Candidate centric approach to differentiate their hiring

Positive Results

• 400 Talent Member sign-up’s to the Hollaroo/ Screwfix community in the very first few weeks of launch.
• High calibre candidates who are immediately bolstering the talent pipeline.
• 25% of talent members are adding profiles which will allow recruiters to find out more about the talent and what they have to offer when they are ready to begin pipelining. 
• Members are becoming more active and reading news and joining groups etc . Currently, approx 20% are sitting within a group. 

The  Business

Kingfisher is a relatively unknown brand, so their specific businesses need to have broad shoulders when it comes to spreading the message about careers with their various organisations.

Screwfix is part of Kingfisher plc, the international home improvement company, with over 1,200 stores in 10 countries in Europe, Russia and Turkey.

The Issue

The business is growing fast – Kingfisher's success has been born from the fact that saving energy, reconnecting with nature, concerns about living in healthy and toxin-free homes, and smarter consumption were all increasingly top-of-mind for consumers.  Combined with a need to change the skill-set of inbound employees, encouraging digital and commercial experts into the business. Retail and HQ roles both require some smart recruiting to develop a talent pipeline which immediately matches to the vacancies available.  Yeovil as a destination requires a level of nurturing for candidates who may be unaware of the health benefits from living close to the coast. From Retail’s perspective, Screwfix as a brand isn’t typically the first you’d select as a commercial career choice employer.  

They’re rigorous in their assessment process, really digging deeply into the capabilities of those candidates who make an application.  Great that they complete this due diligence in their matching, BUT the net result – drop out during the selection process which wasn’t through rejection!  Matt, Head of Resourcing recognised he needed to engage with candidates throughout the process.

The Hollaroo-tion

Screwfix is brave.

They recognised that they couldn’t follow the same formula used by other employers, who typically engage with candidates only at the point a role/job match has been identified.

Matt (Programme Lead for the Hollaroo implementation) knew that he needed to be smart in the way he engaged with talent, built relationships with successful (and unsuccessful) candidates and developed his Talent Pool.

“This shift of thinking towards a candidate centric approach, is not so easy to affect through an ATS” comments Matt, who’s business currently uses Taleo and are in the midst of a long-term project to pivot to a new tech stack.  

There were a number of different success factors which Matt needed to achieve from implementing Hollaroo.

• ‘Recycling’ talent who had been rejected but still could and should be considered for other roles.
• Mitigating the likelihood that candidates would drop out through the selection process.
• Educate ‘Talent’ in the career benefits from the Screwfix brand.
• Through their use of digital in recruitment – demonstrate to candidates that they’re different.

The most significant (and impactful) decision Matt made, was to allow candidates to immediate join the HUB community.  Requesting limited information for sign up (no long and protracted form fill here!), job-seekers, brand advocates or simply interested by-standers could join the group and learn more about the businesses behind the Kingfisher brand.

Beginning by building a genuine relationship, has already afforded great benefit for the recruitment team.  Not only have HUB members stepped forward in great numbers, they’ve also been confident to provide details for their profile which will help the team to deploy the next phase of Hollaroo Community implementation – building out specific groups which will afford the team with better segmentation in advance of showing the the right roles for them.

“Whilst still early stage, the implementation approach has been detailed, carefully crafted and, as a result” says Karen, Head of Customer Success for Hollaroo “the Screwfix team and their candidates have been extremely warm to the process of joining and managing the HUB”.  

Any change in approach, especially one which pivots from a typical ‘linear’ recruitment process (attract – assess – hire) needs a shift of thinking around the relationship with a potential candidate and the need to build that relationship gradually and over time.  

Screwfix took the time to engage their team in that shift of thinking, and as a result – have launched effortlessly!

Watch this space for the next chapter of their engagement journey…