RECRUITMENT PROCESS AT UNILEVER

FINAL REPORT RECRUITMENT PROCESS AT UNILEVER Subject: Human Resource Management Lecturer: Le Thi Kim Khang Authors: ID Ho Chi Minh, May 2022 RECRUITMENT PROCESS AT UNILEVER Subject: Human Resource Management Lecturer: Le Thi Kim Khang Authors: ID Ho Chi Minh, May 2022 TASK LEADERBOARD Name Student ID Tasks Degree complete Le Thi Quynh Giang 19124057 Part 3.2, Part 2.3 100% Duong Khanh Bang 19124060 Part 3.1, Part 2.3 100% Dinh Thi Ha My 19124051 Chap 4, Part 2.1 100% Tran Ngoc Bao Yen 19124042 Chap 1, Part 2.2 100% -LECTURER COMMENTS Sign Table of Contents CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1.1 Reason for choosing the topic Facing the increasingly fierce competitive environment in the current context, the human factor in an enterprise is always an important factor in building the success of each organization and each business Recognizing the importance of the human factor in the human resource structure, Unilever Group has continuously invested in the process of selecting potential candidates for its company Unilever Group always leads the companies with the best working environment with attractive human resource policies, and a modern and professional working environment, so this place has become the dream of many young people choosing to work A place to develop yourself as well as to gain a lot of experience In order to select from thousands of candidates, the best and most suitable candidates for the positions that Unilever is looking for, the company has a very rigorous recruitment process This research helps us to better understand Unilever and its recruitment process 1.2 Summary of the topic This paper seeks to discuss organizational theory and design through Unilever's business stories, in addition to providing a general grasp of Unilever's brief introduction and international human resource management activities We'll begin with an overview of the organization, an overview of Unilever's Human resource management strategy, the recruitment process at Unilever, and the Trainee Program Finally, this report will outline Unilever's recruitment procedure and provide an analysis Unilever attracts many potential candidates in all fields It is passionate about Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG), and candidates who accept the challenge are willing to work in a fast-moving environment in-depth, and proficiently This study aims to learn about Unilever's history and selection process 1.3 Objective of the topic The study objectives are: Review Unilever's recruitment process Assessment of the current situation of human resource management at Unilever CHAPTER 2: OVERVIEW OF UNILEVER GROUP 2.1 Overview of Unilever Group 2.1.1 History of formation and development History of formation Margarine Unie of the Netherlands and Lever Brothers of the United Kingdom created Unilever in 1929 To avoid double taxation, this union decided to divide into two companies: Unilever PLC in the United Kingdom and Unilever NV in the Netherlands (Unilever, 2022) Unilever has more than 400 brands Some of Unilever's well-known brands: OMO, Surf, Dove, Knorr, Comfort, Hazeline, Clear, Pond's, P/S, Close Up, Vim, Cif, Sunsilk, Sunlight, Lipton, TRESemmé, and Lifebuoy, etc History of development ● 1930: Unilever was formed by the amalgamation of two businesses ● 1972: In Canada, the Unilever Group purchased the A&W restaurant business ● 1984: Unilever acquires the Brooke Bond brand ● 1987: Acquiring Chesbrough-Pond's to accelerate growth in the skincare market ● 1989: Calvin Klein cosmetics are still being purchased by Unilever ● 1966: Helene Curtis Industries Co is purchased by Unilever ● 2000: Best Foods is acquired by Unilever in order to join the food market ● 2021: Unilever has bought Paula's Choice, a well-known cosmetics brand The collaboration represents a step forward in Unilever's premium skincare product (Hien Phuong, 2021) 2.1.2 Organizational structure of Unilever Vietnam UnileverVietnam is made up of three companies: the Hanoi-based Lever Vietnam Joint Venture, the Ho Chi Minh City-based Elida PS, and the Ho Chi Minh City-based Best Food Company Unilever Vietnam now operates five plants in the industrial zones of Hanoi, Cu Chi, Thu Duc, and Bien Hoa Unilever employs around 265,000 people in more than 500 companies in 90 countries, with the company also operating in 70 other nations The company currently employs 3,000 people directly and indirectly and indirectly employs roughly 6,000 people through suppliers and agents More than 350 large wholesalers and over 150,000 retail locations serve the entire country The operating mechanism of the divisions in Unilever Vietnam is the director who receives the help of the departments in researching, discussing, and finding optimal solutions for these complex problems However, the decision-making power remains with the director Management decisions are proposed by functional research departments When approved by the director, orders are communicated from top to bottom according to regulations