Colombia: Mine geologist and engineer recruitment program

When Bureau Veritas needed to audit more than 5,000 mining properties over two years in Colombia, they knew they had a big task ahead of them.

To successfully deliver the project on a tight schedule, the recruitment team had to hire 328 professionals, of which, 180 were engineers and geologists with mining backgrounds.

Assignment background and recruitment scope

Bureau Veritas needed to audit more than 5,000 mining properties throughout Colombia over two years.

It’s a tough challenge for any organisation, but was further complicated because of:

• Location of the mining properties
• Relocation & accommodations
• Documentation requirements from various entities
• Verification of documentation by an external auditor

So, they knew they needed to bring in specialist support to complete the project on time.

Bureau Veritas contacted us because they had heard about the depth of mining and resources candidates in our database.

When we reviewed the project brief, we agreed that our niche industry skills and resources would be the right fit to help them recruit 15 difficult-to-hire mining professionals, out of the 75 open positions they had at that time.

From our office in Bogotá, with the support of our office in Toronto, we successfully filled the 15 positions they requested, then exceeded it by placing an additional 15 candidates — 30 in all, in less than two and a half months.

Our recruitment recommendations

In-country RPO team managing recruitment program

We worked closely with Bureau Veritas’ recruitment team to search viable candidates meeting all the requirements. Our marketing campaign used traditional and non-traditional sourcing methods, such as: online and press advertising campaigns, trades and mining representation, our vast networking resources and visits to local towns.

We designed and implemented a structured behavioural- and competency-based interview process to ensure candidates met the requirements.

Our program included weekly reports to Bureau Veritas, providing transparency and open communication.

We also completed a Housing Market Study as an added value service. This helped our candidates find housing easier and meant our client had one less task to worry about. The biggest impact of this housing market study was the smooth transition for candidates, which later improved talent retention.

During and after the project, we presented a detailed analysis of the pulse in their immediate candidate marketplace.

Our reports also included metrics so the client could evaluate our own performance. Some of the most relevant metrics included:

• Candidates approached by Globe
• Candidates declined by Globe
• Candidates outside of the salary range
• Candidates presented by Globe
• Offers presented and offers approved

These reports helped highlight the development of our client’s brand and evaluate the cost per hire, time of hiring, and lessons learned.

The Results

Exceeding the expectations of Bureau Veritas

In addition to our team exceeding the target of 15 positions by filling 30, we also:

• Contacted more than 900 candidates and more than 600 candidates were pre-selected and contacted for initial conversation
• 94% of screened candidates we presented  were approved to proceed to auditing
• 85% of audited candidates were approved by the third party in charge of CV compliance verification, and presented with employment offers

A few words from Bureau Veritas’ HR Manager

We have been working directly with Globe 24-7 as a Recruitment Services Provider specialising in Mining and Oil & Gas. During the time we have worked with them we certify that the service offered has exceeded our expectations, based always on their professionalism and dedication. That is why we will count on them for future recruitment processes that need to be outsourced.

Client profile

Bureau Veritas is a global testing, inspection and certification company. They ensure client products and processes meet standards in terms of quality, health and safety, environmental protection and social responsibility. The company operates in 140 countries in a range of industries, including mining, oil & gas and energy sectors.