 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
opportunity : Diversity Positive Recruitment
:
Planning the recruitment
Why the planning process is
important
1 Most of the successful tactics for diversified
recruitment are identified and implemented during the planning stage.
Conversely, failure to cover key issues in planning can rarely be fixed
later in the recruitment process.
2 In the early recruitment planning stages, Centers need to consider strategic versus operational considerations, search issues, effective composition of the selection committee, understanding of target groups, casting the dissemination net widely, recruitment budget and the recruitment timetable. The following sections explain these factors in more detail.
Strategic versus operational
considerations
3 Up to this point, attention
has focused solely on the vacancy to be filled, defining the role and
selection criteria. However, the first step in planning the recruitment
is to consider broader, longer-term strategic issues for the Center. For
example:
- is this a work area that should be built up over a period, remain static in staffing, or be reduced?
- should the opportunity be restricted to recruiting that position or extended to include other skill areas that will become higher priority for the Center in the years ahead.
- is it necessary to recruit externally or does it make more sense to transfer/ redeploy an existing staff member (e.g. to provide career development or to provide greater job security)?
- is there a promising female or developing country national who would benefit from transferring to the new role?
- could the role be filled by an expatriate spouse or partner?
SEarch issues
4 Will there be a search
committee for the position? This means identifying a group to undertake
search activities such as:
- identifying and/or courting potential candidates,
- identifying sources who could suggest candidates, and/or
- identifying appropriate sourcing strategies for such positions (e.g. the use of recruitment consultants).
5 If so, the members of this committee need to be identified and invited to serve on the committee. The committee members then need to meet and agree among themselves on the above issues and the division of labor. A decision also needs to be taken about how many members of the search committee should also serve on the selection committee.
6 Search committees typically are used for senior management and leadership positions. However, it may be sensible to introduce a search function for some other positions as well, depending on the nature of the position to be filled. This decision would be influenced by the Center’s goals for gender and diversity for the next one, three and five years, for example, in relation to scientific positions in which women and/or developing country nationals have been under-represented.
7 Consequently the search arrangements might need to be extended. This could be done by, for example, using current employees’ networks.
Diversity alert
Centers need to choose the members of their search
and selection committees carefully so that the selection process will
be effective from a diversity perspective.
• Ensure that the selection committee includes both women and men
of various national origins. This will broaden the search and add different
perspectives to the recruitment process.
• Include people with a record of promoting the advancement of women
and developing country professionals in their own teams or programs.
• Brief committee members on the Center’s diversity policy
and its importance for the Center’s future.
• Ensure committee members understand the concept of “institutional
temptation for self-reproduction in hiring”.
Effective composition of the
selection committee
8 Having a diverse selection committee makes
a real difference in reaching and assessing a more diversified pool of
applicants.
Caution
Because of the limited number of senior women staff
members in CGIAR Centers, there is a serious risk they will be
over-used for time-consuming recruitment activities. Centers need to be
conscious of this risk and its implication for the principal work functions
of these women.
Good practice
Centers should consider nominating some staff to
serve on selection committees with observer status, in order to develop
a larger cadre of skilled and experienced people for future recruitments.
Understanding target groups
9 Recruiters often target all their recruitment effort at active job seekers
– those who are looking for a new job and who, consequently, read
newspaper, journal, electronic/Web site announcements for job opportunities.
They are taking the initiative to find their next job.
The passive market
10 However, recruiters also need to be conscious
of the passive market, i.e. those potential candidates who:
- already enjoy good positions;
- are quite happy with their current employer; and thus
- are not actively seeking alternative employment.
Often these people may be precisely the type of people Centers are trying to attract. But how? When passive job seekers actually read recruitment announcements, they may only be interested in keeping abreast of what other organizations in their field are doing. Typically they rarely read beyond the first couple of paragraphs.
11 That is why, for the passive market, it is important to:
- draft position announcements so they catch a reader’s attention within two paragraphs, and
- develop a range of attention-getting strategies including personal contacts and recommendations or professional networks.
Casting the dissemination
net widely
Dissemination channels
12 Early in the planning process, Centers
need to identify their strategies for disseminating the position announcement:
journals, newspapers, universities and institutes, Internet sites, listserves
and professional associations relevant to the position being filled. Centers
also need to review how well existing dissemination channels are working,
particularly in relation to the diversity (or otherwise) of candidates
usually attracted, and whether alternative dissemination channels need
to be considered.
13 Centers also need to
ensure that every position announcement is placed on their intranet. Not
only does this ensure that current staff is aware of potential opportunities
for their own advancement, it also optimizes the likelihood that Center
staff will communicate information about the vacancies through its own
networks.
Courting candidates
14 Centers also need to consider the extent
to which they should court potential candidates and, if so, who is going
to do it. This must be done on a no-commitment basis.
Sourcing strategies
15 Comprehensive information on sourcing strategies,
dissemination channels, etc is presented in Sourcing
Strategies.
Recruitment Budget
16 Centers need to ensure that the budget
for the recruitment includes realistic costs for advertising, both in
print and electronic media; travel costs for candidates and, if appropriate,
their spouses/partners; and, if applicable, the cost of engaging a recruitment
consultant.
Recruitment Timetable
17 It is very important to set a realistic
timetable for the recruitment process. In particular, it is essential
to allow a realistic period for circulating the position announcement.
As a rough guide, internationally recruited positions should remain open
for at least two months after the principal channels publish the position
announcement.
18 The stages of the entire process need to
be mapped against other commitments for members of the selection panel,
major meetings for the Center, travel schedules, etc. Once this is done,
it is important to adhere to the planned dates as closely as possible,
to enhance the Center’s credibility with candidates.
© CGIAR Gender & Diversity
Program 2006