Gaurav, Founder at TourHQ, hires for many roles: Developers to build the product, Relationship Managers and Customer Support Associates to coordinate with travel agencies, Product Managers to maintain the product, Content Marketing Executives for blogs and social media, and Human Resources.
Akin to any business that's thriving, his objective is simple—hire smart people as quickly as possible.
The travel industry has seen a dramatic transition over the last ten years towards digital and contactless experiences; in 2019, global spending on guest-facing technology was estimated to be over $293 million. Domestic travel has led the recovery post-COVID, with India seeing a resurgence in tourism, as over 200 million domestic trips were recorded during the peak travel seasons in 2021.
Companies urgently need to hire more workers as the global industry recovers because there is a severe labour shortage in the travel and hospitality sectors globally, which forces businesses to step up recruitment efforts to keep up with demand.
As the business needs change, so do the skill sets required for the job. While the company started off with a B2C model, they gradually shifted to B2B sales by partnering with travel agencies. The skill set and approach required for B2B customer relations is different than that of B2C.
"We have tried various approaches for candidate sourcing such as headhunters, Naukri and LinkedIn," mentions Gaurav.
"Our job posts on LinkedIn job post get 1000+ applicants each. Managing them is a full-time job and sifting through CVs takes a lot of effort."
Challenges
1. Constraints on number of candidates interviewed: Without an assessment tool, it was difficult to shortlist candidates.
2. Lack of standardized tests: It was hard to accurately gauge aptitude, technical and communication skills based on resumes.
They were on the lookout for a solution to shortlist candidates before interviews. They tried assessments from TestGorilla but found them prohibitively expensive with the money-guzzling, recurring subscription costs and annual upfront payment. It was time to look for a TestGorilla alternative and they chanced upon Equip during their search.