Crystelle Reyes

Are you exploring new territories in 2024? 5 tips to build a fit-for-purpose talent strategy.

November 26, 2023 by Crystelle Reyes

Blogs & Articles

Are you exploring new territories in 2024? 5 tips to build a fit-for-purpose talent strategy.

Crystelle Reyes

November 26, 2023

New year, new opportunities. Expanding into new territories is a common way to gain access to new business opportunities and unexplored talent pools. A lean and flexible talent strategy positions your enterprise to build an anytime-anywhere workforce that is ready to maximize new ventures. Alexandra, Director of Client Solutions, shares five tips to help you get started.

1: Articulate your vision

Starting a new year with an expansion strategy is exciting, but charging ahead without a plan can lead to costly mistakes. Before you execute anything, ask yourself these questions about your talent needs:

What level of expertise do I need to successfully enter a new geography?
What is my projected speed of expansion and growth?
What is the hiring landscape like in my target region?
What talent do I need to achieve my goals?

When you answer these questions, you paint a clear picture of your requirements, and whether you need to partner with an expert that knows your target market to help you succeed.

2: Cultivate organizational alignment

In an interconnected world, the linchpin to a successful talent strategy lies in effective collaboration across borders and departments. From the C-suite to HR, and the teams and departments ushering in new global teams and hires, cultivating buy-in and cross-border collaboration stands at the heart of expansions. Offer training for effective collaboration, ensure that Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DE&I) are integrated from the outset, and emphasize seamless communications and change management throughout.

In unpredictable markets, we've seen a big uptake in expansions into new global regions where talent pools, currencies and economic climates look more promising and stable. In an interconnected world, opportunities are endless. A robust talent strategy ensures you are ready to maximise these prospects.”

Alexandra Delaney - Director of Client Solutions

3: Craft a compelling employer brand

Your employer brand is the cornerstone of a successful global talent strategy. Create a positive, dynamic brand that transcends borders. Utilize regional job fairs, localized career websites, and targeted social media campaigns to showcase your workplace culture. Engage with local universities and professional associations to establish your presence. Keep it authentic; your employees are your best brand ambassadors.

4: Leverage HR technology and AI for efficiency

Every moment counts when expanding your business. Underpinning your recruitment process with HR technology and AI can be a game changer. These tools have the potential to streamline your hiring journey and provide the efficiency needed to focus on more strategic elements of talent acquisition. For example:

Optimized search: AI-driven Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) refine and expedite the search for qualified candidates in a new territory.
Automated communication: Utilize AI for chatbots and automated emails to maintain seamless candidate interactions while get your team in place.
Predictive analytics: Harness AI to analyze data, offering insights into hiring trends and forecasting future talent needs.
Cost-effective automation: Implement AI to automate routine tasks, freeing up time for strategic decision-making in recruitment.

5: Evaluate and iterate with data

Results matter in the world of global talent acquisition. Leverage data analytics and feedback from managers, candidates, and employees to continuously evolve your strategy. Evaluate metrics such as candidate quality, talent retention rates, and social media engagement. This data-driven approach informs strategic adjustments, allowing you to replicate successful practices across different regions.

Hudson RPO has extensive experience in building and expanding recruitment strategies on a local and global scale. If you’re ready to explore new territories in 2024 and build a fit-for-purpose talent strategy, get in touch with our talent experts today.

Crystelle Reyes

Global Content Lead

Crystelle is responsible for our global content activity. Having started in the industry as a talent sourcer in the Hudson RPO academy, she has first-hand experience in recruitment strategies. In her role she combines this experience with her background in marketing to write and coordinate relevant content across our three regions.

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The role of recruiters in AI-enabled recruitment processes

November 21, 2023 by Crystelle Reyes

Blogs & Articles

The role of recruiters in AI-enabled recruitment processes

Crystelle Reyes

November 21, 2023

The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into recruitment processes is increasingly playing a significant role in talent strategy. As AI technology advances, new challenges and opportunities continue to rise. Our surveys indicate that 45% of responders believe AI will automate routine tasks and alleviate administrative duties in recruitment. Additionally, 29% see AI’s potential in providing predictive insights for hiring decisions. Yet, only 24% believe AI alone has the capacity to truly enhance the candidate experience. So, if AI enablement has the power to alleviate recruiters from some tasks and not others, what exactly is the role of recruiters in an AI-enabled recruitment process? We asked our experts Stephen, Regional Director of HR & Technology, and Cristine, VP of Solution Design and Tech Innovation.

