Why it’s crucial to equip hiring managers with the right tools

The hiring process sets candidates up for success from the very beginning. That’s why getting it right is so important.

The recruitment team is the first point of contact for most candidates. To make a good impression and get workers in the door, employers must equip hiring staff and managers with the right tools to be effective.

The HR Leader discussed this in a partnered podcast with SEEK, where Mike Virgo, talent acquisition national manager at Coles Group, explained just how crucial it is to get this step right.

“[Recruiters] are the frontline to the candidate market. So, our role as a recruitment team is to make sure that our processes and ways of working and how we run our recruitment process is in a way that’s identifying the right talent,” said Mr Virgo.

“From our perspective, it’s making sure that we’re supporting our hiring managers and our hiring leaders across operations and our corporate space to be assessing and providing the right sort of environment through that recruitment process for people to perform at their best.”

Support is necessary for any employee. Recruitment is no different, and hiring managers may struggle to bring top talent if they’re not provided adequate support.

“Recruitment processes and interviews are not easy. So, it’s our responsibility as well to make sure people are able to bring their best selves to that process so we can give everyone the best opportunity to find a career at Coles,” Mr Virgo said.

“A big part of what we do is really work with the business and support our hiring leaders around how do we make really informed hiring decisions so we’re bringing the right people into our organisation.”

Onboarding is a key element of recruitment that needs to be done right if it’s to be effective. This is the first point of contact for candidates, and if the right support, training, and knowledge aren’t passed on, candidates will either get fed up and leave or will start their role without the necessary skills to do it.

Mr Virgo commented: “The onboarding experience is largely owned and driven by the hiring managers. So, our focus is around how do we enable them and give them all the tools, information and skills to make those experiences as supportive and as positive as possible for every new team member that comes into Coles.”

“In an organisation of our size, one of the things that we constantly battle with is consistency. How do we ensure consistency across our entire organisation? And that’s something that we are looking at and making sure we’re making it as good as it can be.”

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) is another consideration that should be made before implementing hiring policies. Creating a safe and inclusive environment should be a goal from the very beginning.

“It all starts from positioning yourself as a place where people feel comfortable, safe and confident to be able to share. Whether they’re from a different ethnic background, if they’re Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, or they identify as having disability, or they’re gender diverse. I think it all starts with creating a place where people feel safe to do that,” Mr Virgo explained.

“We’ve got a dedicated DEI team, we’ve got a dedicated Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander support team. Even within my team, I’ve got a DEI recruitment specialist who specialises in supporting candidates through the recruitment process who maybe need adjustments or need a little bit of support through the process.”

He added: “We put a huge amount of effort into supporting candidates and creating a space where they feel comfortable to apply. We talk about being welcome at our table. We want everyone to feel really confident that joining Coles is going to be a place where they feel safe, supported, included, and part of the Coles team.”

Mr Virgo was named the Talent Acquisition Leader of the Year at the 2022 STAR Awards.

Submissions for the 2023 STAR Awards are now open. To learn more about the awards, or to enter, click here.

The transcript of this podcast episode was slightly edited for publishing purposes. To listen to the full conversation with Mike Virgo, click below: