October 2018 – 5 reasons why candidate reject job offers

The Global Headhunting Firm for Africa

A growing number of highly skilled candidates are rejecting job offers from top companies across the globe. Read below for the Top 5 Reasons why.

We’ve just returned from London after hosting an inspirational event with the The Foschini Group – read the report below. And be sure not to miss our latest Roles, Top Talent, Executives on the Move and Out & About features too.

If you’re an Employer needing talent, please get in touch, we’d love to help.

Have a great month ahead.

Onwards & Upwards

The Homecoming Revolution Team

Angel Jones, CEO of Homecoming Revolution, says a key reason for this increase is that it’s a candidate-driven market. “With top talent in such short supply, the power rests firmly in the hands of the candidate who knows how sought-after their skills are. Employers can’t afford to alienate potential employees during the hiring process.”

Jones emphasizes the importance of employers asking candidates for honest feedback when they turn down an opportunity. “This feedback is instrumental in helping recalibrate an employer’s recruitment strategy.”

1. Unattractive Package

It’s not just about offering a competitive monetary package, it’s also about supplementing the offer with attractive perks that can include innovative development opportunities, added holiday time and free personal life-planning.

2. Uninspiring Culture

According to a 2018 survey by LinkedIn, 70% of professionals would not work at a leading company if it meant they had to tolerate a bad workplace culture. As they say, culture eats strategy for breakfast. Building a robust internal culture should be a top priority, not an afterthought.

3. Complicated Recruitment Process

A lack of clear communication and a lengthy drawn out process is a massive turn off for candidates, even if they felt the role was a good fit. It’s vital for employers to give regular status updates, next steps and helpful feedback.

4. Unclear Career Path

Candidates need to know that employers are looking ahead with their future in mind. It’s vital to illustrate a clear and exciting career growth path with a realistic timing frame.

5. Meaningless Employer Brand

It’s not just about the money, it’s about the meaning. A company’s brand, values and purpose should be clearly communicated and its reputation should be well established in the wider market.

Please get in touch if you’d like our help in closing the deal with top candidates.

Homecoming Revolution recently hosted a targeted talent event in London for TFG Infotec to woo South African IT professionals home.

The event, which took place on 28 September at The Park Plaza Victoria, brought together seasoned IT candidates for an informative and insightful evening on the opportunities offered by TFG in Cape Town.

Each candidate was pre-screened and matched according to TFG’s specific skill requirements.

The retail giant has a growing footprint in Africa, Australia and the UK, with a portfolio of 28 brands, with many household names including Foschini, The Fix, @home, Sterns, Totalsports, Markham and Sportscene. Other leading brands include G-Star Raw, Fabiani, Whistles and Charles & Keith.

Paul Clayford, Head of Human Resources IT for TFG was the keynote speaker. Other members in attendance from the TFG management team were Mo Kola (Head of IT Business Systems) and Karla Otto (Senior HR Manager: IT).

“It was a fantastic event which offered great networking and matchmaking of candidates.  We look forward to bring top South African IT talent back home to the most beautiful city in the world,” commented Mo Kola…Read more.

Kerry Ho Van Rensburg has been appointed as Digital Marketing Manager for Makro.

She is a strong strategic marketer with an excellent lead generation, analytics and content management track record.

Within her new role, Kerry is responsible for developing a senior, experienced digital marketing capability in the organisation as a key pillar of the business’s customer engagement and sales strategy.

When asked what appealed most about the role, she said, “Makro is taking digital so seriously and are willing to spend the time and money to take their business into the future of digital and automation”…Read more.

WE HAVE MOVED. We love how this photograph highlights the Jacaranda tree reflections in our new Homecoming Revolution Headquarters.

Please note our new address is Building 2, Oxford & Glenhove, 114 Oxford Road, Rosebank, Johannesburg.

