Geography and its impact on Human Resources

Note: The views of the author are personal and stem from direct experience working in Human Resources. West Bengal has been chosen as the focal point due to the author's direct work relationship with the state. This article does not seek to contradict the pioneers of the field but aims to explore a new perspective on HR administration for years to come. The entire discussion quoted below is fictional and has no connection to any individual or group in any organization. Any resemblance to this discussion that may be revealed to anyone at a later date should be considered purely coincidental.

Sourabh had recently joined the HR team at a leading MNC, ABC Limited, as part of the Recruitment Team. He was an MBA graduate from the Institute of Business Talents, located in the suburbs of West Bengal, and was one of only two selects from his college. The institute had seen lackluster placements recently, with Sourabh being one of the mere ten students who secured a job. In the interim, Sourabh had developed a keen interest in Civil Services, reading extensively on Geography and History, and had even made an unsuccessful attempt at the Civil Service exams.

His supervisor, Ruchi, tasked him with designing a manpower hiring plan for the organization to expedite the filling of open vacancies and improve the quality of hires. Ruchi had been under pressure due to the subpar performance of hires sourced through third-party agencies, particularly in front-end sales and commercial roles. Discussions with the third-party agencies had concluded that the low salaries offered (below 3 lakhs per annum) and the remote locations of the roles (mostly in villages and towns) made it challenging to attract quality candidates. Following a recent round of Head Office discussions, Ruchi's boss communicated the need to speed up the hiring Turnaround Time (TAT), which stood at about 65 days per position, and to enhance the quality of hires.

ABC Limited had about 30 open sales positions (15 TSRs and 15 TSIs) and 10 positions in commercial logistics. These vacancies had been open for 30 days, and to meet the expectations communicated by Ruchi, Sourabh needed to close them within the next 20 days. The locations of these vacancies were primarily in the interior districts of West Bengal, such as Malda, Jalpaiguri, Cooch Behar, and Nadia.

Initially, Sourabh considered increasing the vendor mix to close the vacancies quickly, but he was informed during his induction by Ruchi that ABC Limited's policy was to work with only one vendor. The Head of Recruitment believed that engaging multiple vendors could lead to competition and an overload of feedback, which the sales heads were reluctant to provide, so Sourabh abandoned this idea.

He was left with five potential strategies based on his MBA knowledge:

1. Make a presentation to the Head of Recruitment to change the policy or seek an exception to include more vendors.

2. Engage in campus hiring from multiple colleges or interview unplaced candidates from placement lists.

3. Create direct job postings on various platforms and interview applicants.

4. Solicit internal references in the hope of filling the vacancies.

5. Revisit old applications and reach out to see if any candidates are still available and willing to join.

Upon discussing these strategies with Ruchi, she clarified that option 1 was not feasible as the Head of Recruitment was on a foreign trip for about 15 days and unavailable via email. This suggestion had also been previously discussed and rejected. Option 2 was not possible as campus recruits would not be able to join immediately if they were in their last semester. Options 3, 4, and 5 had been tried in the last 30 days but had yielded no response.

Feeling disappointed and anxious about failing his first assignment, Sourabh feared for his career, especially since he did not come from a prestigious college. He was aware of the impact of GST and other factors on businesses and had read a news item stating that over a crore applications had been submitted for a few government job openings with a modest salary of Rs 20,000.

With little hope left, Sourabh revisited his old Civil Services notes. While browsing through his Geography and History books, he stumbled upon an idea after reviewing a recent NSDC Survey. He questioned how a state with a population of over 10 crores could lack graduates willing to work in these locations. He pondered which industries these potential candidates might belong to and how they could be contacted for a custom search.

Identifying likely contact points from the survey, Sourabh focused on labor ministry data, skill training provider data, and employment exchange records. With renewed hope, he contacted a few training service providers from an online list of 100 and quickly received a list of 20 candidates for the 15 positions across West Bengal. He then scoured the employment exchange's latest records from 2020, using geography-wise industry data, and found about 20 more candidates meeting his search criteria.

Within two days, Sourabh had identified 25 candidates ready to join within a 15-day notice period. Ruchi was both delighted and astonished by the unexpected success of this approach.