Introduction
Recruitment is how organizations seek and obtain staff for their respective job positions. The length of the process varies with the organization and the need for the employee; is it an urgent position that needs to be filled, or is it one that can wait and go through the rigorous recruitment structure of the organization? Employer branding attracts and retains employees and is vital to the recruitment process (Ahmad, Khan, & Haque, 2020). Companies explore and enhance their brand position through the recruitment process. It is not only the organization that must impress the employees; it is the employer’s job to impress those looking for a job and the community it operates (Amoroso, Pattuglia, & Khan, 2021). There is much strategic importance that is tied to the recruitment process. Organizations that boast of superior recruitment and staff selection often outperform their competitors. Recruitment can be seen as obtaining a competitive advantage within an industry (Gilch & Sieweke, 2020). Branding and the recruitment process of companies go hand in hand. It is difficult for organizations to have the two activities mutually exclusive, and the perception of consumers and the larger community starts with the recruitment process.
Apple Inc and its Recruitment Processes
History and Summary of its Recruitment Process
Apple is an equal-opportunity employer committed to the inclusion and diversity of its employees. The company has, in recent times, taking affirmative action to ensure that within the organization and in its recruitment process, there are equal opportunities for all of its applicants that do not have biases in color, race, sexual orientation, gender, and origin. The organization does not discriminate, nor does it tolerate applications that look into or discuss compensation with the other applicants for the positions advertised or available. The recruitment process is extensive and lengthy. It consists of aptitude tests, face-to-face interviews, and the onboarding process.
The company seeks to ensure that those hired have extensively gone through the recruitment process and will quickly assimilate into the organization’s culture. Apple Inc advertises most of its jobs on its website or through platforms such as Linkedin and Glassdoor. The company, however, predominantly seeks employees and urges them to apply through their website. The organization also considers individuals with a criminal record as it is confined within the law. For positions within the San Francisco area, the laws guide the organization concerning applications and have a criminal past coupled with labor laws.
Positive Attributes of its Recruitment Process
Team Work and Collaboration
For Apple Inc, every facet of the organization, irrespective of the line of business, is defined through action plans. From the action plans, one can have the job description for the respective employees that work for the organization. Each division has more or less similar highly specialized roles that form the organization’s more comprehensive strategy. Collaboration is essential in the organization. Employees from each business line are called upon to share their passion, be innovative, and be courageous in pushing their agendas and ideas (Amoroso, Pattuglia, & Khan, 2021). The organization is highly hierarchical but has seamlessly gelled into the organizational culture, an open-door policy that enables employees to air their views.
The job postings are highly detailed and give a detailed account of what is expected and needed from all the employees. Once they join, the employees’ expectations are known beforehand through such recruitment processes. Onboarding becomes a seamless process as everyone is well vast in their why and what they need to do to achieve the organization’s objectives. The organization is structured into functional specializations rather than business segments which are rare considering its size. There are experts in every realm, hardware experts and software experts, and design experts within the fold.
Apple has been able to grow in leaps and bounds through this model in that the individual with the most expertise works within a department and has the right to make decisions for the other experts. Leaders within the organization combine their skill sets and expertise in two critical ways. For instance, they pay close attention to details and are always willing to collaborate. Irrespective of one’s job level, the organization has a liberating aspect. One gets to work with experts who provide relevant guidance and mentorship, leading to increased levels of innovation.
Diversity and Inclusion
The organization has increased its URCs by a whopping 64%, translating to over 18,000 people. The number of employees in the black company has doubled and has a 60% space in the leadership positions in the organization. The number of Hispanics and Latin Americans has grown to over 80%, and a 90% rise in leadership positions. Women equally take up ample space in the organization growing by 70% and taking up 85% of the leadership avenues at Apple Inc. The organization has made extensive strides in having inclusive leadership within the organization. URCs within the United States fill 43% of the leadership roles, 29% of the research and development managerial positions are filled by URCs, 37% and 26% by women in leadership and R&D leadership roles, respectively.
The organization appreciates the current intricacies plaguing the United States, such as racial inequality. Apple Inc came up with the Racial Equity and Justice Initiative, which is commendable. It is a long-term project in nature and consists of community programs predominantly for people of color and has seen a fund set up of $ 100 million as a commitment to the project and bringing about lasting change. The organization, through such projects, has gained increased brand equity, with more and more individuals from minority groups wanting to work for the brand and increase its revenue and market share. It has also seen an uptake in consumers from leading such initiatives.
Netflix and Google and their Recruitment Processes
History and Summary of its Recruitment Process
Netflix and Google have extensively been led through a hierarchical structure with extensive modifications that cater to flexibility and innovation and ensure a high level of effectiveness within their business environment, considering their level of dynamism (Bariso, 2019). The recruitment process is mainly through its websites and social media, such as Linkedin and Indeed. The organization boasts of a comprehensive platform that allows individuals within the entity to change and or modify their roles to meet the business needs (Bariso, 2019) aptly. Because of this, the organization employs an exciting yet unique job advert that does not limit its employees to the job description. The company is digitally inclined to owe its market niche and digital core business.
The companies tie all their processes and activities to their vision and mission (Bariso, 2019). The same is entrenched in the strategic goals of the organization. Job positions and or adverts are directly aligned with the company’s goals, making them highly broad and encompassing various facets not limited to the expertise of the personnel expected to fill in the position (Bariso, 2019). Most vacant positions are first internally circulated to fill them from within before circulating them externally through its website and other platforms such as Linkedin. The interviews are rigorous with out-of-the-box questions and have individuals within the company take on real-life work scenarios and deal with the given scenarios.
