Communications provider KCOM Group co-hosted the latest Centre for In-House Recruiting Excellence (CIRE) round table event at its Wakefield office to discuss how the world of work is changing at an unprecedented speed.

KCOM was joined by 11 CIRE members and in-house recruitment professionals from businesses including Arla Foods, Yorkshire Water and Next to talk about the current hot topics in recruitment and human resources. During such tough economic times, with around 2.4 million people unemployed, it is essential for recruitment and HR professionals to be agile and keep up with the way the world of work is changing.

Chris Whitaker, Head of Resourcing and HR Services at KCOM Group, introduced some of the findings of London Business School’s Future of Work Consortium and what the results mean for HR and recruitment.

Founding Partner of Aspen In-house, Andrew Mountney, said: “One of the key findings that hit home from the presentation was the challenges with youth unemployment and the psychological affects it can have. As recruiters, we have to expand our traditional thinking of what talent is. We need to start recruiting for the future. This means creating an authentic brand for an organisation so that it appeals to the new and diverse demands of talent.”

Head of Internal Recruitment at international digital marketing agency Stickyeyes, Julian Ward, said: “The findings around Generation Y and the transformation and changes around technology in the workplace encourage a new way of thinking about the future of recruitment. It’s true that technology brings flexibility to the workplace and with that comes a different way of working. For example, traditional working hours are becoming less common; the more global a company becomes the more flexible their working day will need to be.”

Chris Whitaker said: “It was great to bring together like-minded professionals to share the research findings with. The discussion, particularly around the changes that we’ll experience when recruiting in the future, are important to grasp and embrace so that we make sure we’re working together to provide the best service to the organisations we serve.”

Last year the KCOM Group recruitment team saved £216,000 by using social media as a direct recruitment tool.