Randstad Holding recently acquired Vedior, forming the second- largest recruitment network in the world, with 34,000 employees and a candidate base spread throughout 53 countries
Randstad Holding recently acquired Vedior, forming the second-largest recruitment network in the world, with 34,000 employees and a candidate base spread throughout 53 countries. Tex Gunning, CEO of Vedior, has stepped down and will continue to support the integration committee leading the integration of Vedior and Randstad. Brian Wilkinson, formerly Vedior’s Commonwealth zone manager, is now a member of the executive board of Randstad Holding and he will continue to oversee Asia Pacific, the UK and the Middle East. Wilkinson said the acquisition is a milestone in the HR industry, with the Asia Pacific region set to benefit from the takeover as the two organisations combine their strengths.
Technology sector seeks immigrants
Generation Y or digital natives – those who grew up with technology and treat it as second nature – are no longer the most sought-after professionals in the technology sector. Rather, digital immigrants – those who have lived through and adapted to the move towards digital platforms such as email, mobile phones and the internet – are in higher demand because of their ability to better understand the business impacts of using technology. “Companies are now looking for candidates with a good balance of business knowledge as well as IT know-how,”says Bill Whiteside, technology practice leader for LINK Recruitment. “It is no longer enough for a professional in this sector to be able to use and apply the latest in technological developments.”
Recruitment ineffiencies hiding talent
Inefficient HR and recruitment practices are exaggerating Australia’s skills shortage, says Michael Rhodes, CEO of the recruitment broker portal NEED. The majority of recruitment work is contingent; which means multiple agencies are competing against each other to fill the same position from the same talent pool without guaranteed payment, he said. “The notion of a skills shortage ranks lower on recruiters’ list of challenges when they work on an exclusive assignment. I’ve seen contingent recruitment assignments drawn out for more than six months without finding a candidate. Yet, these projects were completed in six weeks once the employers moved to an exclusive assignment,” he said.
