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Abstract This analytical report aims to summarize, compare and contrast three different articles...
1.1 Executive Summary
The aim of this intelligence gathering report is to prepare for "Industry Partner" potential entry into the Australian market by conducting and analysing market research. Several findings have been discovered which shows that the labour market of Australia could benefit from the use of Bias-free recruitment software, and that none other significant brands are offering a bias-free approach to recruitment in Australia. However, both secondary and primary research implicitly confirms the "Industry Partner" need for managing the complex institutional landscape of metropolitan cities in Australia, to be able to promote a foreign brand, and maintain the most profitable return on investment. In conclusion this research paper shows that "Industry Partner" with the proper market-entry approach could find themselves a valuable market for their product offering in Australia.
2.1 Introduction
To commence this intelligence report, a re-iteration of a Barcelona based recruitment company, which ordered this report, is made. "Industry Partner"' value proposition is to increase equality in the recruitment process of jobseekers. Furthermore the corporation aims to make it more convenient for businesses to screen their applications through the use of Artificial Intelligence. Essentially "Industry Partner" offers a Software as a Service Platform, also known as SaaS to both sides of the recruitment process - the company searching for employers and the employees themselves.
By buying "Industry Partner", customer-corporations would be able to streamline the recruitment process, while maintaining a strict non-unconscious bias recruitment process for the users of the platform. Jobseekers are available within the platform for businesses to reach out to, and are found through an API connection (Application Programming Interface) between SoMe platforms like Linkedin towards "Industry Partner". As a jobseeker you are secured a bias-free process until the initial meeting, and are only sharing your skills. Thus, as a recruiter you can be offered a diverse and fair screening of the applicants of a proposed position.
The organisation of "Industry Partner" exists of 2-10 FTEs according to insights from Linkedin, and are in this research paper considered a start-up firm, which according to the website Pitchbook (2024) is founded in the year of 2022. The data from this website also shows that "Industry Partner" as per this date, have received investments from three investment firms.
2.1.1 Aim of the research
This research paper aims to gather insights about the Australian labour market, its current macro-economic state of affairs, institutional structure as well as cultural awareness of the Australian citizens. This intelligence report serves as a preliminary study, which aims to provide context to "Industry Partner" opportunities of entering into the Australian market with their product offering.
2.1.2 The Marketing Problem
As "Industry Partner", according to the Marketing Brief, is available to their customers in six different countries, they want to explore if their offering would be sought after in the Australian market. Specifically by conducting market research and analysing the findings into this market intelligence report.
2.1.3 Personal Preconceived Bias
As I am a European born person, which originates from Denmark I might be biassed towards the European professional and cultural business landscape. Such bias could initially be seen having an effect on how I conduct my perspectives in this research paper. Furthermore I am not yet familiar with the Asian culture of Australia. While Australia is a country of English-speaking and western-cultured people, the eastern way-of-life is widely recognized especially in Melbourne because of the many foreign people from this part of the world. I have lived in Melbourne for 3 months, at the authoring of the report. So the notation that preconceived bias regarding psychographic perspectives might influence this report, is relevant for the reader to keep in mind.
3.1 PESTLE Analysis
In late June 2024 the author of this report moved to Melbourne, Australia. At the same exact moment, the journey to figure out how to either find an occupation or hire personal to his own Danish venture began. The analysis of the PESTLE in this report is done with a practical perspective of a foreign person, who as well as "Industry Partner", want to establish themselves in Australia as an expat.
Therefore as a result of following the local news, receiving news reports on the cellphone and listening to local radio stations in the City of Melbourne, this PESTLE analysis has commenced with a broad institutional approach on how the recruitment landscape functions. By the completion of this report it has become clearer that jobseekers, at least in Melbourne, are subject to a very competitive market. A market which is influenced by complex hiring processes, as well as several legal regulations which for applicants can make it difficult to manage different hiring processes. However, like several countries within the European Union, Australia is a country where sustainability is regarded as a goal to achieve on both the political scene, as well as in the private sectors. And with a diverse psychographic environment across Australia, there are several opportunities to offer recruitment solutions in Australia; but any corporation that wants to establish themselves in Australia, needs to manage this diverse landscape by adapting to the specific geographical areas of Australia, especially by learning the cultural and institutional differences between metropolitan and rural areas.