South African EE Male – Head of Franchising Africa – Consumer Goods
Nigerian Female – Senior Digital Marketing Executive – Marketing & Advertising
South African EE Male – General Manager Operations – Food & Beverage
Kenyan Male – Head of Operations – NGO
South African EE Female – Marketing Executive – Marketing & Advertising
Ghanaian Male – Chief Financial Officer – Financial Services
South African Male – Digital Transformation Specialist – Information Technology
Kenyan Male – Head Revenue Assurance – Financial Services
South African EE Male – Strategy Manager – Banking
Nigerian Female – VP Strategic Partnerships – Information Technology
South African EE Male – Executive New Business Development – Transportation & Logistics
Ugandan Female – Manager Finance & Business Operations – Telecommunications
South African EE Female – Head of Client On-Boarding – Banking
South African EE Female – Senior Insight & Data Analyst – FMCG
Kenyan Female – Actuarial Associate – Insurance
South African Male – Senior Business Intelligence Consultant – Information Technology, wants to return from UK
Nigerian Male – Head of Sales & Marketing – Banking
South African Male – VP Commercial – Retail
Rwandan Male – Head of Business Banking – Banking
Kenyan Female – Senior Business Analyst – Financial Services
South African Female – Senior PMO & Project Manager – Pharmaceutical, wants to return from UK
Nigerian Male – Executive Director – Broadcast Media
Zambian Male – Operations & Strategy Manager – Non-profit organization management
South African EE Female – Senior Marketing Manager – Aviation
Nigerian Female – Head of Human Resources & Organizational Development – Human Capital
South African EE Male – Director of Sales & Marketing – Industrial Equipment
Kenyan Male – Senior Finance Executive – Banking
Nigerian Male – Team Lead Customer Service – Banking
Ghanaian Female – Senior Coverage Banker, wants to return from England
Nigerian Male – Senior Marketing Manager – Advertising
Kenyan Male – Biomedical Scientist – Pharmaceutical
South African EE Male – Country Consumer Channel Manager – Computer Software

Homecoming Revolution’s CEO was part of judging panel for the 2018 National Business Awards. The judges met at the Saxon Hotel earlier this month to vote for the winners who will be announced at the upcoming gala dinner.

“The people we love most are in SA”

After 8 years of living in Australia, Stuart Turner and his family have decided to return to South Africa. He explains why…

In this better part of a decade we have made friends, dived into the culture, had a thousand barbeques, frequented pubs, changed cities, done road trips, changed jobs, had 3 more children, made more friends, and finally in January became official Aussies. We never intended any of this when we came over in 2010 and to be honest thought we would be back in South Africa after a 2- or 3-year adventure. And now here we are. 8 years and 4 Aussie kids later, and all with a slight twang to our accents. I even support the Aussie cricketers if you can believe that?! Not against SA though, of course.

But what has struck me most about our news to return is that 100% of people have said the same thing to us and asked various versions of the same question: “Why are you coming back?”.

And mostly, this has been with the tone and implied subtext of “Why the hell would you come back?!”…Read more.

7 things to know before returning to Ghana

From the United States of America to the Queensland to the land down under, in the past decade more Ghanaians have repatriated than ever in history. Though many still pursue the American dream and desire to move abroad for various reasons, many who have tasted the other side seek to join the “moving back” train home to work, start businesses and give back to their motherland. No matter whether across states or oceans, there’s no doubt there is a significant amount of thought and weighing of pros and cons involved in deciding to make a jump. Here are a few things one should consider when thinking of becoming a “returnee”…Read more.

Why I gave up a comfortable life in the US to return to Nigeria

Nigerian-American millennial, Didi Ajayi gave up a comfortable life in the United States to move back to Nigeria.After I moved back to Nigeria I wanted to document my experiences living in Nigeria, so I started a vlog series about this. I wish I knew the things that I know now, before I moved back. Like things I could have avoided or known about how to make my transition easier. I wanted to do the vlog for people in the diaspora, who are considering moving back. Showing them what living here is like. Although there are some bad sides, there are lots of good sides, and that’s the reason why I’m still here…Read more.