The functional departments are responsible for advising the whole system Each department has its duties and powers and has independent professional activities However, these departments are interrelated with each other Thereby, increasing the production and business efficiency of the company Organizational departments: ● Organizational and administrative department: Personnel management and administrative work ● Financial accounting department: Responsible for managing all capital and assets of the company, organizing inspection and implementation of economic and financial policies, and timely and accurate statistics on assets and capital sources help the director to regularly check all business activities of the company ● Sales Department: Collecting information, documents, researching through business activities, from there making business plans, managing distribution channels of the company ● Service Department (Delivery Department): Responsible for delivering goods to customers, receiving information, and handling all customer complaints and inquiries ● Factory: Responsible for production, control, and quality assurance of products to meet the needs of customers The above operating mechanism not only promotes the independence and creativity of specialized departments, and functional departments, but also ensures the unity and concentration of the entire organizational system to help the organization operate effectively 2.2 Business activities Unilever’s business results report Unit: 1.000.000 USD Expenses 2018 2019 2020 2021 Total Revenue 50.982,0 51.980,0 50.724,0 52.444,0 Total Profit 22.279,0 22.878,0 22.040,0 - Business costs 38.189,0 43.237,0 42.401,0 43.816,0 Business income 12.793,0 8.743,0 8.323,0 8.628,0 Earnings before taxes 12.360,0 8.289,0 7.996,0 8.556,0 Net income 9.369,0 5.625,0 5.581,0 6.049,0 (Source: Unilever Annual Report, 2021) Total revenue maintained at over 50 billion USD and total profit maintained at around 50 billion USD However, Unilever's net income results from 2018 to 2019 fluctuated in a downward direction, causing the company's profit margin to decrease quite deeply in 2019, only about 60% more than in 2018 The company's profit is still recovering at a rather slow rate and has not been able to recover as before CHAPTER 3: RECRUITMENT STATUS AT UNILEVER 3.1 Recruitment statement of Unilever 3.1.1 Factors from Enterprises affecting recruitment ● Unilever brand in the labor market Unilever is one of the companies that provides a nice working environment as well as good employee welfare measures This aids the organization in developing a brand in the labor market, attracting workers, and becoming the dream destination for many people (Thu Huong, 2022) ● Resources for recruitment Unilever focuses on young talent recruiting and development initiatives such as the Unilever Future Leaders Program and the Unilever Fresh Program for recent graduates Unilever also uses artificial intelligence to increase the efficiency of its workforce recruiting and training The company holds Job Fairs at significant and wellknown universities Furthermore, information about the company's recruitment is posted on university forums, newspapers, forums, job search websites, the company's website, and other places (Thu Huong, 2022) ● Human Resource policies "People are the most significant asset, the decisive factor for the success of the firm," says Unilever Vietnam's operational concept (Thu Huong, 2022) At Unilever, all salaries, bonuses, and employee perks are always placed first Unilever intends for the Human Resources department to serve as a strategic partner and a guideline for the entire organization The company's human resource efforts have helped Unilever build a strong human resource system over time and recruit a large number of senior employees to serve the company ● Organizational culture The following are features of Unilever's organizational culture: Focus on performance- Put a strong emphasis on individual and organizational performance Focus on quality- Quality output in all areas is emphasized Efficiency - use technology and other tools to work more efficiently Furthermore, Unilever strives to establish a friendly, open, and sympathetic work atmosphere for its workers, allowing them to feel trusted and included, fostering their innovation and long-term dedication Employees will feel valued and cared for as a result of this This is one of the HR techniques for attracting and motivating brilliant employees to work at their best (Thu Huong, 2022) 3.1.2 Recruitment situation at Unilever Unilever continued to disclose intentions to slash roughly 1,500 management roles globally in early 2022 According to Unilever, their "suggested new organizational model will result in a 15% reduction in senior management jobs." Every year, Unilever receives 20,000 applications in Vietnam, but only about 25 persons are approved for the role of Management Trainee With such a high level of competitiveness, personnel recruiting is also quite tight; candidates must go through