Douglas Battista, President of North America Field Operations, had the opportunity to participate in an open dialogue at the 2011 Talent Acquisition Conference. During the conversation, this former Head of Talent Acquisition for Nestlé USA spoke about the benefits of teaming with a recruiting agency that has an established presence at home and abroad. Here, Douglas Battista answers questions about the conference and its purpose.

Q. – What was the main topic of discussion at the conference?

Douglas Battista – RPO, or Recruitment Process Outsource. This is a business practice where a firm’s HR department relinquishes some portion of the company’s recruitment activities to a service provider outside of its own payroll.

Q. – Can you explain what benefit RPO brings to a business?

Douglas Battista – There are many, under the right circumstances. If corporation management is seeking to hire high-level talent in a foreign market, this process can give them access to the area’s most talented individuals. One of the main benefits is scalability.  Recruiting needs rise and fall, and RPOs allow for scalability and cost control.

Q. –What do conferences like this do for the business community?

Douglas Battista – I believe that they bring awareness to the benefit of the services.

Q. – What other companies were represented at the conference roundtable?

Douglas Battista – The Cummins Corp., specifically John Havenaar, who is the Executive Director, Global Recruiting, of the firm.

Q. – What was discussed?

Douglas Battista – We talked about how FutureStep has helped both Nestlé USA and Cummins Corporation improve hiring practices on a global scale.

Q. – What are the main principles of strategic workforce planning, and how can FutureStep assist a company in these principles?

Douglas Battista – They can help a firm understand what skill sets management needs to look for in order to enhance the future of the business. Additionally, they can assist in the identification and rectification gaps in their current talent.

Q. – How assessable is FutureStep?

Douglas Battista – The company employs over 800 recruitment professionals in 20 separate countries with nearly 40 offices.

Q. – Does an RPO strategy involve only permanent employees?

Douglas Battista – No, the firm also specializes in project recruitment.

Q. – Does RPO make a material difference in a company’s level of quality?

Douglas Battista – Yes, it can. When a company has a talent pool of individuals who’ve been prescreened for their skills, they tend to require less time training the employee. The RPO process can save a company money by helping to reduce turnover ratio and ensuring the longevity of their business by allowing them to hire only the best candidates for their open positions.