Opinion: Recruiting in the Recovery

(After contributing to SSON's Top Ten Tips for Recruiting During the Recovery, Zachary Misko, Global Director, KellyOCG - RPO, was so inspired that he went away and formulated his very own top ten. Take it away, Zachary!)

Now more than ever the ability to develop and deliver an effective recruitment strategy is imperative.  Candidate lifestyles have changed dramatically over the past 10 years and many companies are still behaving as though it is 1985.  Candidates and people in general are on the go more than ever and using technology in ways we never imagined 10 years ago.  Social relevance, personalized experiences and transparency in activities and communication are prevalent in this wireless inter-collaborated world we know live in.  The days of help wanted signs and newspaper job ads  has passed and now people with media power  and large advertising budgets are competing against no or low cost methods like a blog or webcam to post information.  This being considered, it is important for you to evaluate the tools in your recruiter’s toolbox, remembering it is not about the quantity of tools you have but more importantly the ability to understand and effectively utilize the tools. A lot of people are talking on the web today, but are they listening to YOU?  Here is my top ten to keep in mind for your plan. 

1. Use niche websites, many of the general job boards have become flooded with resumes often taking more time to review and not focusing on any one industry.  Niche sites give you a better chance of targeting that passive industry expert you are looking for.
2. Make social media a part of your toolbox.  Facebook, xing, myspace to name a few.  Find the one that works best for you and ensure you mange that ONE site properly, contributing to communication and updates at least daily.
3. Set up a company or recruiter specific linkedin profile and regularly update it with information about your company and culture, as well, use the events feature to inform people when you will be at job fair and industry events.
4. Author or sponsor industry specific white papers and post to your website and link to these when advertising and communicating in blogs, social media, etc.
5. Develop and present webcast that showcase your company and culture, product or a best practice.  Thought leadership demonstrates a good place to work and gets people interested in what you are doing and saying.
6. Are you blogging in places potential candidates and industry experts are listening?  Use microblogs, like twitter to communicate with people.
7. Automate your sourcing efforts with webtools and products to allow your recruiters more time to communicate directly with candidates and their hiring managers.  (Ie. TalentSeekr. www.enticelabs.com)
8. Revisit and use your own applicant tracking system (ATS).  Many companies have a great database right under their nose and neglect to use this as a sourcing tool.  Previous candidates not qualified for one position, may be qualified for a current opening, as well often candidates you don’t remember or never talked to are uncovered in effective searches.
9. Join on-line groups and participate.  Be seen as an industry expert and get people interested in what you have to say.  Depending upon the forum, this may be a good opportunity for the recruitment team to engage help from the operations or management teams to speak more specifically on industry topics.  This also features your employees as thought leaders and industry experts.
10. Build a passive candidate database though on-line searches and use of sites like resumeblaster.com or resumezapper.com, to name a few.