The rationale and benefits of Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO)

Abstract

The aim of this thesis is to analyse the rationale and benefits of recruitment process outsourcing on an international cross-industry level. This thesis looks into different theoretical frameworks of and provides a research in the form of two cases studies from the point of view of both outsourcing service provider and the service user. The research is guided with a research question of which purpose is to evaluate the primary rationale for outsourcing a recruitment process and analysing the advantages and disadvantages of the practice.

The primary data for the research was collected through qualitative research methods with an inductive approach that was used to conduct personal interviews with two company representatives that have been involved in a RPO process. The interviews were conducted in order to gain deeper understanding on the topic while the secondary data was collected from various literature and articles. In order to evaluate the topic critically, the theoretical framework was constructed based on literature of (1) human resources, (2) recruitment, and (3) human resources and recruitment outsourcing.

The results of the study indicate that even though companies may start to look into outsourcing the recruitment process due to its cost effectiveness, the decision to outsource the process is supported by many other elements that truly add value to the recruitment process. Furthermore, the process does not always generate cost savings, but result in indirect cost savings in terms of the OSP’s expertise and the freed up time of the HR personnel.