Case study
The nuclear business of Rolls-Royce provides nuclear support services
spanning the reactor lifecycle, from concept design through obsolescence
management to plant life extension. Rolls-Royce operates a highly
centralised outsourced resourcing model supporting UK, and where
possible, international recruitment. However, as the model continues to
evolve and respond to the challenge of delivering against rapid growth in
international activity, a need developed for an additional resourcing service to
support the business requirement and blend effectively with the existing
approach. Given the specific and specialised nature of the recruitment, a key
element of the support focused on establishing an on-site resource in
France that could work with the language, culture and local hiring requirements.
Independent was engaged in February 2010 to deliver this service and
remains fully embedded at the Rolls-Royce site in Grenoble, France, reporting
to the on-site Rolls-Royce Senior HR Business Partner as well as the
7Rolls-Royce Central Resourcing team in the UK. While being an outsourced
model, the RPO team includes a key team member who is embedded both
on and off-site, splitting her time equally between Grenoble and Independent's head office.
Resourcing challenges in France
A senior Independent HR professional was embedded at RAC as interim HR
Director, serving on the executive committee of RAC and reporting to the CEO.
Onsite and fully integrated in the organisation, Independent played a key role
in developing and implementing a separation plan to establish the new
business, which involved:
Resourcing achievements
- Soon after the Independent team came on board, the headline
transformation was in cost per hire. The team reduced the reliance on
external recruitment suppliers and ensured that the new model made
better use of the strong global Rolls-Royce brand, local links, internal
talent and internet-based sourcing. In the first year alone, the new model
recruited three times as many hires for 50% less cost. - Better training and liaison with hiring managers and improved
management of external recruitment suppliers also resulted in the
interview to offer time being reduced by 50%. The Independent team
broadened the sourcing options by creating strong partnerships with
French and international job boards including Viadéo and LinkedIn and
established branded links with recruitment fairs, key universities and
schools. With a wider range of hiring sources, this inevitably resulted in
immediate cost savings and a marked improvement in the available pool of potential hires. - The Independent team also participated in the development of an
improved employer brand for the nuclear business. They organised
on-site brainstorming sessions with employees, provided input on the
French recruitment market and effectively liaised between the UK team and the Grenoble based marketing team who were instrumental in the
creation of corporate marketing material aimed at graduates in France
and other European countries. The overall candidate experience was
enhanced by providing feedback to unsuccessful applicants. - Improvements were made in internal communications, with the
building strong relationships based on mutual trust and understanding
with managers at all levels of the organisation. Coaching for managers
was instigated covering various aspects of recruitment such as candidate
interviewing, diversity and equal opportunity awareness and balancing
skills within the team. - The team's creation and distribution of a monthly resourcing report also
enhanced internal communication, supplying valuable management
information to French HR teams, the Grenoble Business Executive and
the UK HR and resourcing teams. The report covers cost but also focuses
on source of hire, time to offer and quality of hire. - Critical to the success of the resourcing operation was the launch
bespoke ATS system, Basis, which was designed by Independent and
links with Rolls-Royce's global resourcing technology. Basis holds data
which was previously recorded on three separate databases and acts as
a source of valuable Management Information. The use of Basis
enabled detailed tracking and improved the efficiency of processing
applications and managing candidates. - The high regard with which the embedded team is held at Rolls-Royce
and the extent of their expertise was underlined when they were tasked
with fulfilling four positions in China and two positions in Rolls-Royce's
Czech Republic office. This was challenging culturally, organisationally
and logistically as Independent had no previous experience of recruiting
these countries. There were substantially differing approaches to
recruitment and differing expectations from candidates and agencies in
both countries.
"I have worked with the Independent team for two years and have been
impressed by the way the onsite team has rapidly found the right balance
between their role as consultants and their status as fully embedded
members of the wider Rolls Royce HR team. Throughout the ups and downs
of strong growth they have managed to provide a strong service and have
been instrumental in attracting and retaining excellent recruits into the
business. 2012 is expected to be yet another challenging year with more than
130 recruitments planned across a range of positions from Technicians to
Senior Management appointments. I have no doubt that the
team will, once again, live up to their excellent reputation and help us deliver
on our ambitious objectives."
Francoise Guyot, Senior HR Business Partner
Nuclear, Instrumentation & Controls
