Talent acquisition 2.0: back to the future

Beyond the ailing economy and employment outlook, one of the biggest stories in talent acquisition over the past year was the increasing acceptance of social media as an essential tool for human resource management. In many ways, however, the HR adaptation of social technology is a “back to the future” story “ a welcome return to the fundamental essence, the “core values”, of recruiting itself.

Last year was a year in which all things “web social” gained increased growth and attention. Year-over-year unique visitors to the top 10 social networking sites increased 26 percent, with LinkedIn, the most popular professional social network leading the way “ logging 146 percent growth and about 1 million new members each month. It was also a year in which traditional recruitment websites began to incorporate social media as part of their offerings. Monster acquired Affinity Labs; Career Builder announced a strategic partnership with Facebook; and Simply Hired developed apps on MySpace and Facebook that can be customized as widgets on individuals’ personal profiles and desktops.

When the Society For Human Resource Management (SHRM) issued the results of its 2008 survey of more than 3,000 human resource professionals on the use of social networking web sites and recruitment, they noted that “building relationships and networking has always been one of the best ways for staffing professionals to source job candidates and for job seekers to find jobs. The technological frenzy of the 21st century,” according to the SHRM research, “is having a profound impact on recruiting strategies while still allowing the human element of relationships to remain at the core.”

Social networking and the tools of Web 2.0 enable and extend the HR professional’s ability to reach out to candidates and their personal networks, source and screen, and of course amplify the oldest and most successful recruiting strategy of all “ word of mouth “ to find and contact passive candidates and their professional associates. This is especially true when candidates are sought for positions that require specialized skills and experience, like those in Consumer Packaged Goods.

Many are hesitant

According to the SHRM research, however, many HR professionals remain hesitant about using social media to collect information about and screen potential candidates, primarily due to questions about the legality of the process. Evren Esen, manager of the survey program for SHRM explains, “The reality is that social networking websites are a less reliable source for screening candidates than actually meeting with candidates face to face in the traditional format of an interview. Recruiting candidates through social networking [websites] is another matter completely because via this venue HR professionals are able to market their companies and target potential candidates with very specific skill sets.”

According to Maria Andersen, sourcing specialist in Talent Acquisition Services for CPGjobs’ client Nestlé USA, her organization has been evolving their recruitment strategies from a traditional corporate model to a proactive internal agency model. “Nestlé recruiting has been looking at bringing in and utilizing technologies outside of our traditional Applicant Tracking System so that we can leverage tracking, pipelining and networking with passive candidates for current and future career opportunities with our company.” Explains Andersen, “These tools will allow us to take full advantage of the power of networking applications to help us build referral networks and track passive candidates over time, supporting us in filling positions now and in the future. It’s a very exciting time for Nestlé USA recruiting.”

I have had similar conversations with several CPGjobs clients over the past several months, and it appears that what may be emerging in the near term is a hybrid integration of social media strategies into what might be thought of as “traditional” recruiting practice.

According to Jerry Shapiro, vice president of e-recruiting solutions at Bernard Hodes Group, social networking will be a critical part of recruiting going forward, but only one part. “Is it the death of job boards? No. Can it provide candidates that recruiters would not be able to find otherwise? Yes.”

What we can safely say that at this point is that social media is less a silver bullet than a valuable tool to augment and extend traditionally successful recruiting practices like candidate pipeline development and networking through direct personal contact.

For me there has been no better example of the power of social media for this purpose than the formation last September of our own LinkedIn Group, CPGpeople. What began as something of an experiment has rapidly blossomed into one of the fastest growing professional Groups on LinkedIn -- now nearly 5,000 strong. CPGpeople is constantly evolving with members actively problem solving, supporting and networking with each other. The Group helps us keep our thumb on the pulse of the industry, continuously learn more about the niche, connect with members who willingly help us drill into their personal networks on behalf of our clients, and engage with those shaping the direction of consumer packaged goods today. In other words, the technology extends our ability to simply do what good recruiters do best, engage and network with the best talent over time. It is another pipeline for the growth and vitality of our candidate community.

When I started CPGjobs, (many years before Web 2.0), it was clear to me that permission-based personal networking was the key to developing robust candidate pipelines. It was this concept that fueled the creation of our People Search™ product. With People Search, candidates are able to specifically select the CPGjobs clients they are interested in having contact them. Candidates send their personal information to our clients and CPGjobs clients in turn can pull this information, contact and network with those candidates. This permission-based access to CPG candidates and their professional networks is incredibly valuable to our clients, and the technology that supports it is easy to learn and use.

So while the tools of Web 2.0 are certainly exciting, in many ways these new technologies and platforms really are a “back to the future” story. The year 2009 is definitely going to be an interesting and challenging time for recruitment, and I’m willing to bet that the winners one year from today will be those that re-immerse themselves in “traditional” best practices, utilizing social media to support those practices that in the end, are all about ongoing relationships within communities of common interest. We shall see.

I look forward to working with you in the coming year!

Michael Carrillo
President and Founder
CPGjobs

Michael Carrillo is president of CPGjobs, the CPG industry’s leading candidate sourcing tool for employers and recruiting agencies. You may contact him at Michael@CPGjobs.com or call (626) 535-0143