Freight Transport Association Kathleen Howse Freight Transport Association

Recruitment in a tight labour market 65% of UK employers are planning to recruit, but 2 in 5 recruiters report falling candidate availability - CIPD, 2015 Drivers are identified as the 3rd hardest job to fill in the UK - Manpower 2015 Talent Shortage Survey Finding ways to attract new candidates is now more important than ever. How can you do this? Build your employer brand Attract the right applicants Run a strong recruitment campaign The CIPD Summer 2015 Labour Market Outlook indicates that approximately 65% of UK employers are planning to recruit. Combined with the fact that two in five recruiters in the UK reporting falling candidate availability (International Business Times, 2015) the challenge becomes how employers fill those planned vacancies. In this current tight labour market, there are a reduced number of people with the required skills and qualifications looking to work in the jobs that are available. The consequence of this is that activities such as recruitment, retention and development become more difficult. There can also be an impact on the power balance of an employment relationship. Employees in this environment can be more demanding in terms of autonomy, flexibility, working conditions, development opportunities and pay. This is especially relevant to the transport and logistics industry, with the combined impact of an ageing HGV driver workforce and the lack of new entrants coming through to replace those who leave the sector as a result of retirement or to pursue different careers. In this environment, attracting applicants becomes even more vital. This can be managed by placing a focus on building your employer brand, attracting the right applicants, and running a successful recruitment campaign.

Building your employer brand Your brand is how you’re seen as an employer and a great place to work by current and potential employees Ask the following questions: What are the best attributes of your organisation? What are the current perceptions of working with the organisation? How are these elements affecting your ability to recruit? Start communicating the best aspects of your organisation: i.e. Rewards and culture, what success looks like, commitment to CSR, development and training, positive working environment Building your employer brand and differentiating yourself from other companies in a tough labour market is vital to the success of any recruitment campaign. It is no longer enough to post a job – applicants also want to know why they should join your company. An employer brand is an organisation’s personality, values and proposition. Put simply, it’s how you’re seen as an employer and a great place to work by current and potential employees. Employer branding success is achieved by communicating all of those elements to your talent pool and attracting applicants. When developing your employer brand, it is fundamental that you consider a number of questions from the outset. A good strategy is to gather key members of your company together in a room and create a mind map which considers the following questions: What are the most attractive and compelling attributes of the organisation to both current and potential employees? What roles within the company are most critical to your success and what do you need to do to attract and retain the best talent in these areas? What are the typical characteristics and attributes of current employees and what are their future requirements? What are the current perceptions of working within the organisation? How are they affecting your current ability to recruit? Strategies for strengthening you employer brand can include: Promoting culture and rewards Showing what success in the organisation looks like Introducing current employees Promoting awards and accreditations such as ‘Investors in People’ Demonstrating a commitment to CSR Promoting your commitment to career development and training Showing a commitment to creating a positive working environment for drivers

How to communicate your brand Word of mouth recommendations Internal communications Careers website Candidate experience Induction programme Social media Word of mouth recommendations: Encourage your drivers to spread the word. This can be reinforced by an employee referral scheme in which a monetary reward is offered to employees who refer a candidate that is successful in gaining employment.   Internal communications Make sure that your existing employees are aware of vacancies – they may be able to recommend a candidate. Careers website If you have a careers website, ensure that it is easy to navigate. The website is also an opportunity to advertise company benefits and culture through photos and videos. Candidate experience Ensure that candidates have a positive experience through the recruitment campaign – their experience can influence whether they will apply again in the future and will also impact the feedback they give other potential applicants. Induction programme Promoting great induction programmes can be a great influencer in attracting applicants – they will know that they will be supported throughout the process. If your company provides or funds training for new joiners (e.g. Driver CPC), make sure you advertise this.

