Human Resources in a digital world

Human Resources is a constantly changing field which over the past few years has had a dramatic change. This can be attributed to the increase in technology and software development. What used to be the norm of handing in hard copies of resumes and cold calling has developed to an almost completely online process of hiring.

I can attest to this change, with the employment of my current position I went through various stages or rounds. The first was the initial application which I found on seek. The next day I was called by a recruitment company where they asked a few questions and said that they would be putting forward the application to the employer. Next I had a set of two different interviews with various managers and the owner. The next round was something which was very new to me. This involved undertaking an online perception and personality test at home at my own time. It took me a total of three hours to complete and covered all different topics such as how I value others, how I act in social situations and even maths problems. My results were then analysed and sent to the potential employer.

What struck me the most about this process is that what would have normally been done in an interview was done online through software. This allowed the business to focus less resources on the employment and recruiting process.

The issue with the use of this technology is that; is the online process as effective as a face to face interview and can you completely rely on the perception and personality test? According to Professor Petrina Coventry “In Australia, around 40 per cent of recruiters and employers still ask candidates or employees to participate in psychometric or personality testing and profiling.” Pertina then continues to explain that “Ninety-five per cent of all psychometric tests are created and tested on Anglo-Saxon people.” As we are in completely diverse culture, especially within Australia these tests may not be an accurate indication of a person’s personality or even prevent a diverse workforce.

Although the use of this technology may assist in finding the right candidate it should not be used as the key factor in determining an individual’s employability or suitability to a role. I believe that the recruitment process should heavily rely on face to face interaction as this enables the employer to get a true insight into an applicant. You can ask questions and get a response right away not only verbally but also with body language. This is important as according to Albert Mehrabian 55% of communication is made up from body language. This major aspect of communication would be missed with the use of online testing therefore indicating the importance of a face to face process.