Whilst the way we work has changed dramatically over the course of the pandemic, new research has found that recruitment is struggling to keep up.
Data from Thomas International in their ‘Mind the trust gap’ report has found that businesses are not prepared to recruit for the future of work, with 85 per cent of UK businesses needing to critically improve their recruitment processes.
Not only this, but 77 per cent say they need to improve the way they assess the value and skills people bring to their business.
As the UK emerges from lockdown restrictions, recruitment is rising across the country, with latest figures showing the number of workers on payroll surged by 356,000 in June.
However, the research from Thomas’ suggests that over half of all new hires are failing in some capacity.
When speaking to hiring managers and recruiters, the report found that four in five (88 per cent) believe that predictive hiring and hiring for potential will be essential to their organisation by 2023.
Furthermore, they also stated that the best indicators of how an employee will perform were firstly personality (34 per cent), emotional intelligence (32 per cent), and adaptability (32 per cent).
In news that will surprise many employees, recruiters stated that traditional pointers to talent were not as relevant as they used to be.
Hiring managers rated factors such as performance in an interview (7 per cent), qualifications (16 per cent), and relevant previous experience on a CV (19 per cent) poorly, suggesting that the pandemic has caused a shift in recruitment style.
Sabby Gill, CEO of Thomas International, commented:
Businesses need to make a step change in how they recruit if they’re to hire the right candidates first time, every time. Otherwise they risk falling behind.
Predictive hiring can help identify traits in individuals and teams that can be harnessed and acted upon so companies can function properly and innovate successfully in this new world of work.
Megan McElroy is a second year English Literature student at the University of Warwick. As Editorial Intern for HRreview, her interests include employment law and public policy. In relation to her degree, her favourite areas of study include Small Press Publishing and political poetry.
