Introduction
The extant literature texts relevant to the functions of campus job fairs and their impacts on the participating business organizations and the attending students were reviewed for this study. In order to determine the frequency of such job fairs and to acquire evidence-based information on the ramifications of such fairs, it is necessary to conduct a literature study. Using the findings from the literature research, conclusions have been drawn that will be utilized to inform various sections of this study. In addition, the gaps and limitations identified in the literature assessment have been used to build the proposed research study to address crucial issues related to the research topic and provide possibilities for future research. The review is organized thematically, with each Section covering a distinct aspect of the research topic.
Attraction and Retention of Talent
Human resource management has evolved into a critical component of today’s corporate environment. While breakthrough technology has aided the business sector and many automated procedures, successful businesses are governed by people who watch, engage in, and do all necessary to ensure continued success and effectiveness. To have a lucrative workforce that is successful, managers must build a strong team of talented individuals (Abbasi & Hollman, 2000). Attracting and retaining talent continues to be a primary objective of the human resource department in businesses, and successfully implementing initiatives related to the problem may result in significant benefits for both parties. Attracting and retaining talent is a primary concern of human resource departments to generate a profit across organizations.
Regarding the experiences of reputable firms in attracting and retaining personnel, it is reasonable to assume that leveraging the employer brand is one of the primary techniques used to address the problem. When a firm is well-known and has a favorable image, skilled individuals undoubtedly seek employment (Adler & Ghiselli, 2015). According to Das and Baruah (2013), a favorable branding image during recruitment and training enhances hiring outstanding talent in an organization. However, improper usage of the company’s brand in the management of human resources may result in unprecedented consequences thus, having a detrimental effect on talent acquisition and retention.
However, attracting and retaining talent is not always associated with a significant impact on outcomes, especially in the early stages. For instance, talented workers may realize that they must work longer hours to earn a decent income, thus slowing their work-input rate (Kucherov & Zavyalova, 2012). Additionally, retention of competent personnel is not dependent on their position but rather on job placement, the potential of training, and career advancement. As a result, it may be argued that the opportunity for personal and professional development encourages brilliant individuals. At the start of their careers, high positions are less significant than the opportunity for professional progress (Moroko & Uncles, 2008).
Additionally, while applying for jobs, brilliant individuals do not anticipate getting the best positions; rather, they are willing to work and advance their careers skills. The existence of training is critical for brilliant individuals since they place a high premium on personal growth. Therefore, this information explains the need to have a preference while employing a specific employee.
Developing Human Resources in an Organization
Human resources cannot be overstated in a business since its success depends on its workers’ personal and professional development. As the world changes, so do the ways and methods used to conduct work. Inactivity might result in a lack of competence. Human resource management’s fundamental concept addresses concerns relating to the professional development of workers’ talents and personalities (Wijesekera, 2017). It is challenging to run a firm without collaborating with employees successfully. By investing in human resources development, a business ensures sustained success (Sokro, 2012). One of the primary components of this conversation is to identify the primary purpose of human resource development and discuss the challenges fully.
Human resource development is inextricably linked to education and training. When solving challenges, workers often turn to their expertise and experience. As a result, they operate effectively and successfully. However, a lack of adequate training stagnates personal and professional growth (Kumar et Al., 2021). Employees may develop professionally inside the confines of the firm as they gain knowledge about the company’s success, but personal growth is only feasible when extra data is analyzed. Employers may encourage workers to seek extra information on their own, although systematic instruction is preferable in this scenario.
Before delving into human resources management as a component of a company’s strategy, it is critical to grasp the central concept of the subject. Management of human resources has numerous definitions; however, the most comprehensive and particular one is as follows: human resource planning is “the method of deciding and assuming that the institution will have several competent individuals available at the appropriate times, performing jobs that meet the enterprise’s needs and are satisfying for the individuals’ involvement”(Adler & Ghiselli, 2015 p.7). In attempting to define HR strategy, it should be emphasized that the primary objective of this technique is to accomplish the company’s objectives and plans.
Planning is critical in today’s environment. Unfortunately, the changing environment introduces a variety of unique obstacles and impediments to simple planning. Thus, planning cannot be described as a simple process since it encompasses a variety of processes, actions, and tasks, all performed simultaneously. One of the primary issues in human resources development is preparing for the long term. These methods ensure that the long-term goals are attainable and that the short-term activities are completed effectively (Das & Baruah, 2013). While the changing environment makes it impossible to be certain of the projected and presupposed result, preparation is critical. Without a plan for future actions, it is challenging to define the strategy and objectives of the business. Planning in a changing context requires continual study and changes. Planning is a critical component of business growth, is vital to acknowledge that long-term plans are not impervious to change.
