Personalised service will still be important

The Internet is radically redefining expectations and strategies in the recruiting market. According to IDC, clients are demanding quicker turnaround and increased efficiencies, whether they are seeking senior executives or temporary employees. To meet these heightened expectations, traditional recruiters are transitioning their brick-and-mortar practices to click-and-mortars.

"Traditional recruiters can no longer ignore the impact of the Internet or online competition on their business," said Christopher Boone, lead analyst for IDC`s eRecruiting research program. "Brick-and-mortar recruiters shouldn`t be threatened by the Internet, however. Instead, they should view it as a new channel to augment their services. The integration of online services with traditional operations will make these recruiting firms stronger competitors and better businesses."

IDC recently published a two-part bulletin series on the new strategies of brick-and-click recruiters. The first bulletin discusses executive search firms, which in the past may have been reluctant to move online due to fear of losing a personalized touch. However, IDC believes these firms should emphasize their "high-touch" approach as a core strength as they transition their business online. "The ability to work closely with clients to establish candidate-search strategies will continue to separate traditional executive search firms from online recruiters," Boone said. "In fact, as traditional executive search firms increase their reliance on the Internet, they`ll be able to increase their personalized approach because they`ll be able to automate many of their administrative tasks."

The second bulletin in IDC`s series analyzes staffing firms, which have been more willing than executive recruiters to Web-enable their businesses. "Staffing firms rely on volume, and many have realized the value of reaching more candidates and regions with less overhead via the Internet," Boone said.

IDC believes brick-and-mortar staffing firms` extensive networks will give them an advantage over their pure-play online brethren. With offices in many domestic and international locations, they can meet candidates face-to-face, interview them, and assess their skills. Additionally, they have a base of loyal customers, with whom they have personal relationships and an intimate understanding of their processes and needs.

"A huge differentiation between staffing firms and erecruiting companies is the staffing firms` ability to establish customer-intimate relationships," Boone said. "Staffing firms should use online services as an extension of these relationships, not a replacement."

Bricks-and-Clicks Recruiters Construct New Strategies: Part I, Executive Search Firms (IDC #B23548) examines how traditional executive search firms can establish online services and maintain their strength in the recruiting market. Bricks-and-Clicks Recruiters Construct New Strategies: Part II, Staffing Firms (IDC #B23720) analyzes how staffing firms can leverage the Internet to provide services to augment their current business models. Both documents provide an overview of current online strategies, a market segment forecast and analysis, a strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats analysis, and recommendations. Additionally, online strategies of leading players in each market are profiled.