Job referrals: New hiring mantra

NEW DELHI: While campus recruitment continues to be the dominant mode of recruitment, IT/ITeS companies have substantially ramped up hiring thro
ugh employee referrals and internal promotions.

This could be the fallout of slow hiring phase that most companies are going through.

The slowdown has also led organisations to take stock of the situation and restructure their working conditions. The hiring plans in the IT/ITeS have been attracting much attention, since they are associated with massive hiring of fresh talent.

“Now, almost 40 per cent hiring is through employee referrals and 80 per cent of our promotions are internal,” says Genpact senior VP and HR head Piyush Mehta. “We are more inclined towards it, as apart from saving time on comprehensive background checks and scanning, it also helps in better camaraderie among employees.”

When a candidate is employed through a referral programme, there is a less probability of the candidate leaving the organisation in a small span of time--a fact well established at Genpact, which has a low attrition rate of 25 per cent. That apart, hiring through referral route also saves time searching, headhunting and calling candidates.

Recruiting people and retaining them is becoming a challenge for the HR departments across sectors. In such a scenario, IT/ITeS industry has chosen this mode to ensure effective hiring. “There has been an increase in hiring through employee referrals by 50 per cent across sectors, and at all levels,” says Expertus (a talent management and recruitment firm) sales and marketing VP A Sudarshan.

“The IT/ITeS sector takes the lead in it. At a time when most companies are looking at cost-optimisation, it is a definite tool of cutting on expenses, but it has an adverse impact on head-hunting and recruiting firms like us.”

There are monetary and intangible benefits for employees in case the referred candidate is finally selected. To ensure a successful referral sy
stem, it is important to suitably award employees who are bringing candidates. This is a strong motivating factor. MindTree Consulting, for instance, has an employee referral scheme ‘Each one bring one’. Infosys BPO is also focusing at maximum recruitment and promotions happening internally.

“It also helps in developing employee relations as the employee’s social needs are met and they have a feeling of belongingness,” says Gurukulonline Learning Solutions CEO Shailesh Mehta. However, headhunting and recruitment firms should not be affected to a major extent as there is always a skill gap or difference between the goals of the organisation and the personal goals of an employee.

“Although, there is rampant internal hiring, especially in the IT/ITeS, there would always be a need for specific talent and cross-border appointments. In such cases, it is necessary to leverage on expert recruitment and hiring firms,” said Mafoi management consultants CEO E Balaji.

Courtesy: Times of India