BOSTON, MA, Aug 06 (MARKET WIRE) --
If job seekers sometimes feel that hiring managers wouldn't know a good
candidate if they saw one, they might be right. At least that is among
the key findings of the latest research on talent acquisition strategies
from Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company (NYSE: HHS).
In the new benchmark report, "Talent Acquisition Strategies: Employer
Branding and Quality of Hire Take Center Stage," Aberdeen found that not
only are organizations struggling to find desired talent in the workforce,
but they are also unsure of how to measure quality once a new worker comes
on board. However, for those organizations that are successfully managing
a talent acquisition program, the gains can be huge. Best-in-Class
organizations were found to have:
-- improved quality of hire on average by 32%
-- increased employee retention on average by 21%
But getting there isn't easy. Competition for skilled labor is the
overriding pressure driving organizations to invest in talent acquisition
programs, cited by 88% of all organizations. That is followed by a
shortage of desired skills, cited by 83% of all organizations. In
response, organizations are changing and enhancing their traditional
recruiting methods. Greater emphasis is being placed on enhancing a
company's brand and reputation in the market, on proactively searching
for so-called passive candidates, and in marketing to younger workers
through new means, such as social networking sites on the Internet.
"Top performing organizations are more effective at identifying the traits
of their top performing employees, in order to seek more like them," said
David Weldon, research analyst, human capital management at Aberdeen and
author of the report. "However, a successful talent acquisition program
involves far more than deciding what skills and attributes are needed from
candidates and finding new sources for them. It also involves the ability
to measure and assess how well new hires perform in their roles during the
first year on the job. This is where quality of hire is really
determined."
In addition to impressive gains in quality of hire and new hire retention,
Aberdeen's research also found that Best-in-Class organizations have
shortened the time-to-hire an average of 22%. From the perspective of
hiring managers, all of these benefits have paid off with an average 31%
improvement in overall satisfaction with the talent acquisition program.
A complimentary copy of this report is made available due in part by the
following underwriters: First Advantage, Hodes iQ, iCIMS, Peopleclick,
PreVisor, and SilkRoad technology. To obtain a complimentary copy of the
report, visit: http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?cid=5128.
To access all of Aberdeen's complimentary research please visit
http://research.aberdeen.com.
About Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company
Aberdeen is a leading provider of fact-based research and market
intelligence that delivers demonstrable results. Having benchmarked more
than 30,000 companies in the past two years, Aberdeen is uniquely
positioned to educate users to action: driving market awareness, creating
demand, enabling sales, and delivering meaningful return-on-investment
analysis. As the trusted advisor to the global technology markets,
corporations turn to AberdeenTM for insights that drive decisions.
As a Harte-Hanks Company, Aberdeen plays a key role of putting content in
context for the global direct and targeted marketing company. Aberdeen's
analytical and independent view of the "customer optimization" process of
Harte-Hanks (Information - Opportunity - Insight - Engagement -
Interaction) extends the client value and accentuates the strategic role
Harte-Hanks brings to the market. For additional information, visit
Aberdeen http://www.aberdeen.com or call (617) 723-7890, or to learn more
about Harte-Hanks, call (800) 456-9748 or go to
http://www.harte-hanks.com.
Media Contact:
David Weldon
Aberdeen Harte-Hanks
(617) 854-5374
David.weldon@aberdeen.com
Copyright 2008 Aberdeen Group, Inc., a Harte-Hanks Company
451 D Street, Suite 710
Boston, Massachusetts 02210-1928
Telephone: (617)854-5200
Fax: (617) 723-7897
www.aberdeen.com
Copyright 2008, Market Wire, All rights reserved.
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