Social media and the recruitment conversation

It’s a social media-driven world, but what does that mean for recruitment?  The key to successful recruitment, ultimately, lies in building relationships with your candidates (nothing new there, I hear you say) but that ‘conversation’ might start long before they become applicants and social media is where those conversations are happening.

Here at Fletcher George, we have seen a rapid growth in the use of social media recruitment tools such as LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, blogs, YouTube videos and dedicated company career websites.  Some larger institutions, for instance, are turning to social media campaigns in an attempt to attract millennials who might not as yet have even considered a career in finance.

While you may not quite be at this stage, what cannot be ignored is the power of social media as a recruitment tool.  Your presence and profile on social media speaks a thousand words about you as an employer and your level of corporate engagement with social networks is a strong indicator of a modern corporate culture – essential if you are to attract the very best the talent pool has to offer.

Potential candidates will be looking for more than job information from their social media interactions.  Today, they will be looking for opportunities to have a ‘conversation’ with you through social media.  Indeed, a significant part of the interview process may have already been completed online before an employer and candidate have met face to face.  Candidates will also be using social media to assess your corporate profile, company values and reputation.  Social media also allows you to target your vacancies e.g. through LinkedIn groups or using Twitter hashtags.

Candidates too must consider the reality that potential employers will be using social media to screen them and explore their suitability for a role – so consider carefully what your social media profiles say about you.

While social media is part of the recruitment landscape today, it is important not to underestimate the amount of time and resource required to get it right.  Find out if your target candidates are on social media and which platforms they are using and, as with any recruitment tool, ensure that it really is the most effective tool for you.