VOLUME-VI I ISSUE 8 I AUGUST 2016 www.content.timesjobs.com

Find TimesJobs.com’s career articles, expert advice and tips @www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com, Jobs & Career section

n Event: PAGE 7 BPO 4.0 Talent, Technology, Transformation

n Interview: PAGE 8 Philips Innovation Campus

Campus HIrIng Clearing the Roadblocks With drop-outs being the biggest challenge, organisations are devising new ways to engage campus talent and retain them, reveals TimesJobs study

VOLUME-VI I ISSUE 8 I AUGUST 2016www.content.timesjobs.com

TimesJobs survey

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Even as the number of organisations with a dedicated campus recruitment strategy are on a upswing (as stated in June edition focussing on Campus

Hiring), many roadblocks still exist in the process and its implementation. These drawbacks, coupled with the changing needs of millennial workforce, need

immediate attention. To appeal to new gen workers, organisations are coming up with innovative ways to engage campus talent to reduce drop-outs and

retain them for long-term basis.

Campus Recruitment Bracing up for Challenges

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VOLUME-VI I ISSUE 8 I AUGUST 2016www.content.timesjobs.com

Apeksha Kaushik, TimesJobs Bureau

In ouR previous report (June edition) on campus recruitment, we had mentioned that there has been an increment of 25 per cent in the number of organisations

with an inclusive campus placement strategy since 2013.

It was asserted that with so many organisations investing resources to build a robust campus recruiting program, it is imperative for institutes and students to leverage the opportunity. While there has been significant changes in the way campus talent is perceived by the industry, drop-outs still remain a pesky factor.

The competition to hire the top talent is intense. Every company, be it a startup or a Fortune 500 believes in hiring the top talent and campus is a big abode for them. Campus hiring is no more a one-way experience where the recruiters come looking to hire top talent regardless of the candidate’s experience with the tiresome, long and delayed hiring process. To make campus hiring a win-win situation for both candidates and recruiters there has to be a noticeable change in the approach and strategy of campus hiring.

With the evolution of social media channels which engages prospective candidates, there has been significant changes in the way campus recruitment is done.

‘Brand’ gains ‘focus’While most organisations believe

campus recruitment is important, about 49 per cent also feel that it is not well

executed. For 60 per cent organisations brand positions is a big obstacle when it comes to hiring talent from campuses. This makes it imperative for organisations to effectively communicate their culture, values and growth potential to potential employees. With intensifying competition ‘brand positing’ has become pivotal for organisations to attract, engage, hire and keep the new-age talent. It has become a significant part of the entire campus recruitment process.

process and implementation

In our survey, organisations pointed out some critical things that can help improve the organisation brand and attract the best campus talent:

n Youth appealWhile engaging the young workforce,

it is a good idea to pitch your existing young talent whose experiences and ideas will connect much better with the campus talent than the experienced staff. About 47 per cent organisation said young in-house talent connects well with the potential talent at campus. nearly 35 per cent surveyed organisations

even claimed that they are following this strategy while hiring talent from campus. Also, in some organisations campus connect is a separate program – wherein managers have a set target of networking and hiring campus talent every year.

n Know the placeIn today’s digital world you know where

to find the young talent. They are present online (internet and social media) and are thus, the place to be for organisations. nearly 42 per cent organisations said they modify their campus recruitment strategies every six months looking at the pace at which the internet and mobile usage among youngsters is changing. But it doesn’t make any sense being present on internet when you don’t know how to leverage it. The online

Do you think your campus placement strategy is well- executed on the ground?

51%49%

Yes no

Do you think online contests help screen quality talent at campus?

55%45%

Yes no

presence needs proper planning and implementation to reap benefits for any organisation. For this, organisations must research well on the usage of various social mediums and tools used by the youngsters.