By conducting review of thirty-six different research papers, to support a comprehensive PESTLE analysis on the Australian market, as well as following the daily developments of how recruitment is executed in Melbourne; themes like equal employment rights, establishment of practical solutions to achieve sustainable goals and awareness of diversity is highly regarded as important subjects within the society of Australia. But interestingly this research also shows that the focus on technological developments is not as established as it could be, and the more “old-school” methods of recruitment within the hiring landscape, prohibits innovation to increase diverse hiring practices and reach sustainable goals.
4.1 Secondary research
In order to conduct the research within this report as broad as possible, the researcher has spent several hours securing diverse insights of the recruitment, thoughts on bias and technological developments within the Australian market. This research has merged into 6 different themes which contribute to understanding the pitfalls of how recruitment is conducted in Australia, and to locate emerging trends which support job-seekers' opportunities in the labour market. The six themes this report aims to analyse further are (prioritised by amount of supporting articles):
- Anonymous recruitment and its positive impact on job-seekers search for a job.
- Is The “Big-Institutional” dynamics of Melbourne's business’ and professional work life, a thing?
- Is AI time saving?
- Any fear of “Ai recruiters” - missing the recruiters personal touch.
- Is there any comparison between International vs. domestic peoples job-seeking engagement.
- Fly in, fly out (FIFO) and its positive impact on the Australian job market.
After a few weeks of commencing in research about the labour in Australia, the research indicated several mainstream themes, which is known commonly throughout industries in every developing country. These themes emerge around the importance of Ai, that unconscious bias is a common threat to any hiring process and that the recruitment market would benefit by increasing their attention on such themes. So instead of confirming what is already known, the author continued to research into some of the sub-themes of these more broad macro-economical themes, and was able to find six recurring trends that the society of Australia is wondering how to manage.
The first of these six themes focuses on whether anonymous recruitment has a positive impact on job-seekers search for a job. Two out of three articles show that anonymous hiring practices contribute to equal diversity among hired candidates. However, one of the articles is concerned about the managers' tendencies to implicitly extract personality cues like gender identities from the applicants CV’s. Nonetheless, our secondary research as well as PESTLE analysis indicates that anonymous hiring practices in Australia, is a valuable method for corporations to diversify personality traits in their hiring processes.
The second theme regards the big-institutional dynamics of Melbourne, to investigate whether a large metropolitan area is complicit in making it more difficult for job-seekers to submit job-applications into larger white-collar corporations. In this context the author wants to draw similarities between a large geographical area, and a smaller one, with both areas being inhabited. As some people says; with size comes complexity; and while the three articles don't in an explicit manner articulate any big-institutional challenges, they submit view-points of supportive trends towards difficulties of managing recruitment in a large metropolitan city like Melbourne. An example of such trends can be seen in the article by the City of Melbourne (2023), where one of the key priorities to support Melbourne as an internationally engaged city, is to partner with industries to develop a globally-competitive and innovative ecosystem; a political synonym to promote the need for a more agile institutional framework, to manage the professional services within the City of Melbourne.
Furthermore, according to the Jobs and Skills Australia, Recruitment Experiences and Outlook Survey (2022) Melbourne’s greater metropolitan area is experiencing a continued rise in the use of internet boards, as a way to promote job-vacancies for high-skilled jobs. This contributes to a very formal, and therefore less approachable way of acquiring new ressources. And to navigate the currently used hiring methods applied by larger corporations when hiring for high-skilled jobs, can be judged incomprehensible for international students to learn and manage (Blackmore J & Rahami M 2019).
