Supermarket
chain Asda will place job adverts on shelf labels and product stickers in all
its 244 stores in a drive to recruit 10,000 extra staff in the UK.
The
retail giant will be using the in-store adverts as part of a revamped recruitment
and selection process to attract customers to work for them. It has already piloted this successfully at
a number of its stores.
Philip
Horn, resourcing development manager of Asda, said the group decided to invest
in hiring between 30 and 50 extra employees for all of its supermarkets
following very strong trading in the first quarter of the year and a decision
to invest in customer service.
He
explained, "As we have a much more competitive environment where everyone
is selling the same sort of products at similar prices then service and how
good your people are becomes more and more important."
Horn
said a survey of new employees shows that many are Asda shoppers, so the
company decided to try to recruit from its thousands of shoppers.
Asda
is using its new approach to target certain areas where they have a particular
need for more employees, such as bakers. Horn explained that adverts will be
placed on baking tins in the home and leisure department and on packs of flour.
All
stores will also have job adverts placed near the checkouts as well as large
recruitment banners. Those interested will be invited to attend recruitment
evenings and weekends.
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Asda
has introduced new activities to its group selection events to bring out
candidates’ personalities, as well as telephone screening to ensure those who
attend the events are potential employees.
By
Ben Willmott
