Financial services firm
LV= Liverpool Victoria is using Web 2.0 technology to improve
its recruitment process and to reduce its dependency on recruitment
agencies.
The company is using
Web 2.0 technology to connect to candidates and automatically
process recruitment processes.
The company expanded its workforce from 2,000 to about 3,700
this year and at the same time insourced its HR function.
David Smith, group HR director at Liverpool Victoria, said the
first phase of a six month project was to implement web-based
e-recruitment software i-Grasp from Stepstone. This automates the
recruitment processes such as job advertising, candidate
application, screening and selection, as well as management
reporting.
LV= Liverpool Victoria has only 15 people managing the HR
department so this level of automation is critical. "The whole of
HR was outsourced to Hays but the CEO wanted HR in-house and we did
not have a system. In six months we have moved from a manual
paper-based system to where we are today with a fully integrated
e-recruitment system," said Smith.
LV= Liverpool Victoria joins RBS, HBOS, Virgin, BA, PwC, KPMG
and Norwich Union as users of
Stepstone's software as a service. It will integrate the
recruitment processes of all its insurance and investment divisions
across the UK using the service.
LV= Liverpool Victoria is also piloting a system that will make
it easier for applicants to fill in the strict referencing
information stipulated by the Financial Services Authority. The
system from
Northgate HR will enable successful candidates to provide all
this information online. The candidate will receive an offer, then
a unique Pin to access a webpage. "This makes it easier for the
applicant and the HR department," said Smith.
Businesses are increasingly using the web to attract a wider
candidate base and to help them interact with potential recruits
and even automate the recruitment process.
Other firms are using Web 2.0 technology to carry out
interviews. Last year the Royal Bank of Scotland, Yell UK and KPMG
used Second Life to make contact with hundreds of potential
employees through a jobs fair held in Second Life. All three
companies had their own area, and visitors in the form of
computer-generated avatars were transported to them and greeted by
avatar recruiters.
Alison Heron, senior manager of recruitment marketing at KPMG
said the event confirmed there are lots of people using these sites
that are interested in finding out more information about companies
through the internet. She said the company took part in the event
to assess the potential of virtual worlds as a recruitment tool
that could reach a wider audience.