VERCIDA recognised for innovation with two major awards

Morgan Lobb, CEO of Vercida, talks about why winning two prestigious NORA awards is important to the company, employers, and job seekers in the diversity, equality and inclusion (DEI) space.

 

 

Over the past 23 years, the National Online Recruitment Awards (NORA) have recognised the companies that provide the best service to employers and potential employees – and in 2023, Vercida has won two prestigious trophies. 

For the second time since 2020, Vercida has won Best Specialised Job Board and this year, the team added the NORA Academy Award to their collection. The Academy Award is particularly special because it can only be won once and it is voted for by industry peers.

“We are a trusted, respected brand – it’s not just a job board with the word ‘diversity’ in it,” says Lobb. “We go the extra mile to really ensure that what we’re doing is truly inclusive and I think people in the industry recognise this – that independent validation speaks volumes.”

 

 

Lobb feels that Vercida has achieved widespread peer respect through “moving the dial” in an industry that can be quite traditional and becoming a “force for good” in both the recruitment and DEI sectors.

“One of the reasons why we are really pleased about winning, especially this year, is because we were up against finalists that receive millions in funding, but we don’t receive a penny,” Lobb says. “We were competing against companies with huge resources available to them, so this was a real David and Goliath win.”

He explains that Vercida stands out from other online recruiters by “developing a website that is very true to itself” and has features and functionality that are not typical of other job boards.

“Job boards are a bit like fast food, where you go in there, you find the job, you apply, you get out, but Vercida is more à la carte,” Lobb continues. “We like to talk about why you want to work for a particular employer –  so if, for example, you’re part of the LGBTQ+ community or you have a disability or you’re neurodiverse or you’re a parent looking to return to the workforce after a long time out, you get to interact on a much deeper level.”

“What makes us stand out is our engagement with our audience, which we do through producing rich content in a world where there is now a lot of AI-generated content – we want to humanise the process so people find jobs where they will be accepted and employers that they will love to work with.”

 

 

For employers, Lobb says that they will get the best out of people if they are happy in their jobs and getting the best out of their working life, rather than feeling alienated and lonely because of any differences.

In 2024, the Vercida team is looking to integrate further with employer applicant tracking systems, so they can demonstrate the powerful return on investment for clients, particularly in a constantly changing world where planning ahead can be challenging. 

Lobb says that over the years, external factors, such as Brexit, conflicts and changes at a government level, can all upset the best-laid plans, but at Vercida, he hopes to “try and roll with some stability and maximise the benefits of all that we do” into the new year and beyond.

“We are going to start looking at how AI can give jobseekers a better experience by delivering them more jobs and content that has been curated specifically for them, and we’ll be working on more optimisation of the site based on how people navigate the platform,” he shares.

As a genuinely multi-award-winning online recruiter, Morgan Lobb and the Vercida team are looking forward to an exciting 2024, where technology and the human touch work harmoniously to provide positive experiences for employers and job seekers alike.

 

 

VERCIDA's versatile DEI recruitment, consultation, and training solutions are designed to benefit businesses of all sizes. We offer various levels of annual plans for talent acquisition through our accessible platform.

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