Besides, to help curb the challenges in campus recruitment many organisations are taking part in the online contests targeted for campus youth to screen the potential talent even before the actual placements starts. nearly 55 per cent organisations believe these contests help screen quality talent at campuses. In some cases, as 30 per cent organisations stated, these contests become the hiring medium for companies and best performers are offered jobs purely on the basis of their performance in these contests.

n Easy goingMaking application process easy, short

and uncomplicated is critical. While this applies to job-seekers across age-groups and experience categories, it is more significant in the case of new generation or millennials since they are restless and need quick results. About 38 per cent organisations said their application process have become shorter and quicker compared to previous year, while 25 per cent organisations are working on making it simpler.

n pre-engagingAs we mentioned about the focus on

brand positioning, pre-placement talks have become quite common to keep the campus talent engaged from the first point of contact to the date they accept the job offer and when they finally join the organisation. Almost 65 per cent organisations claim to have programs in

place to keep the candidates engaged from the date of offer acceptance to the date of joining, in order to ensure that there is lesser drop-outs. nearly 42 per cent organisations claimed to have seen a decline of up to 10 per cent in drop-outs compared to last year.

money mattersWhen a new employee is hired,

the compensation offered by the organisation sets the tone for long-term or short-term, satisfying or disappointing relationship. If an organisation notably under or over pays new hires, they run the risk of losing good talent or creating employees who expect more than they have earned. Hence, there has to be a certain benchmark and a competitive structure to deal with the sensitive money matters. A competitive compensation structure ensures competitive salaries that are designed to attract, retain and reward quality talent.

In our survey, nearly 52 per cent organisations claim to have a competitive

compensation structure for campus hires. Also, 36 per cent said they make to the compensation in the interim based on market changes.

The outlookorganisations think campus recruitment

will always be a vital medium to hire new minds. But they must focus on creating a brand image and the product offerings, as the game on campus is changing. It is no more an organisation’s decision about who to hire, today’s talent has many offers to choose from and it is more for the organisations on how to stand-out, how to get noticed to get the talent they want.

on-campus recruiting tools, such as career fairs and on-the-spot interviews are going to be a thing of past soon as online contests are becoming a popular and more engaging medium (for both candidates and employers). These contests offer an economical hiring platform for organisations. For the campus talent there is no better way of showcasing their skill sets to their dream employers.

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Does your company take steps to keep the candidates engaged from accept to start date?

65%

35%

Yes

no

Do you have a competitive compensation structure for campus hiring?

48%52% no Yes

Do you make changes to the compensation in the interim based on market changes?

35%no

65%

Yes

Have you ever hired a candidate basis the performance in online contests?

30%70%

Yes no

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WHICH SKILLS TO PUT ON RESUME TO GET YOUR DREAMJOB?You get only about a minute of recruiter’s time for your resume, you must know what skills to put there to grab his attention and get the job. A survey of 690 recruiters and hiring managers highlights the key competencies they scan for.

What do you scan �rst in a resume?

Which skills are most important

to a recruiter while hiring a

candidate?

What are the common listed

skills in a resume?

Which are the top most desired

skills by recruiters? 45%

Skills

23%Experience

15%Quali�cations

2%Personal details

5%Rewards &

recognitions

10%Achievements

35%Communication skills

30%Leadership skills

26%Teamwork/

collaboration Skills

22%Analytical skills

20%Adaptability skills

17%Strategic thinking

skills

Non-technical/soft skills

60%

Technical/domain skills

40%

3 out of 5 skills listed in non-tech job resumes have basic soft skills2 out of 5 skills listed in tech job resumes have basic soft skills

Basic/soft skills 70%

Technical skills

30%

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Abhijit Bhaduri

WHEn I was looking for campus placement as a graduating B-School student, it was the employers’ market.

The employers were few. We would line up and listen to them tell us that they were looking for people who would stay with them for a lifetime. The pre-placement talks were a great opportunity to get noticed by the employer by asking sharp insightful questions. During one such talk, one of my classmates did the unthinkable. He asked the potential employer why the salary offered was so low. That executive adjusted his tie and threw a condescending look at us and said, “we offer careers and not jobs.” How that even qualified as an answer to my friend’s question still beats me. But that line hit home. That phrase has been tattooed in the hearts of several people of my vintage. Many of them have now become employers.

n The age of perfect information (for students)