Recruitment experts possess invaluable human qualities and the ability to build connections between talent and hiring teams that are difficult, if not impossible, for AI to replace.”

First and foremost, it is essential to acknowledge that AI in recruitment is unlikely to directly replace recruiters,” says Stephen. More likely, it will augment their capabilities. Recruitment experts possess invaluable human qualities and the ability to build connections between talent and hiring teams that are difficult, if not impossible, for AI to replace. As we described earlier this year, whether it is the rapport built in a face-to-face meeting or the personal touch of a targeted ad, some aspects of recruitment simply can’t be replicated.

Strategic partnerships

Cristine agrees that AI will have applications for automation, administrative tasks, and predictive insights. “In leveraging those [AI] benefits, I also believe it has the potential to bring back the traditionally consultative nature of the recruitment profession, both for candidates and organizations. I believe recruiters will be more strategically involved in projects like workforce planning, consulting candidates on their career paths, skills-based pathways and development programs to fill future hiring needs, employer branding and other retention-boosting initiatives.”

Data-informed decision-making

“Additionally, recruiters will become data-driven decision-makers, leveraging advanced analytics tools and AI-driven algorithms to assess recruitment performance, candidate quality, and overall hiring strategies”, Stephen says. “This shift will enable recruiters to make more informed choices, optimize their processes, and adapt to evolving market trends, ultimately leading to more efficient and effective talent acquisition with a strategic future-focus. In its current state however, AI needs vast amounts of data. Transactional data from one company is not enough to accurately predict the performance of a candidate, but it is a change we expect to see in the future.”

It isn’t AI itself that will transform the candidate experience, it is the recruiters strategically leveraging AI that will.”

Authentic candidate experiences

According to Cristine, the way AI can transform candidate experiences is generally underestimated. “Mostly because it is not AI that will transform the candidate experience, it is the recruiters that leverage the time AI enablement has given them back in their schedules. If a chatbot can engage with candidates around the clock with common questions and application updates, or if an ATS can integrate administrative duties, a recruiter has time to engage in meaningful conversations around cultural fit, ambition, and soft skills.” These are just some of the areas we predict AI will transform the recruitment process through increased efficiencies and optimizations:

Reduce time spent candidate sourcing
Skill-based matching between candidate profiles and skill-requirements
Improved and automated candidate screening
Chat-based candidate communications & support
Conduct and analyze virtual interviews

The recruitment teams of the future

The role of recruiters in an AI-enabled recruitment process is evolving. Recruiters should embrace AI as a tool to streamline administrative tasks, gain predictive insights, and enhance the candidate’s experience. By doing so, they can free up time for more meaningful interactions and decision-making while providing candidates with a more efficient and personalized journey. Ultimately, the successful recruiter of the future will be one who can strike the right balance between leveraging AI’s capabilities and harnessing their own unique human skills to build stronger, more productive teams.

Crystelle Reyes

Global Content Lead

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Joan’s 2023 talent buzzword guide

November 15, 2023 by Crystelle Reyes

Blogs & Articles

Joan’s 2023 talent buzzword guide

Crystelle Reyes

November 15, 2023

2021 was the year of ‘the great’; the great resignation, the great renegotiation, the great reshuffle. And by late 2022 into early 2023, a different theme emerged – ‘the quiet’. From quiet quitting through to quiet hiring, phrases like career cushioning and rage applying infiltrated our talent vocabularies. Keeping up with these trends can be challenging which is why Hudson RPO expert Joan, has taken a deeper dive into this year’s workplace buzzwords.

Fuelled by changing legislations, uncertain economic environments, and digital transformations, we've seen a seismic shift in the employer-employee dynamic that transforms recruitment and retention strategies.”

Joan Achis - Business Development Manager

Quiet quitting

Quiet quitting made waves in the latter half of 2022, as most trends do, on TikTok. The biggest misconception around ‘quiet quitting’ is that employees are quitting their jobs entirely. Rather, quiet quitting is defined by individuals in the workplace giving up on the idea that going above and beyond is the standard. This trend is sometimes also referred to as ‘acting your wage’ on social media, or ‘quiet thriving’. The trend has continued its trajectory as of June 2023, 59% of 122,416 of global workers that participated in a survey said that they are not engaged at work.

