Signet Resources: The Pros and Cons of using Social Networking- Recruitment - Signet Resources

Candidates - 5th July 2012

Social media gives millions the potential to contact both job seekers and employers world wide- so it’s no wonder LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter are becoming popular in the recruitment world. However just how effective is it? Decide for yourself using the following pros and cons.

Pros

Easy to Access Contact Information. Finding out names and titles of employees for major companies has never been easier. In days of the past you used to have to pretend to be a confused applicant to find a suitable contact- now without even knowing the name of your target they can be found quite easily. LinkedIn is essentially a global CV database- You can see the current and past positions of professionals all over the world.

Direct Contact. For job hunters directly applying to a post on social media means the consultant is more likely to notice your interest compared to a job board with 300 applicants. By retweeting, commenting or messaging you can directly get the attention of the consultant.

More Potential Contacts on your Network. Your profile and posts can all be seen by a large and also wide range of people. By keeping an updated CV on your walls potential employers can find you on searchers.

Displays Social Media Ability. By using Social media to post jobs you can guarantee that your response will be candidates which are savvy with social media similarly as a job seeker you can use social media portals to demonstrate your social media skills and ability.

Social Networking is Encouraged. We can all now log on and have a quick scour of Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn for work reasons. Having a daily update is now not only justifiable but encouraged- some companies are currently offering both training and rewards for using social networks.

Free and Simple. Jobseekers and recruiters alike can access worldwide information and contact professionals for free. Posting a job on Twitter is free aside from internet costs, while a posting on a job boards costs money. Tweeting, posting, commenting and messaging is also incredibly easy (once you get started) consequently making it very easy to build and maintain relationships.

 

Cons

Privacy. You can no longer moan about your job or colleagues on any social media portal for fear that someone will find you.

Telephone Neglect. Candidates who present well on a LinkedIn account but prefer messaging over telephone conversations may not actually be as suitable as you think if they are anxious of the telephone. While it is easy and quick to use social media to contact people much more can be learnt from a telephone conversation.

Productivity and Distractions. Whether you’re using social media to find a job or suitable applicant distractions on social media websites happen regularly and are extremely time consuming.

Legal Implications. As the use of social media in recruitment is relatively new the legal landscape is still being developed. Using Facebook when looking for candidates can inadvertently provide you with more information about a possible candidate or client than is needed to recruit professionally. Remember to keep your social media profiles clean if you are seeking a job.

Exclusion. Despite millions being online by only using social media portals to search for talent or jobs you exclude a large amount of possible talent and contacts who have not signed up. It’s best to mix the old with the new.

Too Much Response. Depending on how large your network is- by posting roles online you run the risk of getting thousands of unsuitable responses, similarly as a candidate showing interest in a role on social media you also run the risk of being lost among the thousands of other responses.

Let us know your thoughts on the effectiveness of Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook for finding a job, candidate or client.

 

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