When a pesky student asks an uncomfortable question, the employers still try to drop the famous line, “we offer careers, not jobs”. That line fails to turn students teary eyed like it did to me. Today the students live in an age of perfect information. They already have access to employees’ comments, CEo approval ratings, salary and benefits information and even interview questions asked in the past. If anything at all, the employers are the ones who may not know enough about students they are going to meet.

n It is all about ‘the 1%’I am told that 62 richest billionaires

own as much wealth as the poorer half of the world’s population. And 1 per cent of the population owns as much wealth as the other 99 per cent. When growth slows down in this world, the poor are hit hard. When the global economy

booms, the rich get a chance to mop up whatever little the other 99 per cent are holding on to. That is how it is for campus placements too. The top 1 per cent students (who usually are found in the top 2-3 colleges) get jobs that pay way more than others. They work for the aspirational employers who in turn woo them with astronomical salaries and perks that get tongues wagging. Everyone is tracking the highest salary offered on campus.

For most tier II/III institutions, campus placement is not what they look forward to. There are very few employers to choose from. So it is always the employers who have an upper hand there. It is not unusual to renege on offers made, leaving the students stranded many times.

n That’s not the pressureWhile no rule can be generalised, we

live in an age of helicopter parenting. That is unfortunate for the students who do not get a chance to make their own decisions. There are instances when a student decided to start their own venture but lied to their parents about taking up a job with a well-known organisation.

Several students take loans to pay for higher education. That tempts many to choose an employer based on a short term consideration that allows them to settle a loan earlier. Finding a job based on culture fit then seems to be a luxury that is soon forgotten.

But more than any other pressure is the peer pressure and the desire to conform to expectations of batch-mates There is an undefined pecking order established by a few opinion leaders and influential seniors. not being selected by an employer from that list leads many people to question their self-worth. Sub-optimal choices lead to students leaving their campus placements within a few months of joining.

n Career is journey for lifeThe decision to join an organisation is

an opportunity to take the first step of the journey called career. Self-awareness may be that often overlooked factor that helps people make the right choice. Could the institutions help build that capability, please?

The author is Chief Learning

Officer, Wipro Ltd.

And you thought campus placements are easy?

Guest Column: Campus Hiring

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TimesJobs Bureau

THE Indian ITeS/BPo industry has undergone a sea change in the last two decades. Business dynamics have changed as the industry

has evolved from being just back office processing sector to being business process management segment.TimesJobs recently hosted a boardroom discussion titled ‘BPo 4.0 in Talent, Technology, Transformation: Charging Ahead from BPo to BPM’ to probe into the new talent demand of this industry as it heads into the 4.0 era and beyond. This power packed conversation involved the industry veterans and new players alike, who vociferously agreed that skill requirements now have to be in-sync with the changing business dynamics. Highlights:

n Alok Narain, EVP-Human Resources, Quatrro BPO: Client needs are changing. We may have a client who needs a BPo 1.0 solution and at the same time there is another client from the same market who has matured to BPo 5.0 stage and is asking for much evolved solutions. We too need to change to cater to these requirements.

n Ritu Bhatia, Vice President-HR, Genpact:The clients today have many more choices. They want tech savvy, domain relevant partners who can help in business transitions. They are looking for partners who can offer them end to end solutions. BPo is not about processes today, it is about partnership in business works. Talent requirements are hence changing and we are upping our game on employer branding front. Last year we got a team for employer branding. We have started a programme to reach out to women who want to return to work.n Ashish Mediratta, GM-Global Head Talent Acquisition, Wipro BPS: The clients now come and talk about outcome-based pricing; they don’t talk about transactions any more. They rely on our experience, expertise and ask us for the value that we can bring to their business and brand overall. Gone are the days when BPo was about back office things alone. In future, most of us will be selling business platforms rather than services. The industry is changing quickly. It will not be just about people expertise, but some automation will also happen at the ground level.