numerous rounds of exams and interviews, yet this does not diminish Unilever's appeal to candidates following (Unilever, 2021) 3.2 Recruitment process 3.2.1 General introduction to the recruitment process Multinational corporation Unilever is among the top companies with a good, dynamic working environment and is the best place to work in Vietnam today, so this is the dream destination of many talented young Vietnamese people Unilever's recruitment process includes: Recruitment process: Unilever's recruitment notices are often uploaded on the media, recruitment websites, recruitment notices from Unilever's main website recruiting worldwide, or from the introduction of employees who are working at Unilever, and finally from excellent candidates after participating in Unilever's Student programs Selection process: With its charm, Unilever has attracted thousands of applications across the country, so Unilever's selection process is rigorous to select the right candidates for the job positions the company is looking for In addition, Unilever has applied AI in recruitment With 1.8 million job applications that need to be processed every year, Unilever's HR manager Leena Nair shared that about 70,000 hours of interviewing and CV processing have been cut thanks to the AI application screening process (Marr, 2018) 3.2.2 Recruitment Process 3.2.2.1 Recruiting facility The activity of recruiting and attracting candidates to apply for a position is known as recruitment The organization will get the candidate's application file after the conclusion of the recruitment process Unilever is one of the world's most powerful multinational corporations, thus their recruitment policies are always designed to attract top personnel 2.2.2.2 Recruitment method Recruiting talents from the time they are still in school From 1998 up to now, to attract talented students, Unilever has organized a series of recruitment programs including the Unilever Future Leaders Program (Formerly Management Trainee), UFresh, and Unilever Internship, with different criteria, targeting different students According to Eusébio et al (2014), there are reasons make people apply to the Management Trainee Program of Unilever To begin with, people willingly submit their applications to the organization to train for various recruiting procedures Second, people apply to Unilever because they want to work in the FMCG industry or because they have a favorable impression of the company These people perceive it as a fantastic marketing school, and hence an excellent place to start a marketing profession, as well as a corporation with strong commercial brands The company organizes Career Days to introduce and orient students about the professions and jobs they will undertake in Unilever Through job fairs for students like these, the company has selected excellent candidates Through Unilever's direct recruitment or recruitment websites, The company has posted recruitment information in newspapers such as the Business Forum, on the company's website: www.unilever.com.vn, as well as posted job postings on job search websites on the Internet such as Ybox, Career building, Top Cv, Joboko, etc In addition, information about the company's recruitment is also shared on university forums, and job search forums When compared to other recruitment procedures, our respondents believed that Unilever's overall selection process was highly thorough and that the firm takes an effort to thoroughly examine and get to know its prospects to choose the best (Eusébio et al, 2014) 3.2.3 Selection Process 3.2.3.1 Internship programs at Unilever There are two largest internship programs at Unilever, which are Unilever Future Leader Program (UFLP) and Unilever Fresh Program (UFresh) The two programs are the same in that they both recruit students who are about to graduate or graduate with less than years of experience The difference is: - UFLP: duration is years, requirements for English skills and leadership ability - UFresh: duration is months, requires basic English communication skills, teamwork skills rather than leadership ability ❖ Unilever interview process for UFresh Round 1: Submit a CV to Unilever for recruitment First you have to fill out the application form and submit your CV Note that, your CV should clarify the information, GPA, hometown, temporary residence, and permanent residence because it will affect the location that the company may consider Your CV clearly shows that you have less than years of work experience Activities you have participated in to impress the employer A CV focusing on leadership, social activities, and outstanding achievements is indispensable Experience in sales or Trade marketing is more practical and better (Hoang Minh, 2020) Round 2: Aptitude Test Online or at the Company's office Candidates will undergo tests on online or offline platforms directly at the company to test their knowledge of finance, economics, understanding of the business, and Unilever's competitiveness compared to competitors other players, etc