9. GREEN RECRUITING: BUILDING SUSTAINABLE HIRING PRACTICES
“A green recovery can boost the economy,
protect the environment and
revitalize the workforce”.
The world of green recruiting has come
into action globally in the modern days. Digitalization and technology have enabled
to build a positive nature towards environmentally friendly recruiting. Going
green is not just a trend, it is the way the world is changing in order to
become efficient. This strategy is still in its infancy.
What is "Green Recruiting"?
Rakesh, (2023) mentions that, Green recruitment is a
holistic approach to talent acquisition that considers hiring practices’ environmental,
social and economic impact. It goes beyond merely reducing paper usage and
emphasizes integrating sustainable principles throughout the recruitment
process. The goal is to build a workforce that aligns with an organization’s
commitment to environmental protection and corporate social responsibility.
In today’s rapidly evolving business landscape, the implication
of sustainability extends beyond corporate accountability and environmental
initiatives. Companies are now recognizing the need to integrate sustainability
into all aspects of their operations, including the hiring process. Green
recruitment, a burgeoning trend, focuses on fostering sustainability in hiring
practices and aligning human resources strategies with environmental and social
responsibility. (Rakesh, 2023)
The Concept of “Green Recruiting”
Nagrath et al., (2013) says that: The word “Green
Recruiting” is coined by John Sullivan, HR Consultant and Professor of
Management at the San Francisco State University’s College of Business in June
2007. He quoted “If you want an edge in recruiting, green recruiting is the way
forward. Time is ripe for the companies to go in for a kill as many organizations
have not taken to it currently”. Green recruiting refers to sharing of
company’s unswerving commitment towards the cause of environment with the
candidates whom they are trying to hire.
Lark, (2024) states the: The concept also requires
diversity, equity, and inclusion principles. Sustainability, social justice,
and equality overlap. With diverse and fair hiring practices, talent
acquisition can be genuinely sustainable. This requires support from the
rest of the staff, so setting the right culture is vital. A disjointed
workforce with varying priorities risks inconsistencies, making ESG and DEI projects more
likely to crumble.
Significance of Green
Recruitment in the Corporate Landscape
As cited in Rakesh, (2023)
Elevate Corporate Social
Responsibility (CSR)
Green recruitment places CSR
at the front of hiring strategies. Organizations adopting sustainable hiring
practices demonstrate their commitment to ethical business conduct and
contribute to positive societal and environmental impacts.
Attracting and Retaining Top Talent
Millennials and Gen Z,
comprising a significant portion of the workforce, place a high value on sustainability
and purpose-driven work. Green recruitment can be a powerful tool for
attracting and retaining top talent by showcasing an organization’s commitment
to social and environmental causes.
Reducing Carbon Footprint
Traditional hiring processes
often involve extensive travel, paper usage, and energy consumption. Green
recruitment aims to minimize the carbon footprint associated with hiring by leveraging
technology and sustainable practices.
The Key Principles of Green Recruitment
Virtualization of Recruitment Processes
Implementing video interviews, virtual job fairs and utilizing online assessments reduces the need for candidates and recruiters to travel, thereby lowering the impact on the environment is lowered. The elimination of travel lowers the CO2 emissions unnecessary. Virtualization are becoming more popular in the modern era.
In an article written by Moberries, (2021), This is shown by a survey of e-fellows.net, where 81% of the respondents said that they have switched to video interviews.
Paperless Operations
Moving to a paperless recruitment system will not only diminish waste
but also modernizes the process of hiring. The implementation of recruitment
software plays a vital role in changing the documentation process from resumes
to onboarding to digitization and paperless.
Moberries, (2021) states that, A study by Bitkom forecasts a saving of 12 million tons of CO2 in the area of work and business for 2030 in the event of accelerated digitization.
Technology and Energy Efficiency
Executing energy-efficient technologies and setting up
recruitment software and green related processes subsidizes to an increased
sustainable green IT ecosystem.
Sustainable Practices for a Diverse and Inclusive Workforce
Green recruitment outspreads to promoting diversity and inclusion in an
organization. Distinguishing the social sustainability of a diverse and
inclusive workforce and fostering optimistic company principles.
