staffing agencies and contingent or retained search firms.
An RPO service provider goes beyond merely filling positions on an ad hoc basis. It integrates itself into the client company, leading to a fundamental change in how the client approaches talent recruitment. The third-party partner designs and oversees the recruitment process and is accountable for the outcomes.
While specific solutions may vary, a robust RPO solution is strategic. It assumes responsibility for shaping and overseeing the recruitment process, incorporating cutting-edge technology for optimal efficiency, conducting regular data analysis, and delivering consistent reports on the solution’s effectiveness. They incorporate technology such as:
- Applicant tracking system
- Candidate Management System
- Internal talent community platform
- Dedicated careers site
When to Consider an RPO Solution for Your Business
Companies considering an RPO solution must carefully evaluate their processes, technology, and people. Hiring a BPO partner to handle talent acquisition and recruitment is ideal when companies experience any of the following challenges:
- Inefficient and decentralized hiring process
- High recruitment costs
- Limited bandwidth for the hiring team
- Insufficient specialized hiring expertise
- Unexpected or seasonal recruitment demands
- Limited functionality of applicant tracking system
- Considerable compliance risks
- Organic growth, mergers, acquisitions or expansions
- Insufficient reporting and data capabilities
Benefits of Using BPO for Recruitment and Talent Acquisition
Most current recruitment models are not working. Small and large businesses are struggling to fill job vacancies.
This is where a BPO partner specializing in talent acquisition comes in handy. Clients should consider making outsourcing a pillar of their talent acquisition plan. Here are some ways BPO opportunities accelerate talent acquisition and promote recruitment success:
- Lower hiring expenses. According to Forbes, hiring a new employee could cost up to $40,000, which is extremely expensive when the worker does not fulfill the job requirements. Hiring expenses include job postings, background checks, tech, and training. BPO lowers costs since vendors already have the tools to manage recruitment.
- Better access to talent. A BPO vendor has many local and international connections with highly skilled talent. A firm typically has hundreds of applicants in its files.
- Improved diversity and quantity. An RPO team possesses an extensive repository of qualified workers. By leveraging global diversity, these vendors guarantee that your strategy balances the quality and quantity of talent.
- Lower turnover. Poor hiring decisions can cause a high employee turnover rate. Partnering with a BPO company ensures you do not fill unexpected job vacancies on a whim or under pressure. The service provider has a strategy for your recruitment process and a list of candidates waiting.
- Better scalability. An RPO initiative can incorporate scalability objectives. You need not wear your internal recruitment team thin when your needs change. The scalable nature of outsourcing ensures that your hiring process aligns with your overall goals for business growth.
Considerations When Outsourcing Recruitment and Talent Acquisition
Risks are inevitable, even if the management of the third-party recruitment team is careful not to commit any mistakes.
Here are the risks and considerations when adopting BPO processes for talent acquisition and recruitment:
- RPO is not a replacement for recruitment. RPO is not a quick fix. If you have a problem with recruitment, outsourcing all areas to an external provider will not fix the problem. You must work with the RPO provider to solve the issues instead of simply passing them off.
- Legal issues abound. Partnering with a BPO company requires exposing some intellectual property (IP) to a service provider. Disclosing your IP and trade secrets always poses a risk, even if RPO rarely leads to theft or information leaks that gradually escalate to a full-blown legal issue.
Real-life Example of Successful RPO Implementation
GSK, a British multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company, wanted to recruit 1,100 new sales agents in over 300 cities, including tier-three cities, across China. This endeavor needed to be accomplished in nine months to have the resources to launch new products.
Despite the competitive market, tight timeline, and large volume of work involved, GSK’s RPO partner found an innovative way to reach candidates in China’s tier-three cities. The service provider used multiple sourcing channels to proactively source talent, including social media, advertising, and internal channels.
The results of their RPO initiatives are:
- Over 1,000 vacancies were filled in nine months
- 96% satisfaction rate from hiring manager
- 36 days average time to fill
Trends to Watch in Talent Acquisition and Recruitment Outsourcing
Awareness of the trends that may impact the industry helps RPO vendors and client companies ensure smooth operations in challenging times. Here are the top trends to look out for:
1. Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion (DE&I)
Recruiters working in RPO firms recognize the significance of DE&I as a crucial component to fostering a thriving and equitable workplace.
DE&I promotes a harmonious and just system that fosters inclusivity within the organization. It goes beyond being just a passing trend in RPO—it is a permanent commitment. In conjunction with Equal Employment Opportunities (EEO) policies, these measures safeguard the interests of all parties within the organization.
2. Employee Upskilling
In an increasingly competitive market, recruitment is not just about locating individuals with the right skills and abilities. RPO experts also focus on identifying skill deficiencies in their client’s companies. These areas require attention to fortify the client’s workforce.
RPO providers can harness their data to formulate strategies for enhancing the skills of their client’s staff through upskilling initiatives.
3. Remote Hiring and Onboarding
The standard practice for remote-first companies has been to conduct online hiring and onboarding. This trend in RPO emerged around mid-2020, coinciding with the expansion of workforces in various businesses.
Recruiters from conventional companies promptly embraced this approach to meet the growing need for additional employees. The prevalence of online hiring is likely to persist, especially as companies transition into a hybrid model of both on-site and remote work arrangements.
The Bottom Line
RPO can be a boon for most businesses. Only large companies used RPO before. Over the years and with the rise of technology, small and medium-sized organizations can now leverage RPO solutions to their advantage.
Partnering with a BPO provider for recruitment and talent acquisition makes financial, structural, and strategic sense. As recruitment remains challenging, outsourcing levels the playing field and streamlines the organization’s hiring processes.
Want to supercharge your recruitment strategy? Unity Communications works with businesses across all sizes to build scalable, high-performing, global teams. Let’s connect for more information.
