At Nottingham City Transport (NCT), we have found that successful recruitment starts with acknowledging that you won’t solve today’s hiring challenges by applying the solutions of the past.
The competition for new recruits is intense – not just in the coach and bus industry, but across all segments. The days of loyalty to a specific sector are largely gone, with employees open to joining industries that they have never ventured into before.
Connecting with today’s labour market no longer involves going to your job board and posting your usual advert. It is more important than ever to approach the labour market as you would your customers; understand their behaviour, meet them where they are, design recruitment practices that are personable, and expedite their journey from A to B with minimum delays.
Don’t rely on the same advertising platforms. There is a perceived notion that the talent pool of coach and bus drivers is small, and what you often find is operators competing for the same narrow set of candidates on the same platform.
A question we have asked ourselves is: How do we expand that pool? How do we tap into a non-driver market and attract people who have never considered a career as a bus driver? This is where we have been most successful.
Venture out. Connect with other online platforms and be visible where people gather to share information. Converting a passive candidate into a job applicant starts by engaging with them and raising awareness on the platforms that they use.
Alongside traditional marketing campaigns, we embarked upon a root and branch overhaul of our recruitment practices. We engaged with social media in innovative ways; sought partnerships with organisations that could help us to reach new demographics; and found ways to engage the millions of jobseekers no longer engaging in traditional job searches.
This combined approach has yielded more than 3,000 applications for us over the last year.
Be on time. We know that reliability and being on time is one of the things that our customers value most about our service. Recruitment is no different. Remember, if they are sending an application to you, they have probably sent 10 applications to other potential employers as well.
So be the first to contact them: At NCT, we aim to contact all applicants within 48 hours of receiving their application. Call them, as well. In a world where everything is becoming more automated and communications more detached, break the mould. Contact them early; be engaging and personable. This is their first impression of your business, and first impressions count.
Job security and brand: At NCT, we are fortunate to have a strong local brand. We are instantly recognisable as Nottingham’s local bus company, and in winning the Top National Bus Driver award four times, people considering employment with us can be confident that they will receive quality training.
In these uncertain times, there is much to be said for working for a local employer with a strong brand – one that can offer good job security and competitive wages. We find that jobseekers are looking for security more than ever, and with the national shortage of coach and bus drivers, this is a real opportunity to promote the benefits of our industry.
About the author
David Astill became Managing Director of Nottingham City Transport in 2021. He has been with the East Midlands operator since 2007, and prior to that spent time in managerial roles with First Bus.
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