Best Recruiters Study 2023/24: Migros Bank AG in first place for the first time

In addition to representatives from Human Resources and top management from the largest employers in both countries, the 150 or so guests at the Papiersaal Zurich included the scientific advisors Kuno Ledergerber, former Head of the Center for Human Capital Management, ZHAW, and Marco Furtner, Professor of Entrepreneurship and Leadership, University of Liechtenstein.

The most comprehensive scientific recruiting study in the German-speaking world once again offers highly topical data from the recruiting sector, with particular reference to the latest developments on the labor market. In the 2023/24 study year, 326 criteria from 10 categories along the candidate journey were surveyed. High recruiting quality is particularly essential in times of a shortage of skilled workers; addressing young talent in a target group-specific manner, for example, is an important recruiting tool.

The top 10 recruiters 2023/24 in Switzerland at a glance

1. Migros Bank AG
2. Graubündner Cantonal Bank
3. SBB AG
4. Federation of Migros Cooperatives
5. Helsana Group
6. Hays (Switzerland) AG
7. Helvetia Insurances
8. Vebego AG
9. KPMG AG
10. Axpo Holding AG

Migros Bank AG delivers outstanding results in all the categories examined and scores highly, for example, with its leadership concept - a key aspect not only for employees but also for applicants. In addition, the leadership principles are clearly described on the website and underpinned with numerous examples from everyday working life. "Migros Bank pursues a very modern and holistic leadership approach, which is based on three pillars: Self-leadership: A manager must first lead themselves before they can lead other people well. Shared leadership: employees share responsibility for their own work within the framework of shared leadership.

leadership and are thus enabled to keep an eye on the big picture. Thirdly, special emphasis is placed on forward-looking leadership, which is very goal- and innovation-oriented," says Marco Furtner, Professor of Entrepreneurship and Leadership at the University of Liechtenstein, emphasizing the relevance of such elements.

"Applicants are an important strategic factor for companies. The processes must therefore be designed in such a way that they make sense from their point of view. Feedback from applicants is essential for this. The award-winning employers do this excellently," emphasizes Kuno Ledergerber, former Head of the Center for Human Capital Management, ZHAW, and member of the study advisory board.

Key messages from the study results

The diagram shows the average percentage of maximum points achieved by all employers surveyed in the ten survey categories. The category results demonstrate the strengths of the employers, particularly in direct contact with applicants:

• The highest result here is in the application response category. This indicates that applications are generally responded to quickly. In 2023/24, 73% of applicants find out within ten working days whether they will be considered in the next round. Employers are therefore faster than in the previous year, when the figure was 66%.
• Queries about the status of an application are also usually answered quickly - in six out of ten cases within three working days. This is reflected in the contact request by e-mail.
• Recruiting activities in the social media sector are also a strength.
• Applicants, on the other hand, struggle with mobile application forms. These are often very extensive, which is reflected in the low average score in the mobile usability category.

1. Only 40% provide information on work-life balance on the career website

Only four out of ten employers mention work-life balance on their careers website - a marginal increase of 2% compared to the previous year. The employers that do mention it mostly talk about paternity leave, i.e. they already signal to applicants that family time is welcomed by fathers. Switzerland performs comparatively well here with a rate of 28%. In Austria, the fulfillment rate is just 16%.

An active commitment to part-time models for parents can be found on 21% of the career websites; however, where managers are concerned, only 9% refer to part-time options.

Career websites have potential in terms of content and technical implementation. The analyses show that loading times are too long, which not only has a negative impact on search engine rankings, but also on the candidate experience. Mobile 92% in particular are affected by long loading times. Secondly, basic security headers are only set in 16% of cases, which significantly minimize the risk of external attacks.

2. Storytelling potential to stand out from the competition still largely untapped

Authentic communication with the individual target groups, for example through storytelling, is essential, emphasizes Silvia Ettl-Huber, Professor of Narrative Research and Head of the Department of Business at the University of Applied Sciences Burgenland, Austria: "Storytelling has only found its way into a few career presentations. Yet storytelling is an extraordinarily effective means of depicting the reality of work in an exemplary but also realistic way." Ettl-Huber is part of the scientific advisory board of the Best Recruiters study.

In the current year, the Best Recruiters study looked in even greater detail at the topics for which storytelling is used. At 8%, storytelling is most frequently used by Swiss employers on the topic of working time models. A marginal increase of 1% compared to the previous year. The topics of family friendliness and diversity are each described by 5% employers using storytelling. The topic of working from home is only addressed by 1% of employers through storytelling. Similarly few employers in Austria use storytelling. There is still potential here to score points as an employer with the right talent.

3. LinkedIn indispensable for recruiting and TikTok with 11% ahead of X for the first time

Social media platforms are used even more frequently by Swiss and Liechtenstein employers in a recruiting context than in the previous year - continuing the trend of recent years.

Instagram is now used by almost half of employers to recruit new employees: 47% of employers now operate specific career profiles on Instagram or share career-related posts. This represents an increase of seven percentage points compared to the previous year.

The most widespread social network is LinkedIn, where 94% of employers are represented. The short messaging service X (formerly Twitter) is still actively used by 10% of employers, putting it behind TikTok for the first time, where 11% are already positioned. The BeReal network is currently still used by fewer than 1%; it remains to be seen how this will develop.

4. Expectations in the application process often unclear; changing contact persons commonplace

Depending on the employer, submitting an application can be very time-consuming. Of the application forms examined, 63% contain more than ten fields. Information that is already on the CV often has to be entered again. One in ten employers also request "complete application documents", but do not specify what these should contain. "Employers are often unaware of little things like this, but they lead to uncertainty among applicants and thus contribute to increasing drop-out rates. They can also diminish the perceived professionalism of employers," explains study director Agnes Koller.

When responding to applications, only 21% of employers make sure that the contact person does not change during the process - for the remaining 79%, this already differs in the first step between confirmation of receipt and a rejection or invitation to an interview, if a contact person is specified at all. 34% of the rejection letters do not contain any information on who to contact if you have any questions.

Source and further information: www.bestrecruiters.eu