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Study of Top 100 US Retailers Hourly Recruiting Practices Released

Taleo Research Study Finds Majority of Top 100 Retailers Now Use Website for Hourly Jobs Recruiting

Dublin, Calif., — January 17, 2006 – Taleo Research, the talent management research division of Taleo (Nasdaq: TLEO), today released findings from a survey of the Top 100 Retailers’ hourly recruiting methodologies. The maturity of the Internet and staffing management technologies, combined with an understanding of the value creation potential from improved hiring practices create a compelling scenario for examining – and improving – the methods for hiring hourly workers.

The study, entitled “Trends in Hourly Job Application Methods at Top 100 Retailers,” was conducted in 2004, and again in 2006. In 2006, the large majority – 70 percent – accept hourly applications on their corporate website, a significant increase from 41 percent in 2004. In addition, 16 percent currently accept applications on their corporate website only.

Other study key findings include: 

  • In store computer-based applications have also become more prevalent. In 2006, 37 percent of the Top 100 Retailers provide a kiosk or computer station to accept hourly job applications versus 22 percent in 2004.
  • Surprisingly, nearly half – 44 percent – of the Top 100 Retailers still accept in store paper applications for hourly positions in 2006. In fact, 22 of the Top 100 Retailers still only accept paper applications.

Hourly workers are the largest and one of the fastest growing segments of the labor force. With high average turnover rates of 67 per cent according to the National Retail Foundation, the sheer volume of hourly hiring is staggering, and the impact of a poor hiring process for hourly workers can be severe – lost revenue, poor customer satisfaction, and even potential damage to the company brand.
“These findings show that the Top 100 Retailers in the US are taking advantage of today’s technology to help with their hiring and recruiting efforts, yet they still have a long way to go,” said Alice Snell, vice president, Taleo Research. “Nearly half of The Top 100 Retailers could optimize their hourly volume hiring process. Doing so would enable them to streamline their communications and generate reliable reporting and record keeping, all while reducing their recruitment costs, improving their speed of hiring and enhancing their ability to recruit and retain the best talent.”

A complete copy of the report can be downloaded at www.taleo.com/whitepaper/43.

NOTES TO EDITORS:

Methodology
To determine the method of hourly applications of the Top 100 Retailers, Taleo researchers randomly chose one store for each retailer. The sample was concentrated in four U.S. metropolitan locations: San Francisco, Minneapolis, Raleigh and Houston in 2004; San Diego, Denver, Raleigh and Chicago in 2006. In addition to surveying each store by telephone, site visits were made to 20% of the sample. Taleo researchers also analyzed the corporate websites of each of the Top 100 Retailers to determine if hourly applications are accepted. All research was conducted through the month of September 2004, and September 2006.

About Taleo Research
Taleo Research analyses the best practices and economics of talent management for organizations of all sizes, worldwide. The specialty research practice focuses on business analytics that tie talent management technology and process improvements to financial results. Taleo Research conducts primary research on critical issues of talent management and maintains a valuable library of talent management resources. Published reports and studies include ROI of Talent Acquisition and Mobility, Turning Analytics into Action; Social Networks and Talent Acquisition; Onboarding: Speeding the Way to Productivity ; Background Checking; Contingent Workforce Management: A Recipe for Success, Quality of Hire, Internal Mobility, Economics of Candidate Relationship Databases, Corporate Careers Site Value Creation, and Jobseeker Surveys, and many others. Founded in 1997, as iLogos Internet Intelligence, Taleo Research is the talent management research division of Taleo.

About Taleo
Taleo (NASDAQ:  TLEO) delivers on demand talent management solutions that enable organizations of all sizes, around the world, to assess, acquire, develop, and align their workforce for improved business performance.  More than 720 organizations use Taleo to recruit and retain top talent with 750,000 users processing 50 million candidates from 100 countries. Requiring no capital investment, software as a service and on demand delivery offer 99.9% availability and 100% accountability.

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