June 28, 2024
A recruitment expert and the chief executive of a digital talent acquisition firm is urging more Caribbean employers and businesses to embrace digital development if they wish to connect with diaspora and expand human capital.
Joseph Boll, CEO of Caribbean Employment Services Inc., was commenting on recent notable efforts by governments such as Guyana and Jamaica to host in-person events through which members of their respective diaspora can connect with employment and income opportunities in their home countries.
Jamaica just last week concluded its 10th Biennial Jamaica Diaspora Conference, while Guyana’s government has announced a diaspora-exclusive job fair to be held in New York sometime this upcoming summer.
While Boll said these initiatives are commendable and important in helping Caribbean nations increase talented human capital and close the skills gap without having to rely on foreign labour, which can be controversial albeit necessary in some cases, he suggested that digital advancement can help bridge the gap that exists.
“Local employers can post job openings and advertise them to diaspora online,” he said. “This eliminates the need to buy plane tickets, accommodation, offices and more if you wish to connect directly with members of the diaspora who may be living in other countries at the moment.”
Boll said digital recruitment makes the process easier and more accessible both for employers and for diaspora, many of whom he said are interested in pursuing job opportunities back home but may not be aware of them because of the communication gap.
“Unfortunately, a lot of employers still believe in only posting jobs in newspapers or on the local radio, or by word of mouth,” Boll noted. “There is nothing wrong with doing these, but in this modern age, recruitment needs to take place in the digital world too. Someone from the diaspora who is not physically in the country to look through the papers or turn on the radio in their car will miss what could have been a perfect match for both of you if there was information available for them online.”
This is precisely one of the issues Boll’s firm, Caribbean Employment Services Inc., seeks to address. A fully remote operation that lives true to its CEO’s resolute belief in and support of remote working, Caribbean Employment aims to connect the region’s jobseekers with high-quality employers both in the Caribbean and abroad, making the recruitment and hiring process more modern, effective and convenient.