Researched recurring theme number three basically manifests that Artificial Intelligence contributes in a time-saving manner to any recruiters work-tasks. In the case of "Industry Partner" and their ATM (Applicant Tracking Software) our research shows that by applying Artificial Intelligence as a tool in the screening process, recruiters can reduce time on administrative tasks related to sourcing through several applications.
However, one interesting aspect of using AI in the process of hiring new employees, was known to the researcher when reading about recurring theme number four, that some applicants are feeling despair if the recruitment process isn’t managed by a human and solely rely on screening applicants by the use of AI. Also, corporations are subject to missing out important details about the applicant's human behaviour because AI still remains restricted to important data, to be able to comprehend and understand the more human side of the people who apply for a role. Such technological pitfalls serve as an inconvenience for both the job-seekers and the recruiters.
Another relevant aspect to be aware of when navigating the recruitment landscape of Australia, is the difference in job-opportunities offered between international and domestic graduates. Research theme number five shows that corporations in Australia are biassed towards local languages and cultural personality traits, which makes it difficult for international students to acquire a graduate position in Australia. However this trend is something that is promoted as a development goal by the City of Melbourne (2023), by aiming to promote Melbourne as one of the world’s most innovative and multicultural cities - a great place to live, visit, study, work and do business.
Lastly, the researcher of this report found the work-concept called FiFo (Fly-in-Fly-out) to be widely used within the more polluted industries such as the mining sector. Nonetheless these temporary remotely based jobs are considered valuable for people who want to earn themselves an amiable wage amount. And with over 40.000 employees within the mining sector (The Sydney Morning Herald 4 Maj 2022), these job-vacancies do not seem to disappear in the near future.
5.1 Primary research
In order to extract real-life insights into this research study, three interviews were conducted with individuals who either are actively in the search for a job, or have extensive experience in the practicalities of job searching. To confirm the recurring themes found by conducting a secondary research method, the author chose to present the three respondents with interview questions which should either confirm, deny or supply with adjacent information to investigate further. By analysing figure 1.2 the reader is able to view which of the respondents agree with the recurring themes emerged by secondary research. In all but one theme the all of the respondents confirmed the researched themes / trends regarding recruitment in Australia.
Furthermore, the respondents contributed with insights about potential difficulties of applying an anonymous recruitment method, if you’re a corporation servicing customers in the hospitality sector. A higher level of team-spirit is, according to the respondents needed, to excel in this hospitality sector's fast-paced environment. And to make sure the personality trait of a new team member fits with the established team, the hiring managers need to know about the personality trait of the applicants.
6.1 Summary of Analysis and Research Themes
By comparison the researched recurring themes are supported by real-life insights, from interviews with respondents who fit the stakeholder of either a jobseeker or an experienced work-professional, who has tried to apply for a job before in this person's career. Apart from the similarities of the secondary and primary data, a new theme emerged from the experiences of the respondents. To critically review the rationale behind the choosing of the recurring secondary research themes in relation to foreign recruitment similarities, of the Australian market; are hereby an summarised explanation.
The secondary themes were chosen as a reflection of continuous mentions in different articles, as well as some of the themes were chosen because of the hidden implications, which the content of the articles contributes to. For example, the theme regarding the complexity of large institutions, and the validation of job-seekers' desire to complete a hiring process which are subject to such heavy processes through primary research interviews; has been chosen to draw context to which obstacles "Industry Partner" would meet within the Australian market. However, themes like anonymous recruitment and its positive impact on diversity in recruitment outcomes, are subject to explicitly mentioned insights written in the researched articles.
