Challenges
Before implementing People First, the Essex Wildlife Trust was using an ATS (Applicant Tracking System), where managers were having to move between different silos to move candidates down the pipeline. This made optimising each step nearly impossible, and the whole recruitment process was sluggish.
When it comes to establishing a strong employee experience, a smooth recruitment and onboarding process is key. A structured approach can help with this, as it ensures everyone gets the same experience, and this is built within People First. Each applicant could be guided from step to step, without adding loads of admin burden to the Trust’s HR team or to line managers.
Solution
From signing a contract in May of 2023, the system was running and delivering exceptional results in less than six months.
Feedback has already been extremely positive from the team, with high levels of buy-in from managers, even in the short time since implementation. They’re particularly responding to the modern, accessible design as it requires very little training to get comfortable with- particularly for people who are used to social media interfaces.
- Number of applications for each role has nearly tripled without compromising quality of candidates
- Time to hire and quality of hire is improving, helping the trust secure the best talent
- Fast responses to any queries or requests giving the team complete confidence in the system
- High buy-in levels from line managers improving relationships between them and new hires
- Improved efficiencies across the organisation, speeding up a range of HR processes without creating more admin