VIDEO RECRUITMENT IN RETAIL

WHITE PAPER

COPYRIGHT © CAMMIO VIDEO RECRUITMENT EXPERTS

Today’s retail industry is becoming increasingly competitive. Globalization, technological developments, and over-saturation in the marketplace have resulted in a dynamic and constantly evolving industry environment that is challenging the business outlook for retailers more so than ever before. The way con-sumers make purchasing decisions has dramatically changed. Today’s consumers are empowered to comparison shop with ease and have more selection available both online and in store. Globally, consumers have access to more than 1 billion diffe-rent products! While consumers are getting increasingly com-fortable using online channels for purchasing, the physical store will continue to play an important role.

According to a report from the World Economic Forum, the physical store will continue to be the channel that contributes the most revenue for the majority of large multichannel retai-lers until at least 2026 (Shaping the Future of Retail for Consu-mer Industries, 2017). That is because shopping is considered an engaging and sociable pastime. The physical store has chan-ged from a normal distribution channel to a place that focuses on providing a new dimension of engagement and customer experience. The bricks-and-mortar store is a critical success factor for customer retention, with loyalty and satisfaction as its core KPI’s. According to a recent retail survey of PwC, al-most 80 percent of consumers indicated ‘’sales associates with a deep knowledge of the product range’’ as the most important factor when it comes to in-store shopping experience. Given these numbers, it is for good reason that ‘talent’ is one of the main areas to invest in for retailers wanting to stay ahead of the competition.

In this white paper, we will outline the retail recruitment lands-cape, current trends, recruitment challenges, and how video recruitment can offer possible solutions.

RECRUITMENT CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS IN A FAST-CHANGING INDUSTRY

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With over 3 million retail enterprises across Europe (Eurostat), the retail segment is one of the largest employers in Europe. The retail industry employs no less than 18,6 million citizens, making the retail sector a major contributor of the European economy. While in some are-as retail jobs have been shed due to a string of bankruptcies and store closings, other retail sectors are creating jobs in an increasing pace. With the economy running at full steam again and consumer spending on the rise, the retail industry is expected to see a continued, if some-what slower, growth in hiring for the years to come. According to a survey of SmartRecruiters (2016), the retail industry is one of the top 5 sectors with the highest job demand. In 2015, the Bureau of Labor Statistics also already indicated ‘Retail Salespeople’ as one of the careers that will have the most job openings through 2022. With consumers becoming more deman-ding and ‘customer experience’ transforming into one of the most critical dimensions in custo-mer satisfaction, retailers not only have to deal with the increasing pressure of attracting con-sumers, but also in attracting qualified talent that can successfully deliver on these objectives.

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Recruitment demand

Retail recruiters know the importance of not just hiring quickly but also hiring people with the right credentials. Customer service, personality, and general consultancy skills are becoming increasingly important for the overall shopping experience and customer satisfaction. The physical store has become an embodiment of the brand. Over 80% of consumers indicates seeking advice from in-store sales assistants, even after having researched a product online (KPMG, Spotlight on Modern Retail). According to a survey conducted by Capgemini (2017) 8 in 10 consumers would be willing to pay more for the same product or service if they could be guaranteed a better customer experience. Earlier research also showed that conversion rates increase when consumers are assisted by employees who possess a high degree of pro-duct knowledge and demonstrate strong interpersonal skills.

The right staff to represent the brand demand

The characteristics of the retail industry translate into specific challenges for the search of talent. Many of these challenges can be addressed by implementing a modernized approach to recruiting such as video interviewing. Employers in retail using online job interviews are able to see more candidates in less time, get a better first impression of candidates at the pre-screening level, and enhance their quality-of-hire.

Video interviews support an effective process

Over 80% of consumers are willing to spend more with an organization in return for a better customer experience.

One of the challenges that HR faces in the retail industry is the high rate of employee tur-nover. A survey by Hay Group found that of all retail positions, hourly store employees have the highest turnover rate, with a 65 percent turnover rate in 2016. With talent leaving only shortly after they have been hired, recruiters and hiring managers often struggle to keep their companies sufficiently staffed. Moreover, a high turnover can have a big impact on an organi-zations productivity and profitability. Continuously training and replacing is both costly and time consuming. The U.S. Department of Labor estimates that it costs about 33 percent of a new recruit’s salary to replace a lost employee.

A retailer’s employees are the foundation for the businesses success overall. Many retailers face some critical recruitment challenges, due to typical retail hiring issues such as temporary staffing, high employee turnover, and volume recruiting. The implementation of video inter-views in the process helps organizations to address their recruitment challenges and recruit the qualified talent easier, faster and more effectively.

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VIDEO RECRUITMENT OFFERS SOLUTION

High turnover

Retailers are challenged by a high employee turnover rate.Store employees have the highest score with an average turnover rate of 65%.