n Mohd Zeeshan, Head Recruitment – North, Sitel BPO: The client expectations have changed drastically. In our case, the Gurgaon market is more dynamic and challenging as compared to other sites that we have like Hyderabad, Chennai, Mumbai etc. The talent requirement has changed overall - both outside and within the organisation. We will have to improve the talent quality in order to deliver the best output for the clients.n Gajendra Saini, GM-HR & Global Head-Talent Acquisition, ISON BPO & ISON Technologies: There is a whole paradigm change that has happened. There has been a major transformation in talent requirement hence. From being a career stop gap point to becoming an informed and definitive choice, the BPo industry has come a long way. The client dynamics too have changed. For example, a major chunk of our business comprises of banking and finance organisations. The industry brands too have undergone changes hence. There are challenges like how to position your employer branding, how to attract quality talent, how to retain best performers etc.

BPO industry facing new talent demands in new era

BpO 4.0 in Talent, Technology, Transformation, Noida

Disclaimer: Information provided in this newsletter shall not be reproduced, published, re-sold or otherwise distributed inany medium without the prior written permission of TimesJobs and a clear acknowledgement to TimesJobs.

Contact: TJinsite, TimesJobs, Plot No 6, Sector 16A, Film City, Noida, 201301. Write in to editor@timesjobs.comCopyright ©2016 Times Business Solutions (A division of Times Internet Ltd). All rights reserved.

What process is followed while recruiting candidates from campus?

Hiring from campus is the best way to incorporate fresh talent in the company. We follow a comprehensive process for campus recruitment. We first plan a clear campus strategy based on workforce planning, then basis the requirement we select the institutes. Many parameters go into making that selection including Placement Day offered, past experience of the candidate from the institute and the likes.

Contrary to the popular belief, we do not always go to top colleges like the IITs or nITs. It depends on requirement and that is the primary criterion for selecting the institute. We evaluate all colleges and select the most appropriate one. When on campus, we follow a two step process: n online assessment through third party n Face to face or personal interviews at campus, which is a combination of technical and behavioral interviews

Do you have a strategy around the tier of colleges you hire from?

Yes, we follow a definitive strategy. Largely, we look at hiring from nITs and via the internship route from Bangalore-based colleges.

What are the major skills you seek when hiring from campus?

When on the campus recruitment drive, we don’t necessarily hire for functional skills. We check the student’s fundamental concepts with respect to software development but the focus is mainly on the learning ability of the candidates as we believe that skills can easily be picked up. Moreover we are there to assist the candidate once the selection is made and they join the company later

Does your company take steps to

keep candidates engaged from offer acceptance to start date?

We communicate with students at periodic intervals from the time when job offer is made to the time when they join the company. The idea is to keep them a breast with the company policies and other requirements. We also connect with them through the medium they prefer the most, hence we leverage social media and ask them to follow our Twitter and Facebook pages. This prepares them for roles ahead and keeps them aware of the latest developments happening in the company. A lot of time is saved if the entrant comes aware with such updates.

Do you have a competitive compensation structure for campus hiring as top brands are competing for the same talent pool?

Yes, we follow a very competitive compensation structure. We benchmark our Total Rewards Compensation every year to ensure that we maintain the competitive edge. We look at offering a holistic career, where we focus on the entrants’ overall development with sound learning; compensation is only one part of it.

Do you make changes to the compensation in the interim based on market changes? If you take any other measures please specify.

We review our campus compensation annually and benchmark it with our competitors and market. We take a call based on these parameters. other decisions or on the spot changes are the call of the management and are dependent on the skill of the applicant.

Do you think online contests help screen quality talent at campus?

We have a campus outreach program which includes case study contests, hackathons and other such platforms. These events are part of the brand building exercise and create awareness about the organisation at campuses. We do not actually screen students at individual level in these events at the current stage – however we believe that hackathons can emerge as a good source of candidates in future.

What is the future prospect of campus recruitment in India?

The trend with respect to campus hiring will only increase in future. As companies grow, they will need a good pipeline of talent who can bring in fresh ideas into the organisation.

At Philips, we are looking at increasing our footprint in campus recruitment.

(As told to Neha Singh Verma)

‘We review campus compensation annually, benchmark it with competitors’

Interview: Deepak Shetty Senior Director HR and Head-HR, Philips Innovation Campus