A panel of judges comprising Ross Mengel (Director, DMA Group), Dr Kgomotso Kasonkola (Senior Director: Human Resources at University of the Witwatersrand), Muguette Crozier (Digital Art Director of The Riverbed Agency), and Zandile Nzalo (CEO of Zanenza Holdings) shortlisted print advertisements to five finalists for the Best Creative Recruitment advert in the Private, Public and Education sectors respectively.
Ross Mengel, who has also contributed as an adjudicator in previous years noted a marked improvement in this years’ shortlist of recruitment adverts, particularly in the public and education sectors. “Catchy headers, clever use of colour combinations that reinforced employer branding, and breaking the mould of traditional templates were some of the features of those shortlisted,” he says.
In addition, Mengel also observed that hashtags and details of where further information could be found online and on social media were much more common than in the past and would appear to be a growing trend, particularly in the public sector. “This demonstrates a healthy cross-pollination between print and other channels, playing to the strengths of each. For some of the adverts, application processes were tweaked and simplified, meeting the needs of the target market. This enabled suitable candidates to apply and be considered, using the channels they are generally most comfortable with, as simply and conveniently as possible.”
Eben Gewers, head of Advertising at Tiso Blackstar Group (which owns the AMARA Recruitment Awards) believes it’s especially important to recognise creativity in recruitment advertising, in order to attract the attention and interest of the strongest candidates. “In an economy that’s being hit by a brain-drain, the value in delivering impactful recruitment advertising has never been more necessary, particularly when high-level skills are in demand,” says Gewers.
The public are invited to make their choice by visiting http://www.research.net/r/AMARA2019, to vote for their favourite ads. Voting closes on 4 September 2019. Winners of the print advertising categories will be announced along with the Best Recruitment Advertising Agency, the Publisher’s Award, and the Rising Star Award, at a gala dinner on 8 November in Parktown.
