Editorial Articles

The emergence of social media as a realistic recruitment platform could transform the way employers and agencies target candidates.

It is apparent that Social Media is here to stay and could fundamentally change the way we interact and communicate online, the effects of this could see dramatic changes to the online recruitment industry, forcing recruiters, employers and job boards to adapt or miss out as networks become ever more expansive, accessible and open.

Before we look forward, let’s look back to 1993 when the first major internet dotcoms were just starting out. The UK recruitment market was beginning to recover from a period of recession and with no easy way to search and apply for jobs we saw for the first time the emergence of online recruitment.

The world’s first online job board, Jobserve was launched by Robbie Cowling and John Witney in 1993, this was followed shortly by Monster in 1994, Reed in 1995 and then Total Jobs and Fish4Jobs in 1999. Since then online recruitment advertising has grown at an incredible rate, in-fact last year the IAB reported that advertising revenue had risen 13% year on year from £287million in 2007 to £325 million in 2008.

This is clearly a growth sector in terms of revenue, however if we were to take a quick snapshot of the online recruitment process we would see that the mainstream model of searching a CV database or uploading a job listing online and awaiting the response, is pretty much the same now as it was 10 years ago, the big difference appearing to be the choice available to the consumer. So, is change inevitable? Are social networks about to pave a new way to hire and be hired?

This could quite possibly be the case, maybe not today or tomorrow but as powerful social networks like Linkedin, Twitter and Facebook continue to develop and grow employers will be able to tap into real time databases of people that have not been available before using traditional online recruitment methods. Progression towards open networking could hand all employers the power to target, headhunt and contact anyone they like. In the not too distant future it will be possible to see who works at any company, what they do, who rates them, what they are interested in and how to contact them.

This shift from closed online recruitment networks to open social networks will certainly make it possible to isolate and contact candidates with ease, placing employers and recruiters on a level playing field, however really connecting with the best candidates could become the difficult part. The challenge will be in establishing a strong employer brand, building partnerships and exceptional candidate relationships. Those that do this best will attract the best people and come out on top. Ernst & Young offer a great example of this, their sponsored page was the first on Facebook to be used exclusively for recruitment purposes, and now with over 30,000 members it provides a valuable stream of new candidates and graduates looking for career opportunities with them.

However, as great as this sounds employers will also need to approach with caution. The openness of social networking will mean that as easy as it is for you to view your competitor’s best performers they can do the same to you. The transparency of social networks could see unprepared employers struggle with retention so a hiring strategy will need to start from the inside out focussing on the people within the business.

In fact regardless of technology the secret for great recruitment is to place people first, to build lasting relationships and a great employer reputation. This won’t change, however the methods we use to achieve it most certainly will.

Author: Richard Hamilton, Marketing Director, Guru Careers