Innovative online recruiting platform wins diversity award

Innovative online recruiting platform wins national diversity award

Auckland, Tuesday, September 4

An innovative online recruiting platform that helps school leavers and people transitioning from unemployment into the workforce has won the Tomorrow’s Workforce Award at the 2018 Diversity Awards NZ.

Fletcher Building’s “Switch Up” job hunting and application website is a game-changer as it allows us to tap into the large pool of people who want to work including those looking for their first job, says Fletcher Building Chief People Officer Claire Carroll.

“We’re thrilled that Switch Up has been recognised with a national award. We found traditional recruitment processes were discouraging some people from applying for roles. We decided we wanted to do things differently, so we worked with a range of people including high school students, and Switch Up was the result.”

For school leavers not intending to go on to further study as well as people transitioning from unemployment, Switch Up better matches candidates with roles within the company, explains Rochelle Grant who has been appointment as a dedicated Manager for the programme.

“With Switch Up, job seekers don’t need a CV or cover letter, instead they create a simple profile and indicate their interest in a job family. The job descriptions are replaced by videos of current young employees in real jobs, and job interviews are replaced by open days at our businesses.

“Switch Up aims to give people a good sense of what our businesses and jobs are really like,” says Rochelle.

After the programme’s early success, the company is now focussed on expanding its impact.

“We know that having a diverse range of people is good for creativity and innovation, and it helps us make better decisions. Switch Up is proving to be a great way to bring young people and previously unemployed people into our business.

“Since Switch Up launched less than a year ago around a dozen people have been placed in permanent jobs. We are now looking to increase the number of open days and people we employ through the programme.”

“As a major New Zealand employer, we are in a unique position to help tackle New Zealand’s unemployment issues in a new way, as well as bringing more young people into our business,” says Rochelle.

Ends

© Scoop Media