What Is Recruitment Process Outsourcing?

Many employers are familiar with business process and What Is HR Outsourcing?. Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO), however, remains a bit of a mystery.

Officially, recruitment process outsourcing is a type of business process outsourcing in which an employer transfers all or part of its recruitment processes to an external services provider. In practice, this external services provider serves as an extension of the employer’s internal human resources department, managing all or some of the hiring process.

But perhaps a better way to define what recruitment process outsourcing is would be to first explain what it isn’t.

RPO is NOT:

• Headhunting;
• A way to unload your recruiting responsibilities;
• A one-time fix for hiring issues; or
• An alternative to in-house human resources.

Recruitment Process Outsourcing: A Working Model

Recruitment process outsourcing services can usually be purchased either “á la carte” or as part of a bundled package, depending on a company’s needs. Companies looking to hire a single employee in a hard-to-fill or in-demand position may only want to engage RPO services for a limited time, while companies looking to overhaul their entire hiring process may want to consider a long-term and comprehensive RPO arrangement.

Below is a general outline of what businesses engaging an RPO provider for comprehensive recruitment services can expect:

Strategy Development: Before beginning any project, the company and RPO provider should work to define the recruitment goals and missions and create a strategy for how to meet those goals.

Job Description/Design: Job analysis is an important part of recruitment process outsourcing. RPO providers work with their clients to develop accurate, detailed and relevant job descriptions to help attract the candidates the employer is looking for.

Sourcing: Candidate sourcing is at once the most difficult and most important aspect of recruitment. Technology has made it easier for candidates and employers to connect, but the sheer number of job boards and online job sites make it difficult for employers to identify the best place to post their jobs. RPO providers typically have a strong network of industry-specific recruiters and a multi-level approach to job sourcing.

Calibration Meeting: Oftentimes when a search begins, there may be one idea for what the job description or skills the ideal candidate should possess, but as the search continues it turns out that the resumes the search is yielding may not be the exact candidates the employer is looking for. Calibration meetings offer an opportunity to review and tweak the job description or sourcing methods.

Submitting The Resumes To Hiring Manager: At this point in the process employers may want to see the preliminary applicant pool the search has produced. If the search still isn’t returning the types of resumes hiring managers want to see, this is another point in which they may want to rethink the current process.

Phone Screenings & Profile: It’s important to keep in mind that the resumes alone don’t give hiring managers a full picture of each candidate. Employers may also want to ask their RPO provider to include initial phone screening information as part of the resume they submit to hiring managers.

Submit For Assessment: Although not all employers use pre-employment assessments, they can prove to be very helpful in whittling down the applicant pool and help employers get a clearer picture of each candidate’s skills and personality.

Scheduling Interviews: Traditionally at this point in the process, after the hiring manager has narrowed down the applicant pool even further, the tedious and time-consuming back-and-forth task of scheduling a face-to-face interview begins. Ideally, the RPO provider would have the capability to communicate with the candidate and hiring manager separately to determine an appropriate interview time.

Selection: If every other of the step of the RPO process has been performed at the optimal level, employers should have a core group of highly qualified candidates to choose from.

G&A Partners, one of the nation’s leading professional employer organizations (PEO), offers a recruitment process outsourcing solution that delivers high-quality job candidates and measurable results while reducing your recruiting costs and ensuring that your hiring process remain in full compliance with regulatory compliance at every stage of the hiring process. With over 20 years of experience in helping entrepreneurs grow their businesses, take better care of their employees and enjoy a higher quality of life, G&A alleviates the burden of tedious administrative tasks and allows business owners to focus their time, talent and energy on growing their company.

Learn how G&A Partners can help you improve your recruitment process by contacting us by phone at 1-866-927-6203 to speak with an expert or schedule a business consultation.