Insights from 2024 Chair of Judges, Keely Woodley

Keely Woodley, partner at Grant Thornton, shares insights into the TIARA judging process, emphasising innovation, employee engagement, and client service as key factors for recruitment success.

Content Insights

  • The TIARA judging criteria focuses on innovation, employee engagement, and client service to identify recruitment excellence in challenging times.
  • Specialisation in recruitment is crucial for businesses to differentiate themselves and provide deeper industry insights and value.
  • Global expansion and technological innovation are key growth drivers for recruitment firms aiming to navigate economic uncertainty and unlock new opportunities.

Emily Shanks: The TIARA judging process has been designed to evaluate excellence in recruitment through the lenses of employee engagement, client service, innovation, growth and purpose – all in context of stage of scale and differentiation as both a partner and employer of choice. Why do you think it’s important to assess success through these lenses and what do you look for in a winning entry? 

Keely Woodley: It’s important to evaluate through these lenses as in a post pandemic world, the pace of change continues to accelerate, the tools available to businesses are numerous, particularly in the business services and recruitment sector. As we incorporate AI into our everyday lives it’s important to consider how businesses can benefit from the use of these tools.  

The world is also under the burden of the cost-of-living crisis, very high interest rates, and high levels of inflation. Despite inflation falling to 2% in the UK, the market is facing recovery from the impact of those high rates. As such, a focus on innovation and how to be more efficient and achieve more with the same resources is critical to ensure survival, profitability, and maintaining growth, in what continue to be a challenging economic environment.  

When we’ve been thinking about the judging it’s been pleasing to see how businesses in the recruitment sector are adapting to some of these challenges and at the same time not losing their purpose when it comes to things like flexible working, culture, diversity and inclusion – and upholding these key attributes whilst working through a difficult economic climate.  

Read the full article here.