Career cushioning

Another term born out of the quiet quitting theme was career cushioning, or creating a professional plan B. Career cushioning is about maintaining a secondary job or skillset, in order to provide a safety net for a potential job loss. It is estimated that nearly 68% of professionals have taken on proactive ‘career cushioning’ methods, including applying for new jobs, monitoring the job market, or preparing their CVs.

Loud quitting

From quiet quitting also came its successor, ‘loud quitting’. According to Gallup’s global workforce report, loud quitters are those who actively harm an organization, while actively undercutting and opposing its leaders and goals. Almost 1 in 5 employees globally are ‘loud quitting’, and 56% of them report feeling stressed at work citing they would switch jobs even if it means a pay cut.

Rage applying

The term ‘rage applying’, although less extreme than it sounds, describes the act of applying for other jobs as a response to unsatisfactory work conditions. According to HR Morning trend first emerged in 2023 when a TikTok user said “I got mad at work and rage applied to like 15 jobs and then I got a job that gave me a $25,000 raise and it’s a great place to work. So, keep rage applying. It’ll happen.”

Quiet hiring

In 2022, Gartner identified “quiet quitting” as one of the key workplace trends for 2023. They predicted that HR leaders would counter this by implementing “quiet hiring” strategies. This would mean focusing on internal talent mobility, providing stretch and upskilling opportunities, and leveraging alumni networks and gig workers to meet evolving organizational needs without adding full-time employees.

Quiet firing or quiet cutting

“Quiet cutting” or “quiet firing” is a term used to describe a strategy where organizations avoid firing employees but instead assign them different roles, according to SHRM. This approach is seen as a way to avoid higher unemployment insurance rates and maintain stability during uncertain financial times. However, it can be risky as it may lead to alienating or losing talented employees.

Boomerang employees

According to Joan, the latest buzzword to watch in 2023 is the boomerang employee. As the name suggests, a boomerang employee describes a situation when a past employee who has left an organization returns after having gained employment elsewhere in between. While the term is not a new adjective, it’s a trend that will pick up pace with organizations worldwide needing to explore alternative ways of accessing talent in a competitive market. Last month, Salesforce introduced it as a new success metric and is even hosting alumni events for former employees.

The evolving terminology in the workplace and specifically in recruitment, are indicative of the shifting landscape in the world of work. From ‘quiet quitting’ to ‘rage applying’, each trend underscores the increasingly individualized approach employees are taking towards their roles and their professional futures. For employers, understanding these trends and adapting in an effort to address them is key to fostering a resilient and engaged workforce. Click here to talk to one of our talent experts about the latest hiring and retention trends.

Crystelle Reyes

Global Content Lead

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Paul’s four tips to attract talent in the retail industry

October 10, 2023 by Crystelle Reyes

Blogs & Articles

Paul’s four tips to attract talent in the retail industry

Crystelle Reyes

October 10, 2023

With over 19 years of experience in the world of talent, Paul has witnessed the ebbs and flows of many industries. As a strong creative thinker, his passion lies in building recruitment strategies that shape exceptional outcomes for his clients. Today, he shares his top-4 tips for the retail industry, in what he believes is the most challenging market of his career to date.

Enhance brand awareness
In today’s hyper-competitive retail landscape, brand awareness is not just for customers; it’s crucial for attracting top talent as well. Just like customers, potential employees want to engage with a brand they believe in and resonate with. Your company’s reputation, values, and culture play a significant role in drawing the right candidates. Emphasize what makes your retail brand unique and a great place to work, in a way that resonates with the talent you need.
Leverage the benefits of pay transparency
As an extension of brand, you also want to talk about what salary and benefits packages look like for successful candidates. Pay transparency is common practice in the retail industry, which can become challenging for retention rates as candidates in the industry tend to hop around more for better pay. At the same time, pay transparency can also establish trust and clear expectations, which in turn lead to efficiencies in the recruitment process.
Foster authenticity
To attract a diverse pool of candidates in the retail industry, it’s crucial to create an environment that fosters creativity and allows employees to be their authentic selves. Traditional roles in retail often emphasize sales-based performance and lengthy touchpoint manuals, which oftentimes doesn’t appeal to talent. By fostering a space for creativity, employees are more likely to feel engaged and bring their authentic selves to work, enabling them to forge genuine connections with customers.
Don’t overlook former employees
In the retail industry, high turnovers and a fierce competition for talent have always been prevalent. However in 2020, the industry faced a significant challenge as many employees left their retail positions. As the labor market recovers, consider bringing back employees who are now looking to return to the industry. By bringing back those already familiar with your business, you also save time and costs associated with onboarding and training. To facilitate the engagement of former employees, consider an Alumni program or communications campaign.