Even though there will never be a way to prevent staff turnover entirely, many companies can cut down losses by enhancing their pre-screening process and only hiring employees who fit the company culture. No matter how perfect a candidate appears on paper, if the candidate is not in sync with the way the company works, there is a big chance the hire will end up as churned talent. A meta-analysis conducted by the University of Iowa revealed that employees who fit well with their organization, co-workers, and supervisor are more likely to stay at the company, have higher job satisfaction, and show greater job performance. Using video within the recruitment process enables recruiters to gain deeper insights on not only skills and ex-perience, but also personality, soft-skills and culture-fit – making it easier to only select the candidates who fit the company. This prevents wasting valuable time in job interviews with candidates that are not the right match for the position and increases the chances that a com-pany really selects the candidate that is best suited for the role.

Retailers often experience seasonal demand fluctuations (during Christmas, for example) and will try to add temporary staff. Retail brands would usually attract a high volume of can-didates, which requires a process that can efficiently narrow the funnel as soon as possible without the risk of missing out on the best talent. Screening this high volume of candidates is an expensive and time-consuming task. All candidates need to be screened and interviewed in record time, putting retail recruiters under even higher levels of pressure to find the right people. All new hires will have to be highly competent and be able to learn quickly since they should hit the ground running as soon as the peak season begins.

The use of video recruitment offers retailers a way to easily screen, review, and compare a high number of candidates online. By pre-screening candidates with video, recruiters can see more candidates in less time and increase their recruitment efficiency to hire qualified staff in record time. At the same time, the use of video allows recruiters to get a better first im-pression of their candidates, making it easier to efficiently separate the wheat from the chaff. It allows you to place a higher emphasis on the actual personality fit and adds flexibility to the process for both recruiter, candidate and hiring manager.

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Seasonal PEAK demand

Most retailers are characterized by a large geographical spread of stores supported by a relatively small central support organization. This often poses logistical difficulties for hiring teams. New store staff would ideally meet with both recruiter (based at central headquarters) and local store or district manager, but this is most often unrealistic due to the required in-vestment in time and cost.

Centralized hiring

Video interviewing makes it possible to and screen candidates online at a time and place that is convenient to them without any scheduling or travel difficulties. By replacing the time-con-suming interviews at the office with much faster first introductions via the webcam, recruiters can regain valuable hours in their day while still getting a good first impression. Video recor-dings of selected candidates can be shared with the remote hiring managers, allowing them to easily participate in the selection process and make collaborative hiring decision more efficiently. At the same time, candidates get the opportunity to properly present themselves while avoiding any travel and logistical hassle by conducting their interview from the comfort of their own home – improving the overall candidate experience.

Video interviews enable a more efficient and engaging process for recruiter, hiring manager, and candidate - no matter where they are located.

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The role of retail staff is rapidly changing. With consumers becoming increasingly online savvy, retail stores are putting their focus on creating positive customer experiences. The traditional sales approach is transitioning into a more consultative sales role. Large open floorplans, appealing displays, and staff that can offer expertise, interaction and engagement are becoming the norm. Customers have come to expect personal contact, excellent service and expert advice on which products best meet their needs. Retailers must ensure that their new hires are able to deliver this. This means that hiring qualified people that are able to properly represent the brand and can strengthen the customer experience is becoming more and more important. Therefore, employers are increasingly looking at factors like personali-ty, soft-skills, and cultural match as indicators of future performance.

In recent years, companies have already shifted their focus to the personality and cultural match of a candidate as an indicator of future job success. Research conducted by Harvard University, the Carnegie Foundation, and Stanford Research Center has all concluded that 85% of job success comes from having well-developed soft- and people skills, and only 15% of job success comes from technical skills and knowledge; otherwise known as ‘hard skills’. Since it is often the people factor that can make a difference between a great customer experience, or a lost customer - having people in the workplace that score high on all levels is imperative for retailers wanting to stay ahead. Adding a more human quality to the selection process, video pre-screening allows retail recruiters to gain valuable insights in a candidate’s motivation, personality and culture-fit right at the beginning of the process. This not only prevents wasting time on job interviews with candidates that are not the right fit, but also makes it easier to select only the candidates match with the complete list of requirements.

From sales clerk to sales consultant

Employers are focussing less on hard skills as an indica-tor of future job performance. 85% of job success comes from having well-developed soft- and people skills.

In today’s golden age of consumer choice, loyalty becomes more fragile, and the consumers more demanding. Customers are prepared to pay a premium for a positive in-store experien-ce rather than the cost savings of purchasing online. In a competitive environment, attracting and retaining the right staff is therefore key in building a successful business.

Most retailers have extended their business to an e-commerce platform and it is natural to extend technology into their recruitment and interview processes. The recruitment process can be made more efficient and effective by adding online video interviews to easily compare, rate and review candidates online.

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VIDEO-POWERED RECRUITING

Cammio is a powerful cloud-based video recruit-ment platform featuring live, automated and video pitch interviews. We believe pre-screening should be effective and fun for both candidate, recruiter and hiring manager. Cammio helps companies to upgrade their hiring practices while offering a best-in-class candidate and employer branding experience. Engage and recruit talent better and faster than ever before. Simply interview andcompare candidates around the world through your web browser using Cammio.

www.cammio.com | hello@cammio.com

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