Campus job fairs
Based on their observations at college job fairs, Minifie et al. (2018) surveyed to investigate the factors used by firms from various industries to engage graduates in additional reviews, interviews, and selections. During five different university job fairs, the researchers polled five different firms to determine their preferences for engaging applicants in a more in-depth interview. According to the study’s findings, recruiters evaluated resumes, GPAs, references, communication skills, personality attributes, ethics, and intellect, among other things. The poll also reveals that organizations are transparent in selecting employees from job fairs, which impacts the corporate image of the companies under investigation (Kim et al., 2017).
Nashiru et al. (2019) undertook an exploratory qualitative study to better understand student opinions on campus employment fairs. The researchers acquired information from five individuals who had visited a job fair at the International T&H College in Madina, where the research was conducted. According to the study’s findings, the participants were quite delighted with the job fair and even requested that such fairs be held on an annual or even per-semester basis in the future. According to the participants, campus employment fairs raise awareness among the general public and expose them to the outside corporate sector. In addition, the participating enterprises stated that on-campus job fairs boosted their chances of hiring the finest personnel and that their traditional recruitment tactics had resulted in high turnover rates, which resulted in losses for the companies involved. The findings of this study have had a considerable impact on the present study, which examines the benefits that accrue to both recruiters and graduates, as consumers and as a future workforce, as a result of on-campus job fairs.
Abebe et al. (2018) conducted a randomized controlled trial in Ethiopia to determine whether job fairs effectively acquired employment for youth and whether participating organizations benefited from the fairs to achieve and maintain a positive corporate image. Abebe et al. (2018) found that job fairs effectively acquired employment for youth. The researchers hosted the employment fairs on the Addis Ababa University campus. The researchers discovered that the job fairs resulted in few job hiring and that only one out of every ten enterprises in attendance could hire employees due to the fairs’ participation. Following the study’s findings, limited recruiting resulted in various behaviors among the firms and the attendees; the attendees had distinct opinions about their respective enterprises, and the organizations reverted to traditional hiring processes. These findings were significant to the current study because they established the functions of job fairs in shaping the corporate images of participating firms and the company employment images of those companies following the job fair.
Corporate Brand Image
Human resource management, marketing, and organizational management perspectives are combined to examine how a company’s brand image is generated and measured in the workplace. Previous research on recruitment in diverse interdisciplinary fields is intriguing and contradictory.
Corporate Brand Image In Human Resource Administration
HR management refers to recruiting brand image as the bundle of functional, economic, and psychological advantages provided by employment connected with the employer (Ambler & Barrow 2005). It is a company’s role to find potential employees and encourage them to apply for positions inside the company. The process involves creating job announcements, posting adverts, and specifying essential qualifications for candidates (Zottoli & Wanous 2000). Macau-based researchers gathered the responses of 135 HR specialists in 2008 to a questionnaire. According to the polls, sixteen questions were posed, and the responses were based on the respondents’ evaluation of the importance of specific talents and attributes in the employment market. HR specialists evaluated the six most critical recruitment elements, from most crucial to least important, as follows: 1. a resume; 2. a list of references; 3. a cover letter; 4. proof of schooling; 5. a grade point average per major; and 6. an overall grade point average For the great majority of respondents, the resume was the most important factor in the first screening phase. The references were more important than the applicant’s academic background. The cover letter was ranked third on the list of priorities. There was little importance placed on an applicant’s university’s reputation or GPA as a determinant in their selection, and a candidate’s résumé was thought the most crucial. Of the 135 human resources specialists polled, 92% feel that the first interview is critical to a successful hiring process. When it comes to a company’s ability to compete in today’s marketplace, human resources departments must design recruiting methods that successfully convey the company’s brand image to a large number of job seekers in order to raise their interest in the company.
For example, signaling theory may explain how a candidate’s appeal to a recruiting company can be affected in part by information or signals offered during the recruitment process, as detailed in Rynes (1991) and Spence (1973). Candidates view numerous recruitment-related actions and information as signs of unknown organizational traits and recruiter qualities and conduct (Turban and Cable, 2003; Collins and Stevens, 2002; Rynes et al., 1998). Researchers found that “prospective employees draw inferences about instrumental and symbolic features from signals in the marketplace” (such as word-of-mouth, corporate rankings, and customer experience, for example), which suggests that the signaling process is not only dependent on signals sent via recruitment activities, but it is also dependent on inferences drawn by candidates who receive those signals. According to psychological researchers, Highhouse et al. (2005), both individual and organizational perspectives are viable for signals from recruitment businesses. These signals may influence organizational attractiveness and job seekers’ application intentions. Customer testimonials, current employee testimonials, or recruiter testimonials during the initial interview may provide positive signals about the company’s organizational culture, and these signals may serve as the foundation for job seekers’ judgments. As a result, signaling theory literature may provide insights into the cognitive and/or affective processes that may not only influence the types of messages that job seekers perceive from recruitment activities as signals of the organization’s characteristics but may also influence how applicants come to perceive those signals to reflect positively and/or negatively on the firm as an ideal employer.