Navigating the talent landscape in the retail industry can be time-consuming and expensive. However, these four actionable insights from Paul can provide a valuable starting point. By infusing authenticity into your brand, championing pay transparency, fostering creativity, and considering former employees, retail businesses can adapt and thrive in an ever-evolving environment.

Do you want to talk more about talent attraction in the retail industry? Get in touch with our talent experts today.

Crystelle Reyes

Global Content Lead

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Beyond the office walls: the power of flexible work models

September 22, 2023 by Crystelle Reyes

Blogs & Articles

Beyond the office walls: the power of flexible work models

Crystelle Reyes

September 22, 2023

When navigating the ever-evolving modern workplace, many companies are thinking about the future of the office and flexible working models. Although the benefits of in-person collaboration and culture-building are undeniable, flexibility and work-life balance are still top considerations for talent. Alexandra Delaney, Hudson RPO’s Director of Client Solutions in the Americas region, delves deeper into the subject.

I find myself grateful to be part of an organization that recognizes the value of a flexible work model with remote options.”

- Alexandra Delaney, Hudson RPO’s Director of Client Solutions in the Americas region

Talent considerations

“The push for a return to the office and more structured ways of working is understandable. Leaders often see the office as a hub of creativity, a place where ideas are born from spontaneous conversations and shared experiences”, says Alexandra. “However, this perspective may inadvertently overlook the diverse needs of employees as well as potential talent that lies beyond the geographical boundaries of the office.”

A great example of this is the ‘Returning for Good’ report by Unispace, that finds that 72% of companies surveyed from across 14 different countries now say they have mandated office returns. Interestingly, almost half of those who mandated a return to the office now report a higher level of employee attrition, and 29 per cent are struggling to attract the talent they need.

Research amongst the Hudson RPO talent experts in our APAC region, has concluded similar findings. Notably, our talent experts noted a trade-off in quality candidates when mandating a return to the office that didn’t reflect an industry requirement or added value to employees.

Returning to the office and restructuring work-options is a decision that has knock-on effects for your existing and prospective talent pools. Especially when a change is mandated, without considering how this adds value-add for your employees.”

Alexandra’s experience

Alexandra has personally experienced firsthand the importance of a flexible work model: “When my husband was diagnosed with cancer, I became his primary caregiver. It was a challenging time, filled with doctor’s appointments, treatments, and the emotional toll that such a diagnosis brings. I was fortunate to work for an employer who understood my personal needs and didn’t add to my stress by requiring me to come into the office during his treatment and recovery.”

“Without this flexibility, my situation could have been drastically different. The added pressure of commuting, managing my workload, and maintaining a presence at work, all while caring for my husband, would have been overwhelming. Having the flexibility to focus on both aspects of my personal and professional life while maintaining a sense of privacy was incredibly helpful and provided me the opportunity to stay in a role I love and provide the care my husband needed during a critical time.”

Flexibility fueling performance

Alexandra believes the assumption that employees prefer to work from home out of laziness or a desire to shirk responsibilities is a misconception. “There are countless circumstances, some as extreme as mine and others less so, that necessitate the option to work from home. It’s not always about wanting to escape the office environment, but rather about needing the flexibility to manage personal circumstances while still contributing professionally.”

Research by Gartner earlier this year on radical flexibility explored the concept of giving employees flexibility not just when and where they work, but also with whom, on what and how much. According to their research, flexibility boosts the percentage of employees defined as high performers increases by 40 per cent while drastically reducing burn-out risk.

“In my experience, I’ve found that I am more productive working from home,” Alexandra says. “The elimination of commute time and the flexibility to create a personalized work environment, significantly increased my productivity. Despite not being physically present in the office, I’ve maintained excellent relationships with my coworkers, and my work-life balance and mental health have improved significantly.”

Is the way you shape work attractive to talent?

For companies considering a change to work arrangements, it’s crucial to consider the diverse needs of employees and the potential benefits of a flexible model. By doing so, they can attract and retain top talent, build trust, and create a supportive environment that values the well-being of their employees. Do you want to learn more about how the way you build work shapes your talent attraction and retention, talk to one of our talent experts today.

