[Podcast] FDE Express | Why Tech Alone Can’t Solve Your Talent Business’s Problems

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Show notes

On this episode of The Full Desk Experience, Kortney Harmon, Staffing and Recruiting Industry Principal at Crelate, discusses the importance of thoroughly analyzing processes and workflows to fix underlying issues in your staffing and recruiting business. She emphasizes the need to optimize processes and improve business practices, rather than relying solely on new technology to solve problems.

Transcription

Kortney Harmon [00:00:00]:

Now see, businesses think that the new technology will be the answer that you need to make the world right again. But in reality, you need to focus on optimizing your processes and improving your business practices and training in your teams the most effective ways to truly use your tools. Hi, I’m Kortney Harmon, Staffing and Recruiting Industry Principal at Crelate. Welcome to FDE Express, a miniseries of The Full Desk Experience. In this miniseries, we’ll be exploring specific topics related to growth blockers across your people, processes and technologies in a quick and concise format. Each episode will provide you with actionable insights that you can implement right away. Stop thinking technology can fix your broken processes. A silver bullet solution or the tendency of businesses to be consistently distracted by a new piece of technology truly comes at the expense of the current goals that your organizations are pursuing.

Kortney Harmon [00:01:12]:

Thinking of this and staffing recruiting businesses wanting that silver bullet technology means that you’re always looking for the latest, greatest technology solution, believing it’s going to solve all your problems without truly addressing the underlying root cause of your issues. The underlying problem is often not the lack of technology, but rather the need to fix your processes or fill a missing gap in your business practices or inconsistency of your workflows that exist in your organization today. You might know a staffing and recruiting agency that has struggled to fill open positions for their clients. Maybe they decided to invest in a new technology platform that promises to streamline their recruitment process and match candidates with job openings more effectively. However, upon implementation of the new platform, they realize they’re still struggling to fill positions. They are still not seeing the expected results. Then, after analysis, they discover that the root cause of the problem is not the technology itself, but rather their recruitment process. They may have a poorly designed candidate screening process, lack of effective communication with job seekers, missing data that maybe wasn’t entered into the system where it should have been, or they just have an unrealistic job requirement that’s turning qualified candidates away.

Kortney Harmon [00:02:39]:

Fixing these underlying issues requires thorough analysis of your process and your workflows and making the necessary improvements to address them. AI is big right now, and the use of AIpowered resume screening software is in so many of my conversations. While this technology can certainly help speed up a process of reviewing resumes, it also is not your silver bullet solution that’s going to magically solve all your recruitment problems. It still requires a human input to set the right parameters, a human effort to evaluate the results, and it’s critical to have that well designed recruitment process in place to ensure that the software is used effectively and you’re measuring the ROI now. See, businesses think that the new technology will be the answer that you need to make the world right again. But in reality, you need to focus on optimizing your processes and improving your business practices and training in your teams the most effective ways to truly use your tools. This requires effort and identifying areas of overlap and those that need improved. Rather than simply searching for the new technology that you think is going to fix all your problems, no piece of technology will fix your broken, incomplete or missing processes.

Kortney Harmon [00:04:07]:

If you’re wanting that technology fix, it’s essential to begin by assessing your current platforms and technologies. Often, businesses overlook the capabilities of their existing systems and search for a new solution. In reality, their current technology could solve their pain points. You know, it’s estimated that 80% of customers only use 20% of features and a software they’ve purchased, indicating that many businesses may be overpaying for functionality that they don’t even need. Instead of spinning cycles and spending cycles on new technology that frankly, may take months or years to implement, businesses should make sure that they’re not paying for the fix that they already have. Now, while technology can certainly be helpful in the staffing and recruiting industry, it should not be the silver bullet solution that’ll fix all your problems. Instead, remember, take the time to evaluate your current technology and your current processes. Focus on optimization and improvement first and foremost.

Kortney Harmon [00:05:15]:

Then do it again in twelve months, and again in 24 months, and again when you add a new piece of technology. And again. But please, for the love of Pete, stay on top of it. This is something that you cannot set and forget. Your business relies on it, and only then, and by addressing the root cause of the problems, can it truly save your organization time, money, resources, improve your recruitment process, and help you achieve your business goals. I’m Courtney Harmon, staffing and recruiting industry principal at Crelate. Thanks for joining SDE Express. That’s all for today’s episode of FDE Express.

Kortney Harmon [00:06:03]:

I’m Kortney Harmon with Crelate. If you have any questions or topics you’d like us to cover in future episodes, please feel free to submit them to [email protected] or ask us live next session. And don’t forget to subscribe to our podcast wherever you listen and sign up for our monthly events to keep learning and growing your business. Thanks for tuning in to FBE Express, a miniseries of the full desk experience.

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