How does Decathlon deal with a high volume of CVs? HR Voicebot from Apifonica is helping them with this

Every company, regardless of its size, market position or the industry in which it operates, faces certain challenges when conducting recruitment processes. Many companies deal with them quite well, others go a bit worse, and still others decide to outsource recruitment to external agencies. However, all of these companies have the same goal - to find solutions to effectively manage the recruitment process and increase its efficiency. One such challenge was the huge number of applications received for a job offer at Decathlon. How did the organization's HR team approach this issue? The recruiters set their sights on automating the entire process, and thus discovered room for using the HR Voicebot product.

Knowing the needs and expectations of the business, and having a precisely defined profile of the people they were looking for, Decathlon's recruiters implemented Voicebot into their recruitment process in just two weeks. All this was done not to reduce the number of applications received, but to speed up the process of finding the best candidates for the advertised position (in this case, it was the position of warehouseman in the distribution center). In this way, the company saved both its own and applicants' time. How did it succeed? Anna Dzienis, Employer Branding & Recruitment Leader at Decathlon Poland, told us.

From the talk you will learn, among other things:

• What recruiting challenges did Decathlon's HR team encounter along the way, and where did the idea to implement HR Voicebot come from?
• Was the new solution of concern to recruiters?
• How was the implementation of the new solution and does it benefit the entire organization?
• Can a recruiting Voicebot successfully interact with a recruiting system?
• How do candidates feel about talking to a bot?

What challenge in the recruitment process was the reason your HR team decided to use Voicebot?

Due to the significant increase in activity at our logistics centers and the resulting increased need for employees, we were looking for a solution to speed up the candidate selection process. In the past, many candidates didn't match the job profile or simply didn't move on to the next steps after a phone interview. The questions we used in Voicebot immediately address the key issues that previously - during a traditional recruitment interview - were most weighty to us. It was the answers to these questions that really determined whether a candidate would work with us or not. Thanks to the fact that they are now asked at the beginning of the process, the candidate knows what he or she is deciding on and can decide for himself or herself at this early stage of the process whether he or she wants to apply to us and engage in the recruitment process.

What made you choose Voicebot for this type of recruitment? Were you convinced of the effectiveness of this tool from the beginning?

It was the time that our recruiters were able to save in the selection of resumes and the subsequent telephone interviews. We can sometimes count the number of applications that come to our logistics centers in the thousands. Until now, we have tried to review them all and respond to them. Now, after the implementation of Voicebot, we see that there are fewer candidate applications, but at the same time they are applications that are more suited to the profile we are looking for.

At the very beginning we were not sure that this solution would be effective. It's hard to be convinced by a tool you simply don't know 😉 . However, our doubts were gone after the first test, during which we saw a significant improvement in terms of matching the profile of candidates, and consequently a reduction in the time spent on browsing resumes alone.

Did you have concerns before starting the project with Voicebot? Were they confirmed during the implementation of the activities, or the opposite?

We had no concerns at all. I think this was mainly due to the fact that the product was recommended to me by a company we work with on a daily basis - eRecruiter recruitment system. In addition, the company already had first results from implementations in another organization. After meeting with company representatives, I knew what functionality Voicebot had and what it "could help me with" in terms of the recruitment process, including, above all, selection. All that remained was to test and see the results.

How did you go about implementing Voicebot into the project? Was it time-consuming and what involvement on your side did it require? What was the support in this regard from Apifonica like?

The implementation of the project went very quickly. It was on our side to prepare a script in the form of questions and answers that the candidate will hear when Voicebot contacts him. From Mr. Bartosz - our supervisor - I received supporting materials in the form of sample scripts, so I knew exactly what and how to prepare.

As we had already seen what questions are crucial for our candidates and what determine their further participation in the process, we had no doubts about what we wanted to ask. Thus, the process of creating the script took us no more than 2 hours. The next step was to synchronize Apifonica with the eRecruiter system. Thanks to the integration, the system knows who to call. This process took about 20 minutes - it was enough to generate the so-called token with which the systems connect with each other. Later, Apifonica recorded the voiceover and configured the bot according to our needs.

We completed the entire process of designing and implementing the solution in about two weeks. The integration of Voicebot with the eRecruiter system works smoothly. Since we have been using the application we have not had any technical problems.

What is the greatest value for Decathlon from implementing Voicebot and its integration with the ATS?

The biggest value added to the recruitment process is definitely faster screening of candidates. Our recruiters contact only those candidates who accept our key terms of employment and fit the company's profile. At the same time, we care about the candidate experience - each person who sends us an application can count on Voicebot contact, even when the feedback is negative. We are committed to ensuring that 100% of candidates applying to our company receive feedback - and using the application makes it easier for us to do so. This is a gain not only for the HR department, but for the entire organization.

What would you advise recruiters who, like you, are facing the challenge of mass recruiting and are hesitant about whether Voicebot is a good solution for them?

It's worth the risk! For us, Voicebot proved to be very helpful especially during the most intense recruitment periods, when we needed to recruit a certain number of employees in a short period of time. It allowed us to save a lot of time in the first stage of recruitment, which is CV verification, and thus hire the right candidates faster.

Voicebot's big advantage is that each employer can customize the HR Voicebot's patterns themselves, so they can quickly receive key information about a particular candidate.

How was the reaction of candidates to the new recruitment procedure using Voicebot?

The feedback we have received from candidates has only reinforced our conviction that it is worthwhile to take advantage of the new recruitment tools that are appearing on the market. The reaction that occurs most often is positive surprise at such a quick response. We hear from some:

I have never before encountered such an approach after sending an application, even though I have participated in other recruitments.

A conversation with Anna Dzienis, Employer Branding & Recruitment Leader at Decathlon Poland, clearly shows that implementing a modern tool does not have to mean turning the recruitment process upside down. By choosing proven solutions, relying on the knowledge of your organization and candidates, and using expert support, implementation can proceed quickly and produce positive results in a short period of time. In the case of Decathlon, the use of Voicebot in recruitment in conjunction with the ATS system benefits all parties in the process:

• To the HR department - by reducing the duration of recruitment, relieving recruiters of time-consuming manual work and hiring the right people faster in line with business expectations;
• Candidates - who receive instant and friendly feedback, so they can discern for themselves whether the offer completely suits them and whether they want to continue participating in the recruitment;
• organization - which, thanks to faster processes, can acquire employees and thus smoothly and efficiently achieve its business goals.

It is also worth remembering the employer image that Voicebot effectively and systematically builds in the eyes of both candidates and hires.