Crystelle Reyes

Global Content Lead

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The Learning & Development teams of the future

September 15, 2023 by Crystelle Reyes

Blogs & Articles

The Learning & Development teams of the future

Crystelle Reyes

September 15, 2023

As skills-based hiring gains momentum, Learning & Development departments are transforming. The traditional role of L&D as providers of specific skills is shifting focus towards future skills pathways. Find out what the L&D teams of the future look like in this blog, based on insights from our whitepaper ‘The Future of Learning’.

Personalized learning

To capture employee attention, L&D teams are shifting away from traditional classroom-based training and embracing personalized and engaging learning experiences. These experiences utilize various methods, such as micro-learning, gamification, and peer-to-peer teaching, to create an environment that resonates with different learning styles.

By providing these immersive experiences, L&D teams can enhance engagement and retention rates, ensuring that employees not only acquire knowledge but also apply it effectively in their roles.

Building a culture of learning

Empowering individuals to take control of their learning journey is crucial for the future of L&D. By fostering a sense of ownership, employees become proactive in seeking out relevant resources and experiences. This responsibility extends beyond the L&D department; managers also play a vital role in creating an environment that prioritizes continuous learning.

To cultivate this environment, managers should motivate their teams to pursue learning opportunities, model a culture where challenges are seen as learning opportunities, and encourage participation in training. In doing so, managers contribute to a culture of learning where professional growth and development are deeply ingrained within the work culture.

New roles in L&D

The focus has shifted from simply producing content, to curating it. Pleasingly, it is now more than ever, recognized that learning is an ongoing, dynamic process that goes beyond formal training. This shift has also brought about new roles within L&D, such as content developers, learning strategists, and experience designers. These roles ensure that learning initiatives are aligned with business objectives and leverage the latest tools and technologies.

In addition, the L&D teams of the future need to be adaptable and open to experimenting with different approaches. By continually gathering feedback from stakeholders, they can gain valuable insights into how learning initiatives are received and use these insights to create even better experiences in the future.

Strategic alignment

In a world of rapid technological advancements and emerging industries, organizations face significant challenges in bridging the skills gaps of the future. To tackle this, L&D departments are taking a proactive stance in identifying and addressing these gaps. To understand the essential skills for future success and creating pathways to develop them, L&D departments must collaborate closely with a range of different departments.

This strategic alignment empowers organizations to cultivate a future-ready workforce, equipped with the competencies necessary for adaptability and resilience. However, the strategic role of L&D goes beyond filling future skill gaps—it also plays a pivotal role in talent recruitment and retention. Effective learning programs attract individuals who value professional growth, while fostering job satisfaction, engagement, and loyalty among existing employees.

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Learning and Development is evolving to a strategic partner for managers, talent attraction and retention and future workforce planning. Learn more about the ever-changing landscape of learning, development and skills-based hiring in our whitepaper series with Future Talent Learning.

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Leadership Mindsets for the Future

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Crystelle Reyes

Are you exploring new territories in 2024? 5 tips to build a fit-for-purpose talent strategy.

1: Articulate your vision

2: Cultivate organizational alignment

3: Craft a compelling employer brand

4: Leverage HR technology and AI for efficiency

5: Evaluate and iterate with data

Global Content Lead

What is RPO?

What is MSP?

Related articles

The role of recruiters in AI-enabled recruitment processes

Strategic partnerships

Data-informed decision-making

Authentic candidate experiences

The recruitment teams of the future

Global Content Lead

What is RPO?

What is MSP?

Related articles

Joan’s 2023 talent buzzword guide

Quiet quitting

Career cushioning

Loud quitting

Rage applying

Quiet hiring

Quiet firing or quiet cutting

Boomerang employees

Global Content Lead

What is RPO?

What is MSP?

Related articles

Paul’s four tips to attract talent in the retail industry

Global Content Lead

What is RPO?

What is MSP?

Related articles

Beyond the office walls: the power of flexible work models

Talent considerations

Alexandra’s experience

Flexibility fueling performance

Is the way you shape work attractive to talent?

Global Content Lead

What is RPO?

What is MSP?

Related articles

The Learning & Development teams of the future

Personalized learning

Building a culture of learning

New roles in L&D

Strategic alignment

Learn more

Global Content Lead

What is RPO?

What is MSP?

Related articles

Download our Latest Whitepaper