No one is unemployable through digital recruitment
Mat Conn, Group CRO, Merchants
South Africa’s current unemployment rate of 35.3% is the highest recorded since comparable data collection began in 2008 – making employment creation critical. Digital recruitment is set to be the most effective platform for employment creation in South Africa in the next five years, and it is time businesses let go of traditional recruitment methods and invest in this.
Breaking Barriers to Entry
Digital recruitment breaks down barriers to entry that most South Africans face when looking for work, such as education and prior experience. Instead, it focuses in on the candidate’s skills set, work experience and personality traits – matching these directly to those needed for the role in question.
Merchants’ digital recruitment tool, MyCalling, has ensured we are able to continue leading the way in impact souring. 69% of the job seekers that registered on MyCalling in 2021 were unemployed youths, 23% of whom were unemployed students and 21% of which had no previous working experience. Of the over 4000 entry level positions we fulfilled throughout the year, 91% of positions were filled by Impact Workers, of which 75% were impacted youths.
Hire for Skills, Not Experience
By focusing on personality traits and skills, such as problem solving, empathy and interpersonal communication, not only does the candidate have the best chance of finding a job but also finding one to which they are best suited. This sets the candidate up for success in their role and ensures job satisfaction – creating the best possible chance at long-term employment. This creates a win-win situation for both job seekers and employing businesses.
Improved Accessibility
Additionally, digital CVs and benchmarking activities can be created using any smart device, making roles far more accessible than they have been in the past through traditional methods (like placing a job ad) which typically reach only 20% of job seekers in South Africa. Through digital recruitment, employment is available to all South Africans, including students, those previously employed, differently abled individuals and those living in rural and outlying areas.
There is no doubt that digital recruitment has the potential to reduce South Africa’s unemployment rate, as it makes every South African employable in the right role.