Using social media to build your brand Share positive, candid images of employees in action Celebrate any recent awards you’ve won Announce open positions Listen to what past and current employees are saying Address genuine concerns   Social media: Utilise tools such as LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Glassdoor. Being present on social media tells candidates that you are an engaged employer who is mindful of today’s professional climate. In order to build your employer brand on social media, you can utilise the following strategies: Share positive, candid images of employees in action. If there are employee events or gatherings, take pictures and post them If you do things as simple as celebrating employee’s birthdays or other life events, take pictures and post them If you are involved in any corporate social responsibility initiatives, take pictures Etc. Anything that you can do to get the face of the company and make it seem a bit more personal is a great idea Boast about any recent awards you’ve won. You can announce these through your social media channels, and as always – if there is a picture from the event, include this. You can also include links to any press releases or related articles. Announce open positions. Utilising LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter to announce vacancies is a great way to build interest in your social media channels Listen to what past and current employees are saying – if they have any ideas, consider implementing them and getting them involved to increase their engagement with social media. You should also address genuine concerns that come out of you social media channels. If someone posts a comment, positive or negative, reply to it in a positive way – this gives you an opportunity to manage your brand. You should also consider implementing guidelines, perhaps through a policy, around the use of social media by employees in connection to your employer branded channels. Who will be given contributor rights, and also set clear expectations around what type of content is appropriate.

Advertising DRIVER REQUIRED, West Midlands Salary circa £XX,XXX Big Delivery Co Ltd is one of the UK’s leading home delivery companies, providing highly responsive logistics services for leading blue-chip organisations seven days a week. We are seeking to recruit a suitably qualified driver for multi-drop deliveries in 18 tonnes vehicles. Occasional work with light vans will also be required. Applicants must hold a current driving licence, with a category C entitlement or equivalent. The position will be attractive to self-motivated drivers who derive satisfaction from providing a quality service to customers. Our staff are the key to our success, and we believe in rewarding their commitment with a range of competitive benefits. This position offers flexibility in working hours, health cash plan, pension scheme, life assurance and 28 days holiday. For an application form, please write with full CV to: Ken Edwards, Operations Manager Big Delivery Co Ltd, Birmingham BR2 5QL or email kjedwards@bdelcl.co.uk Closing date for applications is 15th December015 Connect with us! So, you’ve out some focus on building your employer brand, and now you want to advertise a role. When putting out an advert, you should strive to meet the following aims: Attract attention Use your employer brand to differentiate yourself from the competition Create and maintain interest Communicate all the basic elements of the job and organisation, in addition to including elements on ‘why’ they should apply. This could include information on benefits, holiday, and other perks. Stimulate action Clearly communicate the next steps that people should take with regards to their application This simple advert, formatted for print, provides information on the organisation, the job, the person required, the pay and benefits, the location, directions for applying, and when the closing date for applications is. If you were to post this online, you could provide additional information on the company and the role with links to social media.

Interviewing Instruct candidates to bring relevant documents Design interview questions to determine the following: Competency Motivation Organisational fit Use the ‘funnelling’ technique for each question When inviting candidates to interview for a driving position, ask them to bring along for checking: Their driving licence Their Driver CPC Qualification Card if appropriate A copy of their statement of Driver CPC periodic training record from DSA Their digital tachograph driver’s card – if one is required for your vehicles Any other certificates or evidence of training needed (such as ADR for carriage of dangerous goods or lorry loader training) Evidence of being able to work in the UK (passport, visa, birth certificate, etc) Then start preparing for the interviews. Interviews should provide candidates with information about the job and the organisation. It should also aim to provide the answers to three fundamental questions: Can the individual do the job? Is he or she competent? Will the individual do the job? Is he or she motivated? How is the individual likely to fit into the organisation? *Ensure that you are mindful of the quality act and do not ask questions about protected characteristics. When interviewing candidates, try utilising the funnelling technique. This is where you start off with the basic interview question, probe for further information, draw the question to a close, and then check that you’ve understood by briefly summarising what has been said.

Offer of Employment Make a provisional offer subject to receiving satisfactory references and other prequalifying conditions Use your judgment and take references at face value