Value of progressive hiring

Progressive hiring

During the recruitment process, employment agencies should advise their clients to consider candidates’ competencies holistically, taking into account:

• Hard skills (e.g. technical skills)
• Soft skills (e.g. interpersonal, leadership skills)
• The candidate’s potential (i.e. future ability to do the job), possibly after a period of training or mentorship

As part of the referral and placement process, employment agencies and employers should take note to:

1. Evaluate both current competencies as well as attitude and potential of the candidate holistically
   • Bear in mind that there are multiple ways to assess candidates’ competency and potential, and be open to consider factors that the candidate chooses to put forward. 
2. Ensure that criteria are objective and relevant to the job role
   • This can be enhanced through skills-based assessments which directly assess candidates’ proficiency in doing the job.
3. Be clear on whether something is “required”, “preferred”, or just “taken into consideration”

Avoid these pitfalls...

• Overly generic requirements such as “any degree/any diploma…”. For example, a degree in Japanese studies may have nothing to do with a IT sales manager job. Instead, job descriptions should be specific about the area of competency/discipline that is relevant to the job. In many cases, a degree may also not be necessary if the person is able to demonstrate competency though other ways (e.g. skills-based assessments) or has undergone other relevant training.
• Disqualifying candidates solely on their lack of a specific qualification, certification, or work experience, particularly when there are compensating factors indicative of their ability and potential.
• Only looking at current competencies or previous experience, without considering the potential of the candidate to grow and contribute in the longer run. 

Value of Progressive Hiring

As the economy restructures and workforce growth slows, employment agencies and employers may find certain job vacancies, for instance those in growth sectors or emerging occupations, relatively harder to fill.

In such cases, it may be especially pertinent to give strong consideration to candidates’ potential ability to do the job (in addition to their current competency) and invest in their training and development. Mid-career jobseekers who are able to leverage skills gained through relevant experience in other sectors or occupations may bring value in this regard, and may be able to grow into new roles and functions if given the opportunities to.

Employment agencies and employers are encouraged to take full advantage of the suite of Adapt & Grow programmes and services that the Government has put in place, in supporting their efforts to undertake progressive hiring. Details are available on WSG’s webpage: www.adaptandgrow.sg. We also invite employment agencies and employers to connect with Workforce Singapore (WSG), National Trades Union Congress’ Employment and Employability Institute (NTUC’s e2i) or Singapore National Employers Federation (SNEF) for further assistance.