Digital Application Tools Remain the Exception
Three out of four companies still rely on paper application folders, while only 17 percent use one-click online applications.
Almost all companies in Germany are suffering from a shortage of skilled workers, but many still make it unnecessarily difficult for applicants. Only 43 percent of companies offer applications via an online tool, where interested applicants are guided through the process.
Just 17 percent rely on one-click applications in business networks. This means that a lot of relevant information does not have to be re-entered as it is automatically transferred from the applicant’s own profile. A further 16 percent of companies use application apps on smartphones.
Traditional methods predominate
These are the results of a survey of 853 companies from all sectors commissioned by the digital association Bitkom. The survey also shows that practically all companies (99%) rely on applications by email. In addition, three quarters (73 percent) continue to accept application folders on paper.
With this in mind, Bitkom CEO Bernhard Rohleder concludes: “Too many companies are still relying on application procedures as they did 20 years ago. The competition for the best skilled workers starts with a less complicated application process.”
Recruitment channels
8 out of 10 companies (80 percent) find applicants with the help of job vacancies. Only unsolicited applications are mentioned more frequently (95 percent). Two thirds (64 percent) rely on internships.Almost every second company (47%) uses career fairs, 32% search via headhunters and 28% recruit new employees via active sourcing, i.e. through targeted searches and approaches on social media or in business networks such as LinkedIn or Xing.
A fifth (21 percent) take on employees from projects or freelance work.Boot camps or crash courses that teach digital skills, on the other hand, play virtually no role.Only one in a hundred companies (1 percent) find new employees in this way.
Conference in March
Recruiting in the digital world will also be a topic at Work & Culture on 7 March 2024, Bitkom’s conference on the digital world of work, which will take place as part of the two-day TRANSFORM digitalization trade fair at Station Berlin. In addition to recruitment, the conference will focus on securing skilled workers, new work & new leadership, artificial intelligence in the world of work, sustainability & corporate digital responsibility as well as equality and diversity.
