E-recruitment is a cost-effective and efficient solution to attract talented and diverse public sector candidates, according to research by the Cranfield School of Management.

The research investigated the potential benefits of e-recruitment for public sector employers and examined how e-recruitment systems can be used within the public sector to engage with high quality job seekers.

Dr Emma Parry, author of the study and research fellow at Cranfield School of Management, said: “Recruitment has become more problematic and expensive in the UK due to increasing skills shortages and demand for labour. These issues are exacerbated within the public sector because of the demands on this sector to be cost effective, efficient and transparent in its spend. Our research shows that it’s possible for public sector organisations to find success with e-recruitment, providing that they approach it in the right way in terms of candidate engagement.”

Derek Pilcher, director, public sector, Monster UK, added: “Many recruitment websites fail to attract high quality candidates because they do not drive people to their site, promote their organisation as an attractive place to work or because the site itself puts people off applying. Consideration needs to be given to how to encourage job seekers to apply to the organisation through the use of compelling visuals, relevant content and easy-to-use functionality.”

The research has shown that e-recruitment can offer a number of benefits that fit well with public sector objectives and constraints with regard to recruitment. The research shows that e-recruitment could reduce costs by removing the need for paper, reliance on agencies, reduced administration, reducing time to hire and reaching a higher number of candidates worldwide.