Source: Rakesh, (2023) and Moberries, (2021)
Nurturing Green Hiring Practices via Recruitment Software
Utilization of recruitment software in the workplace plays a vital role in creating sustainable recruitment practices.
Virtual Collaboration
The technology advancements in
this era facilitates the virtual platforms for recruiting for collaboration in the
hiring process. Eventually this reduces the necessity for physical assemblies and
linked travel.
Automated Workflows
The implementation of recruitment
software within an organization automates workflows, streamlines processes,
thereby reducing the time for manual involvements and interventions. The
efficiency related to this sustainable recruitment process contributes to the
going green concept.
Digital Document Management or Going Paperless
The transformation of workplaces
to digitalization using the recruitment software can aid in the creation,
storage and retrieval of candidate information in digital format. The organizations
traditional file cabinets could be replaced by storing the data digitally
thereby eliminating the use of paper.
Data Analytics for Continuous Improvement
The use of recruitment
software also lets to track and scrutinize the hiring process because these
specific softwares consists of analytics tools. This data-driven recruitment
methods allows for continuous growth, improvement and optimization. This helps
to align the recruitment strategies in an organization with the sustainability
goals.
Cited
in (Rakesh, 2023)
Steps to Implement a Green Recruiting
Strategy
1.
Know your Objectives
2.
Identify the Ideal Workforce
3.
Make your Brand Identity Cohesive
4.
Treat Employees Well
5.
Network and Partner
6.
Create an Assessments Plan
Cited in (Lark,
2024)
Conclusion
Green
recruitment exemplifies a paradigm alteration in the way organizations approach
talent acquisition. By integrating sustainability into hiring practices, industries
not only pay back to the ecological and social well-being but also improve
their corporate status and appeal to a cumulative pool of environmentally conscious
talent.
Recruitment
software plays a major role in this transformative journey to paperless green
hiring practices with providing tools and capabilities needed to change the systems.
As every organization direct the complexities of the modern workforce, implementation
of green recruitment is not a choice, it has become a strategic authoritative
for building a sustainable and robust future for all.
“Commitment to a greener future can save the world.”
References
Lark,
R. (2024) 5 Facets to Sustainable Recruitment(And How to Do It in 6 Steps)
[Online]. Available at: https://environment.co/sustainable-recruitment/
[Accessed on 05th April 2024].
Moberries. (2021) Demystified Green Recruiting – 7easy Tips to get started [blog]. Available at: https://www.moberries.com/blog/7-easy-tips-for-green-recruiting/ [Accessed on 05th April 2024].
Nagrath, Gitika & Gupta, Ashutosh. (2013). Green Recruiting. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY. 3. 10.24297/ijmit.v3i3.1749. [Online]. Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/325693203_Green_Recruiting [Accessed on 05th April 2024].
Rakesh, (2023) Green Recruitment: Building Sustainable Hiring Practices [blog]. Available at: https://www.vultus.com/green-recruitment-building-sustainable-hiring-practices/ [Accessed on 06th April 2024].
The move towards green recruitment and its importance in influencing the direction of talent acquisition are succinctly captured in this blog. Including sustainability into employment procedures improves a company's reputation, draws in a pool of talent that cares about the environment, and benefits society and the environment. The focus on recruiting software as a key instrument in this shift emphasizes how crucial it is to use technology to support paperless and environmentally friendly hiring procedures. All things considered, the blog does a good job of explaining why it is so important for businesses and society at large to embrace green hiring practices as a strategic necessity.
ReplyDeleteYour valuable feedback is highly appreciated! Absolutely Neashara! Sustainable hiring practices are the new norm in the global context and is considered as a strategic necessity. However, implementation of this green concept in Sri Lankan context has not yet been achieved at its highest potential by everyone. Only some organizations practice this strategy locally. Green Hiring practices should be given priority if we need to save the world. Its everyones responsibility!
