Generali Insurance Company is one of the leaders in the field of digitalization, robotization and automation. The digital systems and applications used by its managers were expanded a few months ago to include the recruitment management application Nalgoo. Due to its great success at head office, it has also been adopted by the company's own sales network. Where the recruitment process is almost fully digitalised.
Initially, Generali did not have a single system for registering candidates. Everyone maintained records individually. "Managers created their own databases. Some worked with diaries, for example, others were using Excel spreadsheets, papers or simply wrote notes on CVs in a folder and at the same time filled in an Excel spreadsheet, which was a summary for the entire sales network, so that the management had an overview of recruitment activities," describes the previous functioning of the sales team director, Matej Kormanec. Changes in the coordination of the recruitment process began to be introduced in 2017. "We ran a project to help us recruit in a more targeted way," Matej remembers. Roughly 3 years ago, we recruited a large number of candidates, but after a while they turned out to be unsuitable. "We wanted team members with experience who we can better adapt, train and consequently bring better results to the company."
System for another division
Initially, Nalgoo was used only by Generali's HR department. Based on the results it has brought, the management decided to expand it. The implementation was similar. "In the initial phase, the Nalgoo team tried to get a feel for our needs and the VOS recruitment process, very little of which has been handled digitally before," Andrea Oravcova, HR Business Partner, describes the process. "It was important to understand our expectations and the technical capabilities that Nalgoo offers and align these two attributes. Our goal was to get a system that would allow us to set up, evaluate, quantify and keep recruitment activities and data over time and across our business structure," says Jozef Čabala, Regional Director of the Nitra region at Generali.
What a meeting, what progress
"The Nalgoo team showed us through clear examples what reporting and working with a candidate would look like in reality. We simply adjusted the details. As part of the demo launch, we had the opportunity to learn how to work with the system while supported by a trainer from Nalgoo," says Andrea Oravcová. "They are a team of professionals who were always able to help us in setting up and debugging the system. They guided us when needed and most importantly, they always listened to us and tailored the programming of the system to suit our needs and processes. I always looked forward to my meetings with Nalgoo because we moved forward each time."
From director to assistant
Marián Škovranko, Recruitment and Adaptation Manager of the company's own sales network, described the hierarchy of the company's employees and how individual members use the system. "The basic and key level are the unit managers, who manage the salespeople directly. Above them are the regional directors who manage the structure of the unit managers. The regional director's view concerning all the activity and information from the salespeople is very important. We have also involved the assistants of the regional directorates in working with Nalgoo, uploading candidates from various career portals or recruitment campaigns into the system. For us, Nalgoo is a system that we work with on an almost daily basis."
Intuitive and interactive
When implementing the Nalgoo system, Matej trained managers across the country to work with it. "Even then, I evaluated the system very positively in terms of its consistency. It is clear, intuitive, simple and quick to obtain feedback. When I open it, I can see the status of recruitment activities within my plan. I can easily view the meeting notes and come back to them at any time. The system alerts me of when I need to contact the candidate again. I find its simplicity, interactivity and clarity to be the biggest benefits of the system."
System as evidence
At the moment, the Newcomer Training and Adaptation Manager has regular Skype calls with all managers, during which they go through the activities in Nalgoo and assess the results or work in progress for the activities. All details of individual candidates are immediately available. Thanks to Nalgoo, the management can very quickly obtain an overview. At the same time, it provides managers with a bulletproof record. "The system provides important feedback for me as well. I can see what percentage of my recruitment plan for the year is fulfilled. For example, if I’m at 60%, it immediately alerts me where I need to move faster, and in which area," describes the system's sales team director.
I gain in excess of 20 hours per month
There are currently 438 salespeople, 43 unit managers and 6 regional directors in the Generali sales network. Their number is constantly growing. "In connection with the expansion of our own sales network, Nalgoo is very helpful in recruiting and managing candidates," admits Andrea Oravcová from the HR department. "Thanks to Nalgoo, I can manage my recruitment much better. I have an overview of how many candidates I'm dealing with, I don't arrange unnecessary meetings and I deal only with relevant candidates," praises Matej. "I'm managing my recruitment a lot tighter now, I have a better overview, I know who to work with. I don't have to report my activities to anyone because my supervisors can see them in the system. So, there is no need to have weekly meetings. I also notice the valuable time savings. In terms of efficiency and feedback, it's definitely 2-3 hours a week, about 12 hours a month. Thanks to the fact that the process has been simplified and I can manage it myself via the system, I save maybe 20 - 30 hours per month."
Targeted for work efficiency
Through Nalgoo, the HR department looks at the efficiency of the recruitment activities of the unit managers and the entire region. "Each manager has to set an annual and a monthly plan of activities, which we evaluate based on reports from the system. We track the following parameters: how many meetings the unit manager has had with potential candidates, how many candidates they have referred to meet with the regional director and the number of recruits contracted. We are guided by the motto: what is not in Nalgoo does not exist," continues the HR Business Partner.
100% digital
Currently, the system is fully functional for unit managers, regional directors and head office. The entire recruitment process is digitalised. "We always see opportunities to improve and add functionality, to which the Nalgoo team responds quickly and flexibly. We definitely have plans to extend the system to other processes such as onboarding and newcomer adaptation," adds Andrea Oravcova. Jozef Čabala sees opportunity for progress. "Right now, the system is primarily used for our internal activities. In the future, we have the ambition for the system to be able to communicate with the applicants, send them notifications and receive feedback from them, so that it is user-friendly for the unit manager and innovative for the candidate."
Digitalisation in terms of education
Marian Škovranko said that the department plans to expand digitalization not only in the recruitment and adaptation process, but also in the training and further development of salespeople, so that the priority is to have a completely detailed and wide-ranging view of each salesperson. This way the manager will be able to expand and develop the current team and new staff.