The Human Factor Podcast Episode 24: The Art of Attraction with Laura Leyland

It has been over one hundred years since the job interview was started by the inventor of the alkaline storage battery, movie camera and the lightbulb – that person was Thomas Edison. In 1921, Edison was a genius and frustrated with the university graduates who would ask him for a job, and so he developed a general knowledge test. The questions were a mix of literature, history, geography, with some related directly to the job available. The Smithsonian Institute reports only 7 percent of applicants could pass the 146 question quiz. Newspapers of the time reported Edison’s new method of eliminating candidates, which led to more companies using questionnaires. Eventually, the process evolved into the system most firms use today. As we head further into this decade, I’m sure aspects of what Edison did 100 years ago will still exist in some processes today, but the whole process of sourcing, attracting and actually recruiting someone is very different today and much debate centres on who actually is in control of the process today – the candidate or the employer. The attraction and retention of talent has always been a perennial challenge, but data is telling us that it is getting harder. Taking into account demographic changes, an aging workforce, the impact of Brexit, there are more open positions today than required candidates. When we also consider more people are choosing to work for themselves, we can see why attraction and retention is getting harder. Is it more than that? Has consumerisation also changed how we look at the process, expecting a seamless, frictionless process, not a long, drawn-out clunky process. It’s clear there is much to debate. We are delighted to be joined by our guest today who has metaphorically and literally brought “A Fresh Perspective” to the world of attraction and recruitment and will be sharing her thoughts and insights on what has changed, what is working and what needs to be different in the future of the most competitive marketplace in the world.