Volatility and dishonesty: what recruitment software must contend with in 2020

December 23rd, 2019 | Industry News

Employment turbulence and recruitment agencies

Hong Kong and the UK are experiencing similar recruitment problems – for somewhat different reasons. Hong Kong’s democracy protests have had a huge effect on business activity and a recent survey shows that 84% of those who took part believe their business has been negatively affected. In addition, more than two-thirds believed that their business would either shrink or not grow (37% expected to lose turnover, 33% thought that turnover would remain flat) and only 11% of employers were planning to hire more staff, whilst 28% were intending to raise staff pay to try and retain key employees. Online recruitment software needs to be able find flexible employees for crisis situations, which is as much an exercise in exploring soft skills and risk profiles as in calibrating qualifications and experience.

Where might those candidates come from? Well, the UK is a good bet. In the hours after the first exit polls were published for the latest General Election, searches for overseas jobs spiked by 25%. SaaS recruitment agencies have a distinct advantage in engaging with candidates who are experiencing volatility and seeking a new experience and the best recruitment software allows agencies to respond to such concerns not just by highlighting possible positions that the candidate might fill, but also in exploring measures such as cultural fit so that the potential employee is assessed for the level and nature of commitment that they can make, leading to a match that rewards both the individual and their future employer.

Fraudulent CVs – a recruiter’s nightmare

Globally, it’s estimated that 20% of CVs received every day by recruiters are inaccurate or deliberately fraudulent. Recruitment database software has to be able to find these kinds of discrepancies and report them rapidly. While research has discovered that around 53% of problems are discovered during the interview stage, that still leaves a massive amount of discovered (and undiscovered) CV inaccuracies that may be spotted during background checks or screening or can go on to be costly and reputation risking problems for the potential employer.

The best recruitment software for agencies has to resolve these issues before they affect time-to-hire and employee retention, or CV processing can become a drain on recruiting resources. Typical attempts at fraud include altering timelines to hide periods of unemployment, claiming extra skills, inflating job titles or responsibilities and including false qualifications.