Roche goes online to co-ordinate recruitment
pharmafile | March 23, 2006 | News story | Medical Communications |
Roche is using a new automated system to identify the best job candidates faster, using online screening developed by technology company Taleo.
Roche says Taleo's online system will improve global recruitment by reducing costs and selecting quality candidates more quickly and transparently. The pharmaceutical company has just launched Taleo's on demand 'talent management' system in eight countries – the UK, Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Australia, Canada, South Africa and Spain – and is planning to expand its use to other countries in the near future.
Roche is currently one of the fastest growing major pharmaceutical companies, with a number of breakthrough products emerging from its pipeline.
The company has approximately 68,000 employees in 150 countries, and typically receives thousands of job applications every month, both online and through paper based CVs.
Until now there was no candidate pool or systematic process for selecting suitable and talented individuals quickly, but the company says Taleo's online system will help it assess, acquire, develop and more efficiently align its global workforce.
"In the past, our recruiters were operating in the traditional and reactive way. They used to pre-screen the thousands of CVs they were receiving by using approximate key words," states Andreas Kuhlen, i-HR project manager, global talent sourcing at Roche. "They would then print a hundred resumes and go through them manually.
"Today, the Taleo solution enables us to select the top profiles in a few seconds thanks to the pre-screening questions and processes we put in place, based on our business needs and our culture. We reduced agency costs by sourcing more via our careers site at 'Roche.com,' and by proactively managing and monitoring agency submissions."
Christoph Thoma, head of corporate HR planning and controlling at Roche adds: "Each position we have to offer at Roche should be visible on a local and global web page and, at the same time, each person interested in working with our company should be able to leave their data. We needed a solution that would enable us to find the high quality talent among these numerous candidates before they would move to our competitors, and Taleo helps us achieve these goals."
Taleo's on demand talent management solution covers the whole Roche staffing process from requisition to hire, managing all candidate activities. HR departments share a pool of candidates and have transparent staffing processes, increasing global efficiency.
Roche now has 40,000 candidates a month visiting its corporate careers website to apply online, freeing up time previously spent comparing applications from different mediums.
As a result, recruitment is now viewed as a strategic asset to the company and recruiters are perceived as value-added professionals who provide line managers with the best employee quickly, whether it is an internal or external candidate.
Taleo group vice president Neil Hudspith says Roche was facing a 'classic problem' experienced by large companies who deal with thousands of CVs and applicants.
"The company has been very successful in attracting candidates, but needed a solution to co-ordinate and evaluate the data more effectively," he says.
"Taleo has enabled Roche to save time and increase efficiency. As a result, Roche has been successful in making recruitment a strategic asset for the company, and a foundation for their global talent management strategy."