DeleteVery informative article. "Commitment to a greener future can save the world" Yes, by embracing sustainability, renewable energy, and responsible consumption, we can mitigate climate change, preserve our precious ecosystems, and create a healthier world for future generations.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your valuable comment, Arundathi. Yes, the green concept can save the world in time. Going green is the new norm.
DeleteThe article "7 Green Recruiting: Building Sustainable Hiring Practices" explores how digitalization and technology facilitate environmentally friendly recruiting practices, emphasizing the strategic significance of green recruitment. It highlights the holistic approach to talent acquisition that considers the environmental, social, and economic impacts of hiring practices. The piece also discusses the importance of integrating sustainability into all aspects of recruitment to attract a workforce aligned with an organization's environmental and social goals, underlining the transformative power of green recruitment for sustainable organizational growth
ReplyDeleteThank you for the valuable feedback you have given on this article, Sonali! Green recruitment is a transformative approach to building sustainable workplaces.
DeleteThank you for your effort to drawing attention to different dimension of recruiting. Paperless operation , Energy efficiency ,sustainable practices , green hiring are defiantly go along with globe ESG principles. In this era as most organizations converting their strategies focusing on Go-green concepts , ESG principles ,this article is provides them valuable insights. Green HRM and ESG is goals matching perfectly to achieve long-term sustainable goals. Also personally , it’s inspiring to see organizations embracing sustainability not only in their operations but also in their HR practices . Finally, I believe , we should not take Green HRM is just as a trend but a strategic imperative for any company. Also I believe ESG criteria need to use by investors to evaluate the sustainability and ethical impact of their investment decisions. overall, very insightful article.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the feedback on this article, Wasula! Yes, we should not just go green as its the trend but taking Green HRM as a serious strategic imperative can help in sustainability and eventually ethically impact the business. Your insights are valued!
DeleteGreat to see you use "'Green recruitment"' as well, Judith. If more and more organizations follow in the footsteps of greening their recruitment process, it would lead to a more wholesome company culture for employees to work in. The tricky bit companies face is to incorporate it into their CSR strategies as some industries try to greenwash their customers by inaccurate brand image of them going ''green.'' Hopefully this will stop, and companies will re-structure and re-evaluate their human resources with ethical green practices. Excellent and well written article as usual, Judith.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your valuable feedback on the article, Anjalika. Your insights are really helpful to explore more about green recruitment. Ethical green practices should be definitely implemented as the world is getting destroyed each day.
DeleteThis is hotcake Everywhere (Green Recruitment) vs AI, Good article, Juditha, and as pr fiding by (Klingenberg, B. and Kochanowski, S.M., 2015.) "Human resources help organisations become more sustainable. Organisations require clear recruitment strategies and recruiter training to guarantee future hiring meets crucial demands. , Keep read this for finding Ms Judith
ReplyDeleteThank you for providing good information for me to research more about sustainable recruitment, Dilshad. The future of hiring is definitely going to be green. In most parts of the world this has become the norm even though it is not being implemented in recruitment as much.
DeleteThis blog emphasizes the growing importance of green recruitment in modern business practices. It emphasizes how it can both attract top talent and improve sustainability. It offers useful insights into the tenets and benefits of green hiring. It also illustrates how it aligns with environmental and corporate social responsibility objectives.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your thoughtful comment, Ruwan. Your valuable feedback is much appreciated!
DeleteThis has a lot of information i have an idea about the systems now... The adoption of paperless recruitment systems can reduce waste and modernize hiring processes. Implementing recruitment software can save 12 million tons of CO2 by 2030. This technology also promotes energy efficiency and promotes a sustainable green IT ecosystem. Green recruitment also promotes diversity and inclusion, fostering optimistic company principles.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your insightful thoughts on this topic, 'Green Recruitment".
DeleteYes Ameesha, the advancement in technology makes it easier to implement this strategy well enough in businesses around the globe.
Well organized article to review. As you mentioned about the green recruitment process, in the traditional methods used being the new papers advertisement are very costly as well as scope is limited, but the development of recruitment websites like "topjobs, and usig Linkedin social media platform have reduced the recruitment cost while enhancing its attraction scope.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment Thilini. Yes, the use of social media recruiting platforms can reduce costs and at the same time enhance green recruiting practices.
