Mine the links for the real gems
How you, the hiring manager, can use social-media networks to support your recruiting efforts and pick winners.
Social networking is a new wave of communication medium that links everyone in many conversations using different online channels like Facebook and LinkedIn. In the near future, no resume will be complete without your LinkedIn account or Plaxo contact. These are professional networks where professionals, managers, executives and technical specialists (PMETs) deposit their resumes and form connections online.
These PMETs then form an online community, providing a valuable source of suitable candidates for the hiring manager. Leveraging on these growing social networks for your recruitment and referral purposes might just get you the right talent.
Here are some ways how you can use social media as a recruitment strategy:
Brand yourself as an employer of choice
Make it standard practice to have all levels of management in your company use professional social networks like LinkedIn. Encourage senior managers to update their company profiles and designations regularly. This will allow your company’s name to appear more frequently on the social network and this will benefit the company in good employer branding and brand awareness.
Look beyond the referral
Do not limit yourself to the referrals given in the candidate’s resume. Research the candidate’s connections and recommendations online and you can authenticate their work experiences and character through the business friends they keep on the various professional social networks.
Check status updates
Most professional social networks keep a long history of a profile’s status updates. Check and study the words the candidate uses to express how he or she feels, who they met or the projects they have accomplished. The frequency and content of his or her status updates says a lot about the candidate’s work attitude and thoughts in the area of his expertise.
Check for thought leadership
If you are evaluating an executive, try researching his or her online contribution to blogs, wikis, presentations and proposals on portals like Slideshare and Scribd. Checking the number of views, downloads and websites can be a clear indication on how others view the candidate’s leadership.
The power of networking
The extent of a candidate’s network is a result of his or her constant effort in networking. If he or she claims to spend extensive time in China, check if the candidate has considerable contacts from the same country. For example, you are looking to hire a marketing communications manager and one of your requirements is the candidate needs to have good media relations. He or she should have a score of media and press connections on their profile. The quality of a candidate’s professional social networks is clear evidence to his or her past work achievements.
Narrowing your search
The speed and depth of search engines on social networks are geared for matching your job requirements to the best candidate. Using keywords in an advanced search will filter your potential candidate within seconds. Another point to note, while you are sourcing candidates through an advanced search, your competitors may also be doing the same. Some of their search results may include your current staff.
Targeting different levels
A social network like Facebook may be the best tool for recruitment of entry to mid-level executives. Facebook has about 1.3 million users in Singapore alone so, based on its pay-per-click system, placing job ads on Facebook may be the most effective, compared to advertising in newspapers or online job portals.
Forming alliances
Many search firms are using social networks to connect with other recruiters and hiring managers. If you are a headhunter, forming an alliance with your peers will reduce your time and effort in looking for a candidate for your client. On another front, you’re making a connection with potential hirers and that could put you on their list. You never know when they will contact you for any opportunities.
Lastly, social media shouldn’t be your only recruitment strategy. It is simply another channel you can use. If your company’s website has a page where interested parties can check for available positions, spread the news through social media platforms like a Facebook fan page. Engaging potential candidates socially before meeting them professionally is an emerging reality that can work to your advantage.
