Johannesburg, 09 Sep 2011
The advantages of social media and Web 2.0 technologies are now evident within all aspects of the organisational talent management process, with HR talent acquisition/recruitment in particular being a key area in this scenario, says Rhett Davies, Business Development Consultant at MCI.
In the ongoing war on talent, an ever-increasing number of HR managers and HR recruiters are awakening to the enormous possibilities offered by social networks in their quest to engage with the correct people and locate top talent for minimal cost.
According to E-marketer.com, companies that are leading in this area are organisations such as Cisco Systems, Ernst & Young, and Taco Bell, which boast a network of over 65 000 individuals through their social network portals.
Globally, 70% of companies are already utilising social networks to leverage their employer brand to source scarce skilled passive candidates, yet the remaining 30% of companies don't even know where to begin.
The purpose of this article is to highlight the direct benefit that professionals in HR will gain once they have formulated and implemented a social network recruitment strategy. Also, this information may provide companies that already have a social network recruitment strategy in place, with further ideas that can be incorporated into their existing plan to achieve even greater results.
Traditionally, organisations have relied on recruitment agencies, advertising on job portals and in print, in order to source talent. These avenues can be effective; however, it is also extremely costly, and in some cases can lead to an organisation preventing key talent getting their attention, as these sourcing channels act as a barrier to a company building a talent pool for the long-term.
The majority of job seekers who apply for positions through these traditional channels make up only 16% of the total workforce. In addition, 99% of these active career seekers are looking for a new job because of the imminence of being fired or retrenched, or have a dislike of their work environment, so there's often a negative emotion associated with the experience. Few of these methods assist in consistently reaching or contacting the best people for the job or passive candidates.
Passive candidates are motivated by opportunity and are looking for a challenge, advancement or career move. These individuals have retained their current position for a reason and are a valuable asset to their employer. As numerous articles, papers and blog posts support, the desire to recruit passive candidates is on the rise, and social media opens the door to millions of users allowing themselves to be discovered and discover vacancies without them having to actively search.
So, how do you reach passive candidates using social networks? The answer, surprisingly, is that you do it using an indirect approach. Your company needs to be visible on as many online media and social platforms as possible, so that when passive candidates decide they need a new challenge and begin seeking one out, your organisation will be easy to locate.
Most top performers will use a focused approach when searching for new employment and will seek out companies to target, as opposed to job adverts that they respond to. However, it doesn't hurt if a top performer stumbles upon a job advertised on a social network by a company they have targeted, and one that matches their skills set. This can occur even if the candidate is not directly linked to the advertising company's page. Friends of the passive candidate may see an interesting job on your social network job page or Web site, click 'like' or 'share' on the job and instantly have it appear on their news feed, and in essence, advertise it to all of their friends or connections on your behalf!
'Birds of a feather flock together', so in many cases, active social network users often link with friends and colleagues who are involved in similar industries or professions. This is the beauty and power of using social networks to find candidates; they inevitably end up coming to you.
The first step to get started, if you have not done so already, is to set up professional/company LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter profiles. Your organisation may already have this in place from the marketing department, and if this is the case, discuss carving out a careers section on the various mediums.
The ultimate goal is to use social media as a window into the realities of working in your organisation, and begin facilitating those online conversations. Ideally, HR should also encourage the use of personal blogs and social network profiles by employees and develop an incentive programme to get them involved and recruiting through their own social networks. Go ahead and start building connections and sharing relevant content! Have fun experimenting with new forms of social media and use your discretion to determine if they are the right fit for your company and recruitment strategy. The possibilities of content building are endless, and require some trial and error to find the right balance.
Another method of speeding up the process and getting job-related content onto your social media platforms would be to invest in an e-recruitment management system. Such systems essentially make your job vacancies viral on social networks and the Web. Not only are you able to send your job adverts to Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Google+ simultaneously, you are also able to accept applications that are screened and vetted through the system. These systems can also integrate with your Web site, intranet and popular job boards. Built-in screening technology also ensures that only the most suitable candidates receive your attention.
E-recruitment systems also allow you to manage multiple recruitment campaigns on multiple media platforms from one screen. As these systems also manage a company's entire recruitment life cycle from vacancy requisitions to managing your recruitment suppliers, you have a winning recipe for passive candidate recruitment success!
For more information about e-recruitment management systems, or to contact the author, visit: http://www.mcidirecthire.com.