DeleteNice article! As you elaborated, 'Green recruiting' extends beyond environmental efforts to embrace social responsibility and diversity. Leveraging technology for paperless operations and virtual collaboration, organizations can promote sustainability while attracting diverse talent. This blend of digital tools and eco-conscious hiring reflects a progressive approach to talent acquisition.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your valuable comment, Shan. Certainly! Leveraging technology for paperless operations and virtual collaboration, organizations can promote sustainability while attracting diverse talent.
DeleteI love this topic, Judith and you have done it justice with your words. With green recruiting one headache that GHRM faces are environmental or labor laws that may impact hiring practices and a generation of long-term sustainability strategies as a more holistic approach in HR practices. It would be good to see further how organizations measure and evaluate the effectiveness of their green recruitment strategies over time and see how to help to make any necessary adjustments so that GR can make a lasting impact and bring high ROI.
ReplyDeleteThank you Anjalika, for your contributions to my article as always. Your insights about green recruiting are much appreciated. Yes, researching more about measuring and evaluating the effectiveness of green recruitment strategies in an organization over time would be very helpful in adapting and creating a green recruiting strategy that lasts for a lengthy period.
DeleteSustainability recruiters concern themselves with building networks of sustainable companies and candidates, utilizing techniques to create the most lasting and productive hire, building an employer brand centering on sustainability, and helping businesses plan their sustainability goals
ReplyDeleteThank you for the valuable insights provided, Chethani!
DeleteA unique and important topic is discussed here in simple and clear manner! As the whole world is thinking about green concepts at the moment, it is important to go through this for all people who are engaging in any kind of economic activity.
ReplyDeleteCertainly Himaru! The green concept is an ever-evolving strategy that is given less priority especially in our country Sri Lanka. However, this going green concept has widely been implemented globally dating back to nearly a decade. It is important to take this concept very seriously!
DeleteYour valuable feedback on my article is much appreciated. Thank you!
"Green" is a popular topic nowadays in the corporate world. Your article provides ins and outs of the novel concept of green recruitment which many organizations not only globally but also locally would gradually adopt as it has one of the biggest motivating factor - Saving Cost. However it would not be an easy go thing as using technology would always attract frauds. AI powered face changers, forging of documents, etc would be few of the challenges need to be addressed when going "Green". Good one Judith.
ReplyDeleteYes, I agree! This strategy would not be easy to implement in organizations, but they need to immediately evolve from the traditional methods of recruiting as the world is getting more destroyed by the day. Going green with recruiting is an environmentally friendly strategy that will benefit for everyone around the world.
DeleteThanks for the feedback on my article, Sharfaz!
ReplyDeleteGreen recruiting integrates sustainable principles into talent acquisition, going beyond paper reduction to align with environmental and social responsibility. Coined by John Sullivan in 2007, it emphasizes diversity and equity, essential for genuine sustainability. By showcasing CSR, attracting top talent, and reducing carbon footprints, it's vital for modern organizations. Leveraging virtualization, paperless operations, and technology, along with recruitment software, fosters a green IT ecosystem and promotes diversity. Green recruitment isn't just a trend; it's a strategic imperative for a sustainable future.
Absolutely Shannon! Leveraging virtualization, paperless operations, and technology, along with recruitment software, fosters a green IT ecosystem and promotes diversity. The 'Green Recruitment" Strategy should be implemented withing organizations around the globe. Your valuable contributions are highly appreciated!
DeleteYes, Agree. Green Recruitment is a Global trend that an Organization must be involved having positive nature towards and environmental friendly recruitments. As this concept much more concern about Environmental protection, talent acquisition, Organizational sustainability it's a talkative Topic that modern Businesses to be considered.
ReplyDeleteYes, Ranga. We need to promote Green Recruitment rather than moving away from it. The technological advancements in the digital era have aided in the process than ever before. Environmentally friendly goals and sustainability should be given value.
DeleteThank you for the valuable comment.