Here at Taleo Research, we’ve followed retail hiring trends for many years. Hourly workers are the largest and one of the fastest growing labor segments. With high average turnover, the sheer volume is staggering. Plus a poor hourly hiring process can impact revenue, customer satisfaction, and brand perception.

We conducted a study on the Top 100 US retailers in 2004. Now we’ve published the 2006 results: Trends in Hourly Job Application Methods at Top 100 Retailers.

Here are some of the key findings:

• 70% accept hourly applications on their corporate website. Of those, 16% accept only online applications - a significant increase from 41% in 2004.

• In-store automated hourly applications have become more prevalent with 37% providing a kiosk or computer station versus 22% in 2004.

• Surprisingly, 44% accept in-store paper applications. But 22 retailers still accept only paper applications!

Retailers are using technology to help with hiring and recruiting, yet they still have a long way to go. Nearly half could lose the paper process and optimize hourly volume hiring to streamline communications, provide more reliable reporting, and reduce recruitment costs.

Automation also improves speed of hiring and enhances your ability to recruit and retain top performers. The message is clear. Get automated before your competitors hire all the best talent.