According to Hoang Minh (2020), You will need to complete 25 questions within 30 minutes, including forms + Quick calculation of regular forms + Identifying graphs, calculating discounts, labor hours, labor efficiency, etc + IQ test, next number form, next drawing, change in the square, choose next square, etc These types require you to identify well + Verbal test, test your logic, reasoning ability The difference this year is that you can check your test results through jobtest.vn website with a link from Unilever You just need to register with the email you registered for when taking the Unilever exam Round 3: CD Training or HR Manager preliminary interview In this round, the purpose is for Unilever recruiters to explore and learn about the candidate's personality, their understanding of the industry overview, and their commitment to stay with the Company for a long time After doing the test for about 20-30 days, you will receive an interview schedule via skype With such a large number, Unilever will hire a 3rd party HR to interview you (Hoang Minh, 2018) The questions often go deep into your personality and activities For example: What is the biggest difficulty? Biggest achievement? What to when it's difficult? What topic does the thesis do, and what are the findings? What's it like to work far away, are you afraid to go far? Why choose this industry, this job, etc The HR partner asked very deeply and in detail to verify whether what I wrote was correct or not Besides, this information is also saved for later rounds, bosses will rely on this information for in-depth interviews This round of interviews will last approximately hour At the end of the time, HR will stop so try to answer well and show the most during that time Round 4: Market exercises and group presentations You will be divided into groups and given a case study related to the market of a distributor to survey customers, and the service quality of the distributor From there, offer solutions to help increase sales for that distributor After a week, the groups will present together The judges are Branch Managers, CD Training, and Area Sales Managers (ASM) In recent years, due to the impact of the covid-19 pandemic, group exercises were conducted online (Hoang Minh, 2020) You will be divided into groups and will have hour to prepare and give group presentations according to self-assignment This case is a general case, to see how your thinking is Solving Problems Skills, Presentation Skills, and Working group skills For this round, you should prepare in advance knowledge about the general market FMCGs, update current market changes, and presentation templates Round 5: Interview with Branch Manager This is an opportunity for you to state your aspirations and desire to develop while working at Unilever (which department you want to work in, what are your career goals, etc.) At this time, the employer can advise you on career paths at the company After a successful presentation, you will be selected for a direct interview with Department Sales, the purpose of which is to find out more about whether you fit the culture and needs of the company and department they are looking for Some questions like: - Can I go to the market in non-urban areas? - Will you return to work in Vietnam according to the commission if the pass is not (for candidates studying abroad) - Can you handle the work pressure? Etc ❖ Unilever interview process for UFLP: Round 1: Submit a CV to Unilever for recruitment Your CV should be short, within A4 page, right to the professional focus, give specific numbers, and absolutely no typos Especially the References section should be a reputable person Fill out the online application It's a quick and straightforward procedure, and you can use your LinkedIn profile to fill out the form In your application, you can only apply to one function (Unilever, 2022) When reviewing resumes, also look for two requirements in candidates: First, require expertise; Second, the ability to be sensitive to work Therefore, you should put your resume to focus on these two issues The projects, and group exercises, that you have done during your studies are the things that you should include in your CV, this will make your CV more attractive to employers If possible, feel free to attach a link for them to verify For more clarity, you should clearly state your role in those projects, and record the work that you have done, and also the achievements that you have achieved Currently, Unilever has applied AI Technology in the CV selection process, thanks to the keywords on the CV, so your CV should have keywords that focus on the position that Unilever is looking for, for example, Leadership, Teamwork, English ability, etc Round 2: Do Aptitude Test Unilever recruits This round is similar to the round of UFresh Complete a profile assessment, which comprises five brief online tests that examine various aspects of your cognitive, emotional, and social characteristics Following the completion of the exams, you will receive personalized