Research Confirms Electronic Workforce Selection and Hiring Systems Increase Median Employee Tenure by 42 PercentPORTLAND, Ore., Sept. 5, 2002 -- Research released today from Unicru, Inc. reveals that companies who replace traditional paper-based hiring processes with fully integrated electronic hiring management systems -- which include assessment and hiring manager decision support -- can significantly increase employee tenure. This primary measure of job fit and workforce quality is among the noteworthy findings by Unicru Chief Scientist, Dr. David Scarborough, in a detailed statistical analysis of the employment history of nearly 500,000 hourly workers of national employers. The study compared employees hired using computer screening to others hired using traditional paper employment applications. Employees hired using traditional methods were less likely to show up for the first day of work, and were twice as likely to terminate on the first day and in the first week of employment, as compared to those hired by managers using computer support. The Unicru research shows that 30 days after hire, only 68.3 percent of those using traditional hiring processes remained on the job, as compared to 80.5 percent of those hired using an electronic process. Median expected job tenure (the point at which 50 percent of hires have left their jobs) increased from 62 workdays to 88 workdays, illustrating a 42 percent improvement when using electronic hiring and selection methods. These findings have important economic implications for employers of hourly workers in industries such as retail, financial services, food services and manufacturing. According to the Institute for Retail Excellence, the direct cost of losing a worker in the retail industry is at least $3,000, while indirect costs from lost sales or disruptions to operations can be significantly higher. These costs are incurred when employees quit early on -- or never show up -- because the investment made in recruiting, hiring and training that person is lost. According to recent research published by the Aberdeen Group, a reduction in employee turnover of 20 percent or more in high turnover industries such as retail and food services has the potential to double a company's profitability. Increased employee retention also benefits employers by creating a more experienced staff and larger pool of candidates for management development. "Employers of hourly workers constantly struggle with the costs involved in hiring, training and retaining employees," said Chris Marsh, Unicru's president and chief executive officer. "We believe this research achieves an industry first -- large-scale, conclusive evidence that on-line delivery of scientifically designed employee selection methods can deliver significant improvements in workforce quality and ultimately business performance." Additional research findings by industrial psychologists and academic researchers from Unicru's database of over 10 million application and hiring records will be published monthly in the company's new Unicru Workforce Performance Report series. To receive the free newsletter, please contact Unicru at: wpnews@unicru.com. For additional detail regarding this report, please contact kbeasley@unicru.com. About Unicru Unicru, Inc. is the leading provider of hiring management systems for employers of more than 80 percent of the American workforce -- hourly workers. The Unicru system is deployed via on-site application centers, the Web, and through back-office processing of employers' job applications, hiring, and terminations. With more than 13,000 on-site application centers and Web-based solutions, large retailers, call centers, and hospitality businesses use Unicru's services nationwide. Unicru has processed more than 10 million job applications and evaluates approximately one application per second during the average U.S. workday. Clients include Universal Studios, Blockbuster Entertainment, Metro One, Target, and Bennigan's. On average, Unicru customers decrease employee turnover by 10-30 percent and reduce hiring time by more than half. For more information, visit the company's Web site at www.unicru.com.
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CONTACT: Unicru, Inc.
Kim Beasley, 503/596-3409
kbeasley@unicru.com
KEYWORD: OREGON
INDUSTRY KEYWORD: HUMAN RESOURCES SOFTWARE COMPUTERS/ELECTRONICS
PRODUCT
SOURCE: Unicru, Inc.
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