Positive Attributes of its Recruitment Process
Goes Beyond Expertise
Netflix has a U-form type of organizational structure that centers on hierarchy, and its prominent role is to maintain executive direction coupled with control of the entire franchise (Bylund, 2019). The system is designed to have zero lapses or gaps within it. Every step is done through the approval of management to make the expected return. The recruitment process goes beyond expertise and seeks to have individuals with high levels of integrity working within the organization (Bylund, 2019). For this reason, any new employee working for the organization is taken through the code of ethics.
The code of ethics is also available on its website for its employees. Unlike other organizations, at Netflix, employees are expected to own up to their mistakes and discuss the best possible solution with fellow employees. Google allows its employees to innovate and carry out tasks within a flexible environment that fosters collaboration and, at the same time, seeks to create a different era in the workspace setup (Bylund, 2019). Employees are not expected to dawn official attire when conducting their various roles because the primary objective is to propel output and increase the company’s yield.
Specialization and Control
There are three main aspects to the workings at Netflix outlined in its corporate structure: functional, divisional, and geographical divisions, each assigned its tasks (Bylund, 2019). The beauty of having such a structure during the recruitment process is that they can quickly ascertain which department they work in and how their functions are tied to the goals and objectives of the organization (Bylund, 2019). It seeks to give a detailed account of what to do and when to do it as the company seeks to make the maximum amount of revenue from its activities. The recruitment process is straightforward and extensive, and once the personnel is recruited, it becomes a relatively simple process to incorporate into the organization thoroughly. Netflix conducts its processes uniquely for the organization and the employees that work in it. The companies have, over time, been able to readjust and re-modify the much-needed changes as it seeks to be a dominant force in the market. The uptake of the product offered by the organization has led to numerous changes as it aims to remain unmatched in the sector.
Amazon Inc and its Recruitment Processes
History and Summary of its Recruitment Process
The organization undertakes four steps in the recruitment process notably; online application, assessment, phone interview, and an in-person interview. The website is full of information that can guide one through their interview process on interviewing at Amazon. It gives extensive guidelines for every step of the application and the interview process within the organization (Dolata, 2017). It talks about completing the online application and preparing for phone and in-person interviews. The warehouse and its fulfillment center are at the organization’s core, and the associate position that comes it gives a detailed account of the job positions and what is required. There are numerous job descriptions and many available positions on its website, making it a prominent employment creator in the United States.
Areas that Require Improvements to the Recruitment Process
Netflix and Google have extensively been led through a hierarchical structure with extensive modifications that cater to flexibility and innovation and ensure a high level of effectiveness within their business environment, considering their level of dynamism (Bariso, 2019). The recruitment process is mainly through its websites and social media, such as Linkedin and Indeed. The organization boasts of a comprehensive platform that allows individuals within the entity to change and or modify their roles to meet the business needs aptly (Bariso, 2019). Because of this, the organization employs an exciting yet unique job advert that does not limit its employees to the job description. The company is digitally inclined to owe its market niche and digital core business.
The company’s online portal for jobs takes too long to change the application status considering the lengthy recruitment process. Amazon has been accused numerous times of taking too long a time in recruiting personnel. The application status can lag for months before the status changes, and the corresponding application is archived (Dolata, 2017). Amazon predominantly seeks to recruit personnel through its website and does not use social media platforms. The negative attributes of its recruitment process have harmed the organization’s branding.
Solutions for the Recruitment Process
The organization must outsource certain facets of its recruitment process to a consulting firm and focus on core facets. Job positions such as finance, advertising, and marketing can be acquired or recruited through a consulting firm. Such work positions are the same across the board, and as such, a consulting firm can easily choose an individual that is best suited for the organization through it. Companies explore and enhance their brand position through the recruitment process. It is not only the organization that must impress the employees; it is the employer’s job to impress those looking for a job and the community it operates in (Amoroso, Pattuglia, & Khan, 2021). The same will lead to fewer lags and time lost in focusing on the recruitment of employees and more of that time spent on the organization’s core functions.
The company also needs to extensively use a referral program internally to get employees in the company as the existing employees will be able, through experience, to nominate individuals that they feel are best suited for the jobs. To increase its already budding brand recognition, Amazon can employ social media platforms for dynamic positions to lure in more consumers. The website is seen to be too scientific and bureaucratic in facilitating the recruitment process of employees. The same has led to many bottlenecks, and most applicants are highly dissatisfied with the process.
Conclusion
Branding and the recruitment process of companies go hand in hand. It is difficult for organizations to have the two activities mutually exclusive, and the perception of consumers and the larger community starts with the recruitment process. Organizations that take this to heart are better placed to do well than those who choose not to ignore such components. Companies with a robust form of extensive yet simplified recruitment tend to get the best employees. Companies that decide not to do so often end up with employees who do not go beyond what is expected and only do what is required. Therefore, it is paramount that organizations seek alternatives to the typical recruitment process that many organizations carry out. It necessitates going beyond the norm.
References
Ahmad, A., Khan, M. N., & Haque, M. A. (2020). Employer branding aids in enhancing employee attraction and retention. Journal of Asia-Pacific Business, 21(1), 27-38.
Amoroso, S., Pattuglia, S., & Khan, I. (2021). Do Millennials share similar perceptions of brand experience? A clusterization based on brand experience and other brand-related constructs: the case of Netflix. Journal of Marketing Analytics, 9(1), 33-43.
Bariso, J. (2019). What your business can learn from Netflix. Web.
Bylund, A.(2019). How does Netflix work? Web.
Dolata, U. (2017). Apple, Amazon, Google, Facebook, Microsoft: Market concentration- competition-innovation strategies (No. 2017-01).
Gilch, P. M., & Sieweke, J. (2020). Recruiting digital talent: The strategic role of recruitment in organizations’ digital transformation. German Journal of Human Resource Management, 2397002220952734.