Glowork: A Recruitment Platform Dedicated to Women in Saudi Arabia

Case Code: CLHR092 Case Length: 5 Pages Period: 2010-2021 Pub Date: 2022 Teaching Note: Available

Price: Rs.300 Organization: Glowork Industry: Business & Consumer Services Countries: Saudi Arabia Themes: Human Capital, Recruitment & Selection, Government Policies, Platform Model

Abstract

The case ‘Glowork: A Recruitment Platform Empowering Women Employment in Saudi Arabia’ describes Glowork’s contributions to women’s employment and empowerment in Saudi Arabia and how the platform fostered women’s participation in and integration with the Saudi workforce through jobs in fields like banking, HR, sales, and design.

The case touches upon how co-founder Khalid Alkhudair’s personal experiences led to the establishment of the recruitment software platform Glowork. He found that educated women had very few options to search for opportunities to work in the kingdom. The conservative culture and all-male workplaces also impeded women from seeking jobs. The case then describes the initiatives taken by the Saudi government and the late King Abdullah through the Nitaqat program to empower and increase the number of women in the workforce. The case further discusses how Glowork partnered with a technology firm to develop an interactive platform and the various support services it offered to employers and job seekers. It describes the various initiatives taken by Glowork to offer work opportunities. Glowork introduced the concept of virtual offices to serve unemployed women in rural areas who could not travel to work alone due to the conservative customs of the region. This gave employers access to local talent and also allowed women to work from home. Glowork partnered with the Ministry of Labor and the Human Resource Development Fund that offered support for the various initiatives and gave access to unemployment data in the kingdom. It also tied up with universities and educational institutions. The case also focuses on Glowork’s marketing efforts through an annual career fair that not only offered job opportunities but also conducted workshops for skill development. To offer better services, Glowork developed a new recruitment app.

The case ends with the company’s growth plans to serve women candidates from different backgrounds looking for work across industries and levels, especially those at senior levels in Saudi Arabia.

Issues

• Understand the benefits of creating a recruitment platform for employers and employees.
• Examine the need for career trade fairs as a recruitment source for employers.
• Explore how a virtual office set-up can encourage women employment in conservative cultures.
• Became aware of the relationship between women empowerment and employment opportunities.
• Recognize the difference in requirements for women only recruitment platforms.

Introduction

In 2019, 23 percent of Saudi Arabia’s women were part of the workforce. Though this was far behind the global average of 48%, the statistic was impressive given that only 18 percent of women had jobs or were looking for one in 2010. One of the key contributors to this increase of 5 percent was Glowork, a social enterprise and recruitment agency that encouraged women’s participation and integration into the Saudi workforce through jobs in fields like banking, HR, sales, and design..

Keywords

Training & Development; Skill Development; Sources of Recruitment; Platform Business Model; Human Resource Planning; Staffing; Public-private partnerships; Social Norms; Women Empowerment; Career Planning

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