Essentially, this report's research indicates themes which are implicit. Examples of this is shown in applying Artificial Intelligence as means to an end in a recruitment tool, as well as the importance of bias-free hiring practices are prioritised within the Australian market. But some of the other themes aim to make the reader aware of underlying, or hidden, trends within the hiring landscape of Australia. In particular the difference in local hiring of domestic and international graduates; how the FiFo industry evolves; the fear of AI-recruiters; as well as the previously mentioned difference in the institutional size of Melbourne metropolitan area compared to smaller European countries. Such themes are particularly relevant for foreign corporations to be prepared for, when entering into the Australian market. Furthermore. As this report is conducted within a short time-frame, then to enhance the reliability of these underlying themes, or trends, further research can be conducted, which is seen by the author as an important step to increase "Industry Partner" possibilities to mitigate their liability of foreignness.
7.1 Perceptual Map(s)
8.1 Reframing the marketing problem/challenge
How might “The Industry Partner” improve their knowledge on the institutional structure of Australia, to easily promote their Bias-free Recruitment Platform in Australia?
9.1 Conclusion
This Intelligence Report confirms the demand for bias-free recruitment software within the Australian market. Furthermore, the PESTLE analysis found pitfalls within the current hiring practises established in the professional sectors of Australia. Findings in the secondary research also show that "Industry Partner" can benefit from being aware of complex institutions and ways of conducting business in the large metropolitan cities like Melbourne. The "Industry Partner" should therefore aim to concretise their approach into the Australian market, to mitigate their knowledge of the institutional structures, which if not managed, can become an unforeseen obstacle in the marketing efforts of their SaaS recruitment platform. Moreover, a research of potential competitors shows that there are close to none competitors which offer a recruitment platform within the Australian market, with bias-free features; instead they are focusing on promoting their AI features for candidate background screening.
10.1 Reference list
10.1.2 Secondary research articles and reports
10.1.3 Article 1
Agouridis, A (9 February 2023) 'How AI is Transforming the World of Recruitment', Jobylon, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.jobylon.com/blog/how-ai-is-transforming-the-world-of-recruitment
10.1.4 Article 2
PeopleScout (N/A) 'AI in Recruiting: A Handbook for Talent Acquisition Leaders', PeopleScout, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.peoplescout.com/insights/ai-in-recruiting-handbook/
10.1.5 Article 3
Meraiah F and Williamson S (25 October 2018) 'Does anonymising job applications reduce gender bias?: Understanding managers’ perspectives’, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, accessed 10 September 2024.
10.1.6 Article 4
Blackmore J & Rahimi M (29 October 2019) 'How ‘best fit’ excludes international graduates from employment in Australia: a Bourdeusian perspective', The Journal of Education and Work, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/figure/10.1080/13639080.2019.1679729?scroll=top&needAccess=true
10.1.7 Article 5
Ausinet (N/A) 'Life of a FIFO worker', Ausinet, accessed 10 September 2024. https://ausinet.com.au/fifo-workers-life-and-jobs/
10.1.8 Article 6
Jora (14 May 2024) 'FIFO explained and how to get a FIFO job in Australia', Jora, accessed 10 September 2024. https://au.jora.com/blog/fifo-explained-and-how-to-get-a-fifo-job-in-australia/
10.1.9 Article 7
apolitical (9 January 2019) 'Australia tried 3 fixes to take bias out of hiring — here's what worked', apolitical, accessed 10 September 2024. https://apolitical.co/solution-articles/en/australia-tried-3-fixes-to-take-bias-out-of-hiring-heres-what-worked
10.2.1 Report 1 (8)
Jobs and Skills Australia (JSA) (2022) Recruitment methods used by employers, Jobs and Skills Australia (JSA), The Australian Government, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.jobsandskills.gov.au/sites/default/files/2023-05/recruitment_methods_-_vic_2.pdf
10.2.2 Article 9
City of Melbourne (30 May 2023) 'Melbourne as a global city: International Engagement Framework', City of Melbourne, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.melbourne.vic.gov.au/melbourne-global-city-international-engagement-framework
10.3.1 PESTLE articles
10.3.1.1 Political
Knaus C (18 Juli 2022) '‘Jobs for mates’: political appointments to government boards rife in Australia, report reveals', The Guardian, accessed 10 September 2024.
