There’s a professional talent goldmine
for Canadian employers of all sizes and
types, but to most recruiters and business
leaders, the mine is closed and its
riches are untapped. Why? Because few employers
know the gold even exists, much less
how fast and easy it is to mine.
This talent “goldmine” is actually called
Express Entry, the Canadian government’s new
immigration law, and it’s been open since Jan. 1,
2015.
“We call it Revolutionary Express Entry because
it is arguably the most innovative talent
recruiting goldmine that’s ever been created,”
said Rohail Khan, CEO of Skills International,
a global talent and career management firm that
was founded in Canada.
“But unfortunately, Express Entry is grossly
misunderstood and one of Canada’s best-kept
secrets,” he said. “A test survey we recently conducted
in western Canada revealed 71 percent
of employers had never heard of Express Entry.”
That lack of awareness comes at a high cost
to Canadian employers, who increasingly can’t
find qualified Canadians for hard-to-fill positions.
According to HR Professional magazine,
every day a vacant $70,000 position goes unfilled,
lost productivity costs employers up to
$954 per day. 1
“A 2015 report from the Canadian Chamber
of Commerce says that solving the skills gap
remains, for the fourth year in a row, a main
priority,” said Khan, who also sits on the prestigious
Conference Board of Canada’s Leadership
Roundtable on Immigration.
So why is Canada’s skills gap costing employers
millions and still worsening when
Express Entry provides a readily available
solution? “Start with the awareness
problem…add confusion about past immigration
policies…and throw in a list of ‘myths’
about how the new Express Entry program
works and you have the answer,” said Khan.
Khan lists five wrong ‘myths’ about Express
Entry:
1. The government alone is in control of
who comes to Canada.
“That’s absolutely false,” said Khan.
“Express Entry puts the employer
squarely in control. When an employer
selects, interviews and hires a professional
from another country, the job offer
will increase the points and probability
of the employer’s candidate being selected
in the next Express Entry draw and
invited to complete the process to immigrate
to Canada.”
2. The process takes too long.
“Our test survey in western Canada revealed
many firms can’t find anyone to
fill some positions for six months to
more than a year,” said Khan. “Under
Express Entry, a foreign-qualified professional
can begin working in Canada
within six to sixteen weeks,” he said.
3. Hiring a foreign qualified professional
is risky.
“Not necessarily,” said Khan.
“Skills International works with
credible, world-renowned third parties
to ensure all candidates are
Ready4Employment-certified to de-risk
the hiring process.”
4. The level of talent isn’t as good as in
Canada.
“There’s a talent gap today because
Canadian employers can’t find enough
qualified Canadians to fill many positions.
That doesn’t mean, though, that
employers must settle for less-qualified
talent when they look outside of Canada
under Express Entry. In fact, it’s the opposite.
When you tap into the whole
global professional talent pool, you can
hire the ‘best of the best talent’ in virtually
every industry segment, from IT to
financial services, engineering and literally
hundreds of others.”
5. The Labour Market Impact
Assessment (LMIA) process is too
difficult.
“It doesn’t have to be,” said Khan. “Skills
International currently does virtually all
of this work for the employer at zero
cost to ensure all LMIA processes are
followed to the letter and are completed
as quickly as possible.”
So, how can employers begin mining the “recruiting
goldmine” of Express Entry?
“That’s easy,” said Khan.“ For more information,
employers can call us at (519) 804-1960 or visit
www.skillsinternational.com. To register for one
of three informational webinars in October, follow
the instructions below.” n
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1. Loren Miner with assistance from Tom Brennan,
“Calculating the Cost of Vacancies,” HR Profesional
May/June 2015.