feedback (Unilever, 2022) Round 3: Initial Interview Most of the questions are just normal interview questions, aimed at finding out your strengths, weaknesses, personality, and future career goals Three short questions will be asked in the digital interview, followed by a business case You'll be asked to use Unilever scenarios to tackle real-world challenges You'll be able to record and finish your interview at any time and from any location (Unilever, 2022) Round 4: Virtual Discovery Centre The candidates are divided into several groups, each group has more than 10 people, who are given a case study and have to come up with ideas and a thinking plan for that case study After that, each individual will be presented and questioned by the managers 3.2.3.2 Apply directly When applying directly, candidates also need to pass the application rounds and the aptitude test to come to the interview round Normally, each candidate will go through at least rounds of interviews with the human resources department, the manager of the department that needs to be recruited, and the senior management Interview questions will focus on main issues: - Can do? Assess whether the candidate can meet the job requirements or not? - Will do? Determine the candidate's work motivation and ability to devote himself to work at the company - Will fit? Check if the candidate is suitable for the job in terms of working location, working time or not? 3.3 Comments on the recruitment process ● Strength Firstly, the recruitment process is open and transparent: The recruitment process is specifically publicized by Unilever, helping candidates easily access recruitment information, and know what is required, from There is a thorough preparation for the recruitment rounds Second, taking advantage of the power of information technology to increase the efficiency of human resources recruitment, contributing to saving time and costs: Unilever uses online tests (Aptitude test, Pymetric test) to screen filter candidates before starting the interview round; In addition, Unilever also applies artificial intelligence - Unabot to recruitment, which analyzes the language through the voice and image of the candidates' faces, then converts them into labeled data and compares them with successful employees in that position Since then, Unilever has eliminated candidates who are not suitable for the position The application of this artificial intelligence has saved nearly 70,000 hours of interview time for the corporation and still has the same efficiency Third, combine multiple recruitment sources to make the most of human resources: Unilever is currently recruiting employees according to sources, which are internal and external to the enterprise, and referral recruitment - a form of recruitment that does not through websites or newspapers that use social networks This helps Unilever not only take advantage of available human resources, and reduce costs, but also attract and approach more suitable candidates with job requirements Fourth, the assessment is based on the ability to solve real-life situations, not just theories: candidates must come up with ideas, think plans for the required case study, or perform a case study related to the market of a distributor to survey customers, and the service quality of the distributor From there, offer solutions to help increase sales for that distributor Candidates will have to present their results in front of the Branch Manager, CD Training, and Area Sales Managers (ASM) Managers will evaluate the attitude and problem-solving skills of the candidates in this recruitment round to select the most suitable candidates ● Weakness Firstly, it takes a lot of time and expense to recruit: In terms of time, Unilever's human resources are mainly from outside sources, so it will take a lot of time to select, find and identify points strengths, weaknesses, and personality of the new employee, this time can be up to several weeks At the same time, the company also spends time and money to orient and train them to get used to the working environment of the business In addition, Unilever also has to spend a lot of expenses such as the cost of organizing Career Day every year; The cost of recruitment communication on the website, through banners, advertising leaflets, and the salary paid to attract candidates from outside is higher than from inside Second, is the inadequacy of using AI in the recruitment process Through analyzing results in several games and body language, AI can recommend suitable candidates for the job However, it is difficult for AI to pinpoint exactly who is the best candidate to be selected In addition, the behavioral patterns, questions, and assessment criteria that AI uses to learn are still human-input, all of its data coming from internal sources Therefore, AI can learn from human biases to make unbiased and fair assessments and screenings Third, the recruitment process is difficult and stressful Unilever's selection rounds were evaluated by the candidates who had participated