Reinventing Recruiting, Retaining Dynamics

By John Bensalhia

From Issue 1, 2024 of Breakbulk Magazine.


Conventional methods of seeking and retaining project cargo staff have radically changed. Factors such as technology and greater workplace flexibility have come together to create more adaptable recruitment and retention processes.

When searching for the right candidate, Kelsey Purse, Faststream Recruitment’s director of shipping, said that as a recruitment business, it might be an obvious answer to say use a recruitment agency. “However, if you partner with a specialist agency within the shipping and project cargo market, there are many reasons why you will benefit from it.”

An important benefit is access to and relationships with talent. “Often, recruitment agencies and consultants will have exclusive relationships with candidates that they have built up over a period. These candidates often rely on their recruitment consultant as their trusted adviser in the employment market. These candidates are often more passive and will not apply directly to job ads or postings or be interested in speaking to other headhunters.”

DHL Industrial Projects use all available methods to place the right people in the right roles. Andy Tite, commercial director, said that a first port of call is always the company’s existing team members where current employees can graduate to a more senior or diverse role, allowing others in the organization to also have advancement or change.

“Where this cannot be achieved either through a geographical or skill set gap, then we look within the industry for candidates that perhaps are not gaining the needed fulfilment within their current roles either within other project forwarding organizations or within companies we engage with in specific industry verticals.”


Digital High

A big change in the process of initial screening and interviews is due to the digital age. With project cargo candidates and clients based worldwide, video communications have opened up the marketplace.

“We are even seeing an increase in hiring completed without the candidate or client meeting in person before the commencement of employment. Decisions are being made for some from video interviews, telephone and other digital communications only,” Purse said.

While digital technology has helped with initial screening and interviews, Purse added that there has been an increase since Covid-19 in the time to hire.

“Several factors are impacting the time to hire. Competition is fierce for top talent, and combined with a skill-short marketplace, hiring managers have to act faster and rethink their people strategies. Counteroffers are now the norm. In the last year, we have seen the most aggressive ones ever in shipping and project cargo recruitment. The renewed focus on retention has meant that employers while once may have been confident in rehiring, are now doing everything they can to keep hold of their people.

“These aggressive counteroffers are, in some cases, creating salary disparities within the same or similar roles. This in turn, can cause conflict internally if compensation packages are discussed and again, have an impact on retention.”

More potential employees are seeking a greater work/life balance, a trend that Tite argued should be taken on board by all organizations.

“There is very much a culture of trust and ownership within our teams and if people need to take time out to support their families, attend a school event or simply work in a more flexible manner, then we always do what we can to support that.”

All employees must have the right amount of work/life balance, according to one engineering, procurement and construction company. One notable factor, post-Covid, is in terms of new employees and the new generation demanding that they do have the opportunity to work from home.

In some cases, home/work balance is more important than salary. “There have been instances in which a prospective candidate has taken an offer at a lower salary because they would like a job that enables a work/life balance,” said the EPC.


Paying Retention

Retaining staff through methods such as promotions, training and rewards can be a culmination of all three. But as Tite commented, it is not always practical to provide all of these at once.

“We also feel that transparency as an organization in relation to our performance, growth and strategy for the future is key and it is a quite different culture at DHL Industrial Projects versus other organizations I have been a part of. Allowing our people to be aware of the direction we are steering the ship in and to be a part of the discussion is crucial to personal investment in our working lives.

"So, if we can place the right people in the right roles, with opportunity for growth and/or diversification as well as incentives to deliver which are aligned with our company strategies, then this is probably a good starting point.”

Purse noted that for retention of staff, each employee will have their specific motivations to stay with an employer or choose to jobseek. “However, we do see trends in why people choose to stay with their employer including career progression, compensation and benefits, and work-life balance.

“Career progression availability is important to those who view their job as offering more than just an occupation. Many want a job that offers a rewarding career and the opportunity to progress and develop themselves to their fullest capability.”

A major change witnessed by Faststream is that compensation and benefits can be used as a retention tool, not just for attraction strategies. Because of this, more candidates say they are planning to stay loyal to their employer.


High Equality

Equal opportunities are also incredibly important to Faststream and to their clients. Purse said that encouraging diversity is not just about gender, race, and ethnicity anymore. “An inclusive workplace also embraces employees from different generations, cultures, religions, political beliefs, education, and socioeconomic backgrounds.

“Diverse and inclusive teams create many business benefits from increasing employee engagement and retention and improving creativity and innovation to promoting diverse skill sets and understanding of markets.”

Tite added that the diversity of DHL Industrial Projects’ employees is its genuine strength. “We promote an inclusive work environment that values the diversity of our employees and in which everybody feels accepted and can be their best every day. It is our firm belief that diversity and inclusion contribute to our company’s success.”

He added that the main criteria for employee selection and promotion are skills and qualifications, aiming to provide equal opportunities to all candidates. “If you are capable, qualified and legally entitled to work in the geography where a role is situated then you have an equal opportunity to secure that role."

DHL Industrial Projects is also working hard to bridge the gap between the older and younger work forces with its graduate program, #NEXTGENIP. “This is not the first of its kind in DHL or in the industry, yet it’s the first time DHL Industrial Projects has managed its own program. We have set a robust curriculum that will see our graduates cover core modules and also have freedom for optional modules depending on their own interests and intended career path.”

Purse said that retaining good people will benefit a company’s culture as they are a good example of a positive story to tell newcomers. “The company’s clients will benefit from familiar relationships developed over time. These people will also be able to grow with the company bringing the company’s DNA and experience with them.”

Finding new talent means that you can ‘buy in’ specialist and niche knowledge on project cargo. “Attracting new talent also means that you benefit from their historic relationships in the industry, that you may not have had before. Our customers in this particular area like to gain knowledge of the way other companies operate and this can be obtained by taking on new people.”

Overall, candidates in the project cargo marketplace are driven by fast-paced, competitive environments. Therefore businesses need to create these types of environments for talent to thrive and develop. As Purse concluded: “Our customers are equally motivated to source candidates who are problem solvers and solution-driven: making this a highly desirable sector to work in. Retaining talent for the long term can also help with succession planning and developing your future leadership pool.”


How to recruit top talent for the logistics sector will be the focus of a main stage panel session at Breakbulk Middle East 2024. “Attracting Talent for Future Industry Sustainability”, moderated by Stuart Blair at global executive search firm JB Andrews, will take place on Monday, 12 February from 16:30-17:15.

Breakbulk Middle East 2024 is happening on 12-13 February at the Dubai World Trade Center.

TOP PHOTO: DHL workers loading cargo aircraft. CREDIT: DHL Global Forwarding