Methods of early talent acquisition in their current form aren’t sustainable in the long term. With large organisations focussed on attracting the best talent from universities and colleges, and therein utilising carbon heavy methods of engaging with talent. This can be seen by merchandise-laden events to recruit early talent within large corporations and private businesses, followed by carbon intensive travel to interviews, open days, and selection events, all of which are driven by the paper-intensive process of recruiting new talent and the regulatory practicalities of storing personally identifiable information.
According to The World Bank, in 2021, the world generated 2.01 billion tons of municipal solid waste - and this is projected to rise by more than 75% by the year 2050. Employees are becoming more aware of the climate crisis the planet faces - and are starting to express that awareness in the way they engage with new employers. A survey commissioned by Reuters found that 65% of prospective employees want to work for an organisation that places sustainability at the core of their business and culture. Therefore, taking little steps to mitigate your organisation’s impact is crucial.
Delivering sustainability within the recruitment process and being climate positive as an organisation means that the end result is more important than actively focussing on a net-zero carbon footprint objective. This endeavour requires a wholesale realignment of how businesses operate. In essence, it starts with leadership who put sustainability at the core of their executive decision-making, which flows into developing new processes to deliver business objectives and stakeholder value whilst balancing the necessity to achieve sustainability. In the context of talent acquisition, this is about harnessing the power of technology to help drive structural change in sustainable recruitment practises.
Utilising digital recruitment platforms such as an Applicant Tracking System (ATS) can help provide a utilitarian means of deploying sustainable practises within your recruitment process. There are numerous benefits, all of which interconnect with any organisation’s individual strategic sustainability plan, such as reducing the hiring timeframe, streamlining legal compliance, providing a bespoke recruitment process experience, which leads to the final benefit which is a unique onboarding experience for new talent within your organisation.
The average recruiter will spend, on average, six to seven seconds on an individual candidate CV review. Time is critical and using an ATS platform can help provide a sustainable solution for reducing your carbon footprint, increase paperless HR systems, and increasing productivity within your talent recruitment team.
As outlined above, another benefit that requires further discussion is the ability to provide a more bespoke recruitment experience that is underpinned by a toolkit to support legal compliance with employment legislation. An ATS allows users to sort candidates in terms of suitability within a legal compliance framework.