QUESTION ONE [50] Read the following article and answer the questions that follow: 2021 may signal a new recruiting era The relationship between employers and employees has evolved dramatically over the course of the coronavirus pandemic. Here's what that means for recruiting. As recruiting leaders embark on a new year, it would be easy to overlook all of the ways the workplace and employment changed over the last nine months. While the calendar may have flipped to 2021, the pace of change is expected to remain about the same, according to multiple experts who spoke with HR Dive. For those in recruiting, it means another year of adjusting to a constantly-evolving environment. "I think it's not necessarily a complete rewrite of the recruiting process for everybody but I think it's time to look and revise and improve and think about the process of improvement over time," Corey Berkey, vice president of human resources at JazzHR, told HR Dive. "I think there's going to be a lot of iteration going on here in the next 12 months." New standards for inclusion, social responsibility and authenticity The widespread social and economic impact of the pandemic, followed by a summer of protests against structural inequality, has changed the values of job seekers and employers. This has led to employers doing more in this space, and employees and prospective employees are demanding more as well. One of the greatest drivers of structural inequity in the country is the workplace, where wages and representation in leadership are lower for those in underrepresented groups based on gender, race and other characteristics. Addressing this requires more attention to diversity and internal retrospection. If your company is hiring in 2021, focus on bringing in diverse candidates, but also make sure to put the effort in after they're hired so they feel welcome and empowered to be their true selves at work, and actively solicit their feedback on how to improve in these areas. "You've got to drive awareness for what these biases mean," Berkey said. "You've got to really help people expose their own weaknesses there, and you've got to really make sure that the people who are in your hiring teams understand it, appreciate it, are on the lookout for it, and are not afraid to call out if they see it." Page 3 of 5 The job market will be watching to see how companies take action on the promises they made this summer. "You can't just check the box [and say] 'Oh, hey, we hired a few people from underrepresented backgrounds. We put pictures of them on our website. We did it.' No, people want more," Jon Stross, co-founder of Greenhouse Software, a popular ATS provider, told HR Dive. "If we're talking about mitigating bias in your recruiting process, you have to structure your process," he continued. Recruiters should "interrogate" their processes, Stross said, collecting demographic data and identifying potential roadblocks. "There's not one answer, different companies are gonna have issues at different places." A wider labour pool, but not infinite With employers increasingly comfortable having remote workers, and many expecting to keep the practice in place after the pandemic, many believe it will widen the available talent pool. While this may be the case, it will not be so easy for employers to open up to the entire world, or even the entire U.S. Each state has different employment laws, registration requirements and other standards that add complications for a company that is just starting to have remote employees working out of more different states. "You got to know what you're getting into," Berkey said. "You've got to uncover those compliance risks, and you've got to make sure that you're prepared to comply in those areas, and that's a challenge in and of itself." Increased transparency in the recruiting process In addition to the rise of sites like Glassdoor, social media has created another channel for employees to share the reality of their work experiences. While it may be the social app du jour for its viral dance routines, TikTok also includes numerous workers posting video and photo evidence of their real-life experiences. For those doing the hiring, it means honesty and openness are key. "Recruiters and hiring managers must be prepared to have authentic conversations with candidates and answer their questions about all aspects of the job and employee experience," Lauren Smith, vice president in the Gartner HR practice, told HR Dive via Page 4 of 5 email. "Those that fail to have transparent, honest conversations will create challenges when candidates join the organization and realize that there is a mismatch between what they were told and what they experience on the job." On top of that, the pandemic has shined a light on the responsibilities employers have to their employees. While the job market may have stagnated, employers' actions were under significant public scrutiny. "As organizations make the critical shift from supporting employees as workers to improving their life overall, recruiting functions must ensure that the labour market understands the value the organization provides through employment," Smith said. "Specifically, this requires an intentional shift in employment branding strategy from talking about not just how the organization supports the employee experience but also helps people optimize their life experience."

Questions: 1.1. "You can't just check the box [and say] 'Oh, hey, we hired a few people from underrepresented backgrounds. We put pictures of them on our website. We did it.' No, people want more." Considering the above, critically discuss what more organisations can do across recruitment as well as various other HR functions. (30) 1.2. Delineate the various ways in which the face of recruitment has changed and explain what this means for HR recruitment departments. (20)