Digital and AI technologies are important catalysts for changes in culture and recruitment. HR staff and managers must understand the impact of this revolution. How can you ensure a digital HR strategy that supports your employer brand and recruitment process?
Digital technology has revolutionized recruitment habits: “Job candidates have become active participants on the internet and social networks. They implement digital search strategies designed to identify and evaluate an employer’s brand. As a result, digital recruitment requires HR departments to change their perspectives,” explains Larisa Ribot, head of the HR Certificate for a Digital Transformation and in charge of sales development in the continuing education department at GEM. Understanding and mastering the subtleties of digital recruitment is one of the primary goals of the HR certificate launched by Grenoble Ecole de Management last September.
Assert your employer brand
Creating an attractive employer brand on the internet and social networks is the key to digital recruitment. The goal is to attract the loyalty of talent whose expectations match the company’s culture. “Recruiters have to go a step further in their digital approach and ask themselves what are the fundamental values and practices within the company that create satisfaction for employees. By questioning employees in all areas of activity, HR departments can use these criteria to find and attract the right talent.”
Leading a digital strategy
Digital recruitment requires a coherent digital strategy that meets the needs of the company. “You have to know how to write an attractive offer before launching a digital recruitment. Recruiters have to be honest yet creative. A good recruiter is like a salesperson for the job that needs to be filled.”
A good digital strategy also includes social networks. Knowing how to target candidates and “hunt” a high potential recruit can be the key to an effective strategy. LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter offer numerous possibilities to share ads, facilitate the “hunt”, and attract new talent thanks to the employer’s brand.
The human factor still key
Mastering digital tools opens new doors for recruiters. By digitalizing certain recruitment tasks, HR managers can focus on missions with high added value such as job interviews or change management. As a result, a properly organized digital strategy can help companies ensure human strengths remain a key part of the HR function. “Participating in forums and recruitment days (see box below) are a great opportunity to meet candidates in person,” concludes Larisa.
An HR Certificate for the Digital Transformation
The first session of the HR Certificate for the Digital Transformation ended with successful feedback. “This training session transformed and organized my digital approach. The certificate’s content, tools and methods offer an easy path to applying new and efficient approaches,” highlights one of the participants. This new skill certificate (NF Service certified) was launched in September 2019 at Grenoble Ecole de Management. The program aims to train HR professionals and managers on the topic of the digitalization of human resources. The program is built around three modules that last three days (one three day module per month): 1) defining and implementing a digital strategy; 2) attracting and retaining potential recruits; 3) managing participative innovation at a distance. Each module includes in-class learning as well as group work to integrate concrete HR challenges. Evaluation is carried out through a group project and presentation in front of a jury panel made up of professionals. The second session will take place from March - May 2020 in Grenoble and then in Paris from October - December.
Job & Internship Forum at GEM also gives voice to CSR actors
On January 30th, Grenoble Ecole de Management will hold its annual Job and Internship Forum at the WTC in Grenoble. 95 companies will participate, including 11 in a new CSR/sustainable development corner. The goal for all participating companies will be to present internship and job offers in a variety of sectors: consulting, purchasing, leadership positions, marketing, communication, community leaders, etc.
In 2020, the creation of a CSR/sustainable development area is a new evolution for the forum. “For the past several months, the GEM Career Center has received requests from numerous students looking to find more meaningful career paths. The student association for sustainable development and social initiatives (IMPACT) asked for our support to co-organize a recruitment event dedicated to CSR. The goal of the CSR/sustainable development area will be to highlight actors in the social and solidarity economy whose economic models are different and will help raise awareness about alternative career paths for business school students. We opened our doors to companies who DNA includes CSR and sustainable development,” explain Mélanie Conti and Alexandra Pieteraerents, project managers at GEM.
Participating actors in the CSR/sustainable development area will include: Association d’aide à la réinsertion des chômeurs; CRESS Rhône Alpes, Chambre régionale de l’économie sociale et solidaire; Crédit Coopératif; the NGO Acted; specialized consulting firms (Kimso, B&L Evolution); the CSR grading platform Ecovadis; a “Tech for Good” startup: Place2Swap – a platform for personalized circular economies that can be adapted to e-commerce sites of participating brands in order for them to sell second hand goods; and companies with sustainable development as a key part of their project: Cocomiette; and Phoenix Mobility..
The Job and Intership Forum at GEM also includes numerous companies engaged in CSR initiatives such as Saint Gobain and FM Logistic, both of whom were laureates of the CSR challenge trophies 2019.