Corporate Brand Image In Marketing
According to Breaugh (1992), “employer recruitment” refers to “the activities of an organization that (1) affect the number and/or types of persons that apply for a position or (2) influence whether a job offer is accepted.” For Sullivan (2004), the concept of recruitment branding image in marketing is a long-term strategy to manage workers’ knowledge and attitudes, future employees, and key stakeholders concerning a company. In a research conducted by Srivastava and Bhatnagar, 105 final-year postgraduate management students from two Indian colleges completed a Likert 5-point scale questionnaire (2010). Based on how they saw a company’s attributes, respondents were asked which firms they would be interested in working for and how they would rate them. Everyone who participated in the survey was given a copy of the final report. More than 54% of respondents who took the study responded that the company’s image was the most important element in their application decisions. As part of a decision-making process, consumers use brand images to compare and contrast similar products or services (Keller, 1993). As a result of exposure to advertising, brand images are reflected in the associations made in mind. Job seekers are inspired by their memories of a brand’s image, which acts as the basis for their purchase decisions in the job search process. Prospective searchers exposed to an organization’s brand image through advertising and other marketing activities have a larger opportunity to increase organizational attractiveness on the part of many job hopefuls, therefore enhancing recruiting outcomes.
Corporate Brand Image In Organizational Management
Establishing and measuring the recruitment process and the company’s brand image are critical components of effective organizational management. As part of the recruitment process, Gold says, screening, selecting, and integrating new hires into the company are all included in the process (2007). “Recruitment brand image” refers to an organization’s reputation as a workplace and its value proposition for workers, which is distinct from the more general corporate brand reputation and value proposition that an organization gives its consumers, as described by Backhaus et al. (2004). During a 2002 study in the United States, researchers compiled a list of job postings based on real job advertising, including management training, the company’s reputation, and pay. The majority of respondents (49 percent) said that a company’s image would be a decisive factor in their decision to apply for a job. This shows that positive qualities of the firm, such as the corporate image, can be important determinants in the choice of job searchers to apply.
Companies aiming to create organizational attractiveness and subsequently boost recruitment outcomes will be better positioned if they make an effort to provide information about organizational brand pictures to a broad number of job seekers (Myrden and Kelloway, 2015). Therefore, participation in the job fairs helps boost a company’s corporate image, and the participants tend to view companies differently after the interaction.
Students career fair expectations then and now
Students at colleges and universities during the 1990s were surveyed, and focus groups were performed by Scott (2016), and he gathered longitudinal data about students’ expectations for recruiting. When comparing students’ key expectations for attending job fairs over time, one surprising data point emerged: “I hope to learn they discovered to meet new people.” When asked why they liked job fairs, students said they discovered new options that matched their professional goals. We may infer from this pattern that students already know which jobs they want to pursue before attending a career fair, and they expect to learn even more by chatting with and networking with representatives from numerous firms at the fair.
Vivolo (2016) assumed that students would visit job fairs in the “old days,” when internet research resources were not available, to obtain extensive information about potential employers and explore prospects at other firms that attracted their eye. Many were about to graduate, and students were supposed to get useful information during career fairs.
Scott (2016) shows that not only has the age profile of those attending career fairs changed, but students now value the chance to engage in meaningful conversation with company representatives. The conversation is authentic about the employer and learning something they do not know, which excludes information they have gleaned from other sources such as the internet—above all. Nowadays, students who attend further press unhappiness with one aspect of the event, which will be explored further in the following sections.
Career fair essentials
The job fairs present students with effective job fair tactics, and a few crucial components frequently arise in discussions about nature and enthusiastic student participation at career fairs. These are the components: Many students are put off by the prospect of having to wait in a 20-minute (or longer) line for an exam (Na et al., 2018).
Students should be referred to a knowledgeable representative about these options or routed to someone knowledgeable about them. All students, including those in their first year of college, should connect with career fair representatives. More and more college students are attending career fairs much earlier in their academic careers, not only to learn about internship and co-op opportunities but also to begin building their network of employer representatives and, for many, to gain insight into course recommendations at career fairs.
For presentations and interviews, representatives should stress the company’s commitment to targeting the school’s talent by maintaining a continuous presence at each event. However, the most profitable discloser on their website is considered a highly profitable start (Amel-Zadeh and Serafeim, 2018).
The firm must have a transparent application procedure in place when hiring new employees. As a result, the employer’s (and/or the career center’s) website must include further information on the opportunities discussed during the job fair, as well as an easy way to apply for them (Wilson and Daugherty, 2018).
Conclusion
These findings represent a representative selection of the sources that have been utilized to develop the current study’s design, techniques, conclusions, and recommendations, among other things. The data from these sources were also used in the current study to establish the foundation for further improvement of campus job fairs to become more beneficial for both the participating organizations and the graduating students in attendance. In conclusion, the information gleaned from these sources has been useful in identifying crucial topics that will be investigated further in future research investigations.
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