Liberal (N/A) 'Our Plan for More Australian Jobs', Liberal, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.liberal.org.au/our-plan-more-australian-jobs
Australian Treasury Department (2023) Working Future: The Australian Government’s White Paper on Jobs and Opportunities, treasury.gov.au, accessed 10 September 2024. https://treasury.gov.au/sites/default/files/2023-09/p2023-447996-02-exec-summary.pdf
City of Melbourne (30 May 2023) 'Melbourne as a global city: International Engagement Framework', City of Melbourne, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.melbourne.vic.gov.au/melbourne-global-city-international-engagement-framework
Turnbull T (27 August 2024) 'Australia introduces cap on international students', BBC, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cd734wed3y9o
Parliamentary Education Office (14 December 2023) 'What do you have to do to become a politician?', Parliamentary Education Office, accessed 10 September 2024. https://peo.gov.au/understand-our-parliament/your-questions-on-notice/questions/what-do-you-have-to-do-to-become-a-politician
10.3.1.2 Economical
Lancaster Rl (22 March 2023) 'THE TRUE COST OF RECRUITMENT', Linkedin, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/true-cost-recruitment-rosi-lancaster/
Australian Human Rights Commission (N/A) '7 Economic and social costs of employment discrimination against Australians with disability', Australian Human Rights Commission, accessed 10 September 2024. https://humanrights.gov.au/our-work/7-economic-and-social-costs-employment-discrimination-against-australians-disability
Shirodkar S (31 May 2022) 'The impact of implicit bias on Indigenous business ownership rates in Australia', Australian Journal of Labour Economics, accessed 10 September 2024. https://ajle.org/index.php/ajle_home/article/view/25
ACS (N/A) 'Economic trends and the knock-on effect for employment', ACS, accessed 10 September 2024. https://membership.acs.org.au/member-insight/20221012-Economic-trends-and-the-knock-on-effect-for-employment.html
Australian Government Center of Population (2021) OECD: Findings on the effects of migration on Australia’s economy, Center of Population, Australian Government, accessed 10 September 2024. https://population.gov.au/publications/research/oecd-findings-effects-migration-australias-economy
Australian Bureau of Statistics (2024) Average Weekly Earnings, Australia, Australian Bureau of Statistics website, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/labour/earnings-and-working-conditions/average-weekly-earnings-australia/may-2024
10.3.1.3 Social
Pariona A (18 July 2019) 'Demographics and Ethnic Groups of Australia', World Atlas, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/ethnic-background-of-australians.html
Zhang L (18 January 2022) 'What do job seekers think of your organisation's political position?', UNSW Sydney, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.businessthink.unsw.edu.au/articles/organisation-political-position-recruitment
Teoh J (15 June 2024) 'Combating Bias for Equitable Hiring in Australia', Linkedin, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/combating-bias-equitable-hiring-australia-jason-teoh-fcphr--3pqlc/
Jora (14 May 2024) 'FIFO explained and how to get a FIFO job in Australia', Jora, accessed 10 September 2024. https://au.jora.com/blog/fifo-explained-and-how-to-get-a-fifo-job-in-australia/
Blackmore J & Rahimi M (29 October 2019) 'How ‘best fit’ excludes international graduates from employment in Australia: a Bourdeusian perspective', The Journal of Education and Work, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/figure/10.1080/13639080.2019.1679729?scroll=top&needAccess=true
Symmetry Human Resources (N/A) 'The Top 10 Challenges if You're Recruiting in Australia Right Now', Symmetry Human Resources, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.symmetryhr.com.au/blog/articles/the-top-10-challenges-if-you-re-recruiting-in-australia-right-now/
10.3.1.4 Technological
Waterworth S (20 February 2024) 'AI in recruitment: The good, the bad and the ugly', People in Focus, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.peopleinfocus.com.au/blog/2024/02/ai-in-recruitment-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly?source=google.com
