By Frank Mulligan, Talent Software
Despite what you read in the newspapers, HR departments in China are not down and out.
Not completely anyway.
The internet may be slow, or even completely stopped in certain cities in China, but life goes on and there are alternatives. Faxes and phone still work so Job Offers can be sent, proposals received, training courses organised, and salaries calculated and delivered to bank accounts.
Those most heavily hit by the current communications crisis are companies that rely on internet-enabled technologies with overseas servers. This impacts Recruiters most of all because it is these hiring professionals who have adopted internet-enabled and Soft-As-A-Service (SOAS) technology faster than other parts of HR. A minor irritation for those who adopt technology first, you might say.
Companies using internet dependent technologies, specifically with servers overseas, are unable to check the status of applicants in their Applicant Tracking System(ATS), figure out who to promote using their online Succession Planning software, unable to update or present online training etc.
Itís not a pretty picture but there is an end in sight. Broadband users, who have gotten used to higher speeds, are particularly annoyed.
(China Daily Photo)The cause of all this is Tuesday nightís earthquakes which killed two people and damaged undersea cables that carry internet traffic to and from China. It cut off most people from access to overseas Websites and international phone calls. It does not in any way affect servers that are located in China. If anything these may run a little faster because so many overseas subscribers cannot access them now.
Unfortunately, the telecommunications experts say it will take up to three weeks to repair the cables. Some have even suggested months. The backup system kicks in but it is slow, real slow.
In addition to a lack of access to online HR software, HR professionals in China also lack access to English-language Websites, including Yahoo!, Hotmail, MSN, and eBay.com. This poses a big problem if you are trying to send a Job Offer to a candidate or even if you are just trying to directly communicate with a colleague. Research is also difficult so international 3rd party HR suppliers are also suffering a slowdown. Local companies have the advantage as all their systems are located in China.
Recruitment Process Outsourcing RPO companies must be really getting hammered because they depend almost entirely on the internet, to the extent of using Skype to call candidates.
People have now reverted to using the phone, or even popping their head over the partitition to actually talk to colleagues. Horror of horrors! Next thing you know we will all go back to meeting face to face.
frank.mulligan@recruit-china.com
