Unique NBR website wins in 'Talent War'

Employers and recruiters say they are beating the ‘Talent War’ by using NBR's uniquely-developed New Zealand website.

NBR Talent was launched last year to deliver employers and recruiters a low-cost and efficient way to seek staff.

The website works as a database, letting employers search for up-to-date profiles which match requirements for a position. Agencies can also add new talent at any time to company postings.

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare recruitment specialist Mandy McAlwee says the one-stop-shop website makes it easier to deal with the 17 recruitment agencies found on it.

It speeds up the time consuming screening process and Ms McAlwee used the site to place two people.

“I think NBR Talent provides a great opportunity for agencies to work with big companies that they might never get the chance to. I have built some great relationships with agencies this way,” she says.

PwC uses its own recruitment network but talent sourcing manager Sarah Welsh says it has found NBR Talent a useful ”extra tool” to use for specialist roles.

It links to many agencies and gives her a feel for the skills available in the marketplace.

Recruiters also praise the website, with James Brooke, principal of Gaulter Russell Numero Group, saying it can offer users a 30% saving on typical agency placement fees.

His agency has used NBR Talent to place people in roles at Zespri, Coca Cola, Carter Holt Harvey, Guardian Trust and Fisher & Paykel.

Employers can post a search on to the portal, which will send an alert to the relevant agencies, or an employer can scroll through the database without alerting the agencies.

For employers, the service is free to use and the only cost comes when they have successfully offered a candidate a job and that will only be a 10% success fee between the agency and employer.

Mr Brooke says employers can use NBR Talent as part of their sourcing strategy, keeping recruitment in-house while gaining access to recruitment agency databases.

For recruitment firms this also means they can get candidates in front of employers who would not normally use their services.

dgreenwood@nbr.co.nz