Jobs and Skills Australia (JSA) (2022) Recruitment methods used by employers, Jobs and Skills Australia (JSA), The Australian Government, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.jobsandskills.gov.au/sites/default/files/2023-05/recruitment_methods_-_vic_2.pdf
Agouridis, A (9 February 2023) 'How AI is Transforming the World of Recruitment', Jobylon, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.jobylon.com/blog/how-ai-is-transforming-the-world-of-recruitment
PeopleScout (N/A) 'AI in Recruiting: A Handbook for Talent Acquisition Leaders', PeopleScout, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.peoplescout.com/insights/ai-in-recruiting-handbook/
Experis (N/A) 'Impacts of changing technology priorities on hiring - Australian IT sector in 2024', Experis, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.experis.com.au/blog/2024/01/impacts-of-changing-technology-priorities-on-hiring-australian-it-sector-in-2024?source=google.com
Macquire (1 December 2022) 'Investing in AI-powered, inclusive recruitment software', Macquire, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.macquarie.com/au/en/insights/investing-in-ai-powered-inclusive-recruitment-software.html
10.3.1.4 Legal
Australian Government Recruitment & Employment (2019) Recruitment and Employment www.alrc.gov.au, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.alrc.gov.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/120_09._ch_4_recruitment_and_employment.pdf
Wyatt A (2 April 2025) 'What is the Fair Work Act?', Peninsula, accessed 10 September 2024. https://employsure.com.au/guides/fair-work-in-australia/what-is-the-fair-work-act
Australian Government FairWork Ombudsman (2024) Modern awards, Australian Government FairWork Ombudsman, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.fairwork.gov.au/tools-and-resources/fact-sheets/minimum-workplace-entitlements/modern-awards
Australian Government FairWork Ombudsman (2024) Workplace Discrimination, Australian Government FairWork Ombudsman, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.fairwork.gov.au/tools-and-resources/fact-sheets/rights-and-obligations/workplace-discrimination
Complete Hospitality Training (N/A) 'TThis Is Why Certified Training Is Vital to the Hospitality Industry', Complete Hospitality Training, accessed 10 September 2024. https://cht.edu.au/news/why-certified-training-is-vital-hospitality-industry
Heise M and Hatzisarantinos A (17 April 2024) 'Recent developments in employment law', Allens, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.allens.com.au/insights-news/insights/2024/04/Recent-developments-in-employment-law/
10.3.1.5 Environmental
Sweeney S (N/A) 'Responsible Investing: Australian Engagement With ESG and Global Perspectives', Aon Insights, accessed 10 September 2024. https://aoninsights.com.au/responsible-investing-australian-engagement-with-esg-and-global-perspectives/
Gramerci Talent (10 June 2024) 'The Role of Recruitment in Promoting Environmental Sustainability', Linkedin, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/role-recruitment-promoting-environmental-sustainability-wwftc/
Australian Government Institute for Sustainable Futures (2023) Australian businesses unaware of emissions crisis from IT and data centres, Institute for Sustainable Futures website, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.uts.edu.au/isf/news/australian-businesses-unaware-emissions-crisis-it-and-data-centres
The Sydney Morning Herald (4 May 2022) 'Eco-focused talent is in high demand', The Sydney Morning Herald, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.smh.com.au/business/workplace/eco-focused-talent-is-in-high-demand-20220504-p5aiia.html
Michael Page (N/A) 'The rising demand for roles in ESG and sustainability', Michael Page, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.michaelpage.com.au/advice/career-advice/rising-demand-roles-esg-and-sustainability
Bayside Group (1 June 2022) 'How sustainability can help employers win the war on talent', Bayside Group, accessed 10 September 2024. https://www.baysidegroup.com.au/blog/employers/how-sustainability-can-help-employers-win-the-war-on-talent
11.1 PESTLE