in the selection process as difficult and stressful Candidates consider the IQ tests, algorithms, and questions to be highly challenging Many students feel shy when applying at Unilever Fourth, it is difficult to recruit local candidates Unilever's candidates have high qualifications and professional skills, but their loyalty is low because the recruitment test is not commensurate with the actual work, so employees feel discouraged afterward CHAPTER 4: CONCLUSION Unilever is a corporation that attracts large human resources because it is a professional environment with great development opportunities On the other hand, corporate culture, as well as employee treatment policies, are also an attraction of Unilever There are thousands of candidates across the country applying for the positions of this company, so the selection process is very strict and the competition rate is very high The recruitment process is specifically publicized by Unilever, making it easy for candidates to access recruitment information Unilever utilizes the power of information technology to increase the efficiency of human resource recruitment, contributing to saving time and costs In addition, Unilever is currently recruiting employees through sources, which are internal to the enterprise, external to the enterprise, and referral recruitment - a form of recruitment not through websites or newspapers but using social networks This helps Unilever not only take advantage of available human resources, and reduce costs, but also attract and approach more suitable candidates with job requirements However, Unilever's recruitment process still has weaknesses: In terms of time, Unilever's human resources are mainly from outside sources, so it will take a lot of time to select, find and identify points strengths, weaknesses, and personality of the new employee, this time can be up to several weeks In addition, Unilever's selection rounds were judged by the candidates who had participated in the selection process as difficult and stressful APPENDIX UNILEVER PRODUCTS LIST Food and drink Home Care Personal Care Knorr Comfort Clear Lipton Washing-powder Lux Wall’s Omo Sunsilk Unilever Food Omo Matic Dove Viso Pond’s Stuff AXE Cleansing Hazeline Sunlight Closeup Vim Lifebuoy Cif Vaseline Solutions Water Purifier Pure it TRESemme P/S Rexona Paula’s Choice Murad Source: Unilever REFERENCE Eusébio, M I R., Isoletti, E A., Almeida, J M B D., Oliveira, M L M G., & Nogueira, R J P (2014) Unilever recruitment branding (Doctoral dissertation) Hien Phuong (2021) Unilever "suy tính" với thương vụ mua lại Paula’s Choice? Retrieved from advertisingvietnam : https://advertisingvietnam.com/unilever-dang-suy-tinh-gi-voi-thuong-vu-mualai-paulas-choice-p16937 Hoang Minh (2018) Kinh nghiệm thi tuyển Ufresh Retrieved from Hoang Minh: https://hoangminh.org/my-life/thought-sharing/kinh-nghiem-thi-tuyen-ufresh/ Hoang Minh (2020) Hành trình Ufresh 2020 Retrieved from Hoangminh: https://hoangminh.org/my-life/thought-sharing/hanh-trinh-ufresh-2020/ Marr, B (2018) The Amazing Ways How Unilever Uses Artificial Intelligence To Recruit & Train Thousands Of Employees Retrieved from Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2018/12/14/the-amazing-ways-howunilever-uses-artificial-intelligence-to-recruit-train-thousands-of-employees/? sh=45dd57a26274 Thu Huong (2022) Bài học từ chiến lược quản trị nguồn nhân lực Unilever Retrieved from Fastwork : https://fastwork.vn/chien-luoc-quan-tri-nguon-nhanluc-cua-unilever/ Unilever (2021) Retrieved from Unilever: Number of Employees 2010-2021 | UL: https://www.macrotrends.net/stocks/charts/UL/unilever/number-of-employees Unilever (2021) Annual Report and Accounts 2021 Highlights Retrieved from Unilever: https://www.unilever.com/investors/annual-report-and-accounts/ Unilever (2022) Future leaders programme Retrieved from Unilever: https://careers.unilever.com/unilever-future-leaders-programme Unilever (2022) History Retrieved from Unilever: https://www.unilever.com/ourcompany/our-history-and-archives/1800s/ vieclam24h (2018) "Điều khiến hàng ngàn ứng viên muốn làm việc Unilever?" Retrieved from vieclam24h: https://nghenghiep.vieclam24h.vn/dieu-gi-khienhang-ngan-ung-vien-muon-lam-viec-tai-unilever Viecoi (2022) "UNILEVER TUYỂN DỤNG 2022 - CÁC HÌNH THỨC VÀ QUY TRÌNH PHỎNG VẤN" Retrieved from Viecoi: https://viecoi.vn/cam-nangnghe-nghiep/chi-tiet-cac-hinh-thuc-va-quy-trinh-tuyen-dung-cua-unilever959.html ... slow rate and has not been able to recover as before CHAPTER 3: RECRUITMENT STATUS AT UNILEVER 3.1 Recruitment statement of Unilever 3.1.1 Factors from Enterprises affecting recruitment ● Unilever. .. dream destination of many talented young Vietnamese people Unilever' s recruitment process includes: Recruitment process: Unilever' s recruitment notices are often uploaded on the media, recruitment. .. recruiting and attracting candidates to apply for a position is known as recruitment The organization will get the candidate's application file after the conclusion of the recruitment process Unilever