By Russell Glass, CEO of Bizo

As hiring professionals, we’ve all been there. Your teams need support, but you don’t have the budget or resources to hire the desired people. Perhaps you find yourself in a hiring position, but can’t find the candidates that fit the bill. The difficulties of being a hiring manager are not characteristic of one particular industry or field. Everyone, from President Obama to the store owner next door, is faced with the difficult decisions that surround job creation and hiring.  So what do we do?

Location is Not a Barrier

As the CEO of Bizo, a fast growing company in the technology industry, I have a simple solution, “in-shoring.” Here at Bizo, we not only hire the most highly-skilled people, but we also hire them just about as fast as we can find them –wherever we can find them.  Bizo is just one of the tens of thousands of businesses that are in the same position.  We realized early on, that to successfully build our company, we needed to hire only the best people. However, hiring people solely based in the local San Francisco Bay Area was a significant limitation—and sacrificing quality talent was just not something that we were willing to do. At the same time, we didn’t feel that we could build the right tight-knit culture we wanted by off-shoring to countries like India, Belarus or other far-away lands.  The solution? Again, a simple one: use powerful, effective and inexpensive collaboration and communication technologies like Skype, Google Docs, Dropbox, instant messaging, and web conferencing to manage our company’s remote workforce and “in-shore.”

What does it mean to “in-shore”?

In-shoring is a simple idea that offers a plethora of significant benefits to everyone. At Bizo, we’ve built a culture that enables our teams to work together efficiently. By doing so, we’ve managed to:

• Build an infrastructure to hire incredible talent regardless of where they live in the country
• Lower our average cost per employee so we can hire more of them
• Establish networks around the country that fuel our ability to hire more great people

Today, our 45-person company is represented in 10 states around the country, including one person in Hawaii. It is my belief that better companies are built with a diverse foundation, and “in-shoring” has the potential to alter the landscape of this country’s job market.  If the laid-off auto worker in Detroit, the high school student in Little Rock or the former textile marketer in Greensboro, sees that there are jobs available to work for high growth Silicon Valley technology companies if they only had the right skills, they will go out and acquire those skills.

Bringing Jobs to the People

Job seekers need to believe that if they take the initiative to get new skills, there will be a job available to them.  This way, they will have the incentive to acquire the relevant skills they need to be successful.  Leading a technology company in Silicon Valley, I believe that I and others in a similar position have a responsibility to do our part to create and fill jobs in this country. This is simple economics.  If the economy thrives, we will be more successful and our children will be more successful. Ultimately, that’s why we all work in the first place, isn’t it?

With expanded education opportunities, a focus on “in-shoring” and continued innovation and next generation technologies, we can overcome the structural challenges that we face today and lead the world in high technology job creation for decades to come.

So what does “in-shoring” look like for your company?

Russell Glass is CEO of Bizo, a business-to-business marketing firm. Glass is a serial technology entrepreneur, having founded or held senior positions at four venture-backed technology companies. Other than business data, Glass’ passions include golf, anything in high def, and Duke basketball. Follow Glass on Twitter at https://twitter.com/glassruss.

Wikipedia defines frienemies as “either an enemy disguised as a friend or a partner who is simultaneously a competitor and rival.”   Think about it: In your experience, are recruiting and HR enemies disguised as friends, rivals, or true business partners?

Over the years, I have witnessed many organizations in which HR and recruiting are indeed frienemies. In other words, the relationship on paper is good, but there is an undercurrent of something you can’t quite put your finger on. I’ve often wondered, “Was that a dig just now?” as someone offered a comment that could have really been either a compliment or a jab.

Let’s examine the differences between friends and frienemies in more detail:

Friends…

• Protect one another’s interests
• Respect each other’s differences
• Value one another’s contributions
• Support and reinforce the efforts of the other
• Respectfully disagree
• Encourage direct communication

Frienemies…

• Shift the focus off the other person’s accomplishments
• Devalue the other person’s function
• Downplay the other person’s contributions
• Undermine the other person’s efforts
• Circumvent direct communications and favor gossip or tattle-tailing
• Plague new ideas with negativity

Frienemies in action

I’ve listened in on many meetings where one party talked about what was wrong with the new hires recruiting had brought on, or a manager mentioned that HR was not responding to some need. Such is the life of “frienemies,” as they just can’t help themselves.  They sabotage you and secretly (or maybe not so secretly) enjoy it.

I’ve also witnessed many organizations where these two parties work powerfully in tandem. High levels of accountability and consistency are hallmarks of this type of environment, so it’s no surprise that these organizations happen to be the highest performing ones.

The potential for conflict between HR and recruiting is high, even though they often share a reporting structure. This is due in part to fundamental differences between the two groups:

1. Each focuses on different skill sets.
2. Often they are blended into the same hierarchy, typically under an HR umbrella, implying that greater value belongs to HR.
3. HR may have more authority than recruiting.
4. Recruiting is typically more operations-focused.
5. HR is about administration and compliance.
6. Recruiting is about selling an employment value proposition and company culture.

Most of the time, someone who is really good at HR rarely favors recruiting, and vice versa. This is because recruiting is more sales oriented, where HR is more administration oriented — and these are completely different skill sets.  There is no good or bad; they are just different.

I will confess that I have my own biases. I started out strictly dedicated to talent acquisition. I would have made a terrible HR generalist. The thought of having to handle compensation and benefits was enough to send me into the fetal position in a corner. And here’s the key: You don’t want me doing that work — it’s not what I’m best at. The value I bring to an organization is in selling their employment value proposition to the market and figuring out who should work for them.

How can HR and recruiting work better together?

Organizations that are most effective understand and value the differences between HR and recruiting.  They don’t elevate one and cripple the other; they work in partnership. What does that look like in real life?

• At an organizational level, this means that how we bring people into an organization matches how we evaluate their performance over time. It means that the promises we make on the front end are fulfilled post-hire. Both departments have to work together to ensure a consistent process and experience, from the first time we speak with a potential candidate through the last day of employment.
• Day to day, it boils down to how a recruiter and an HR generalist each does his or her job. When a recruiter is hiring a new employee, he or she thinks about the fit for the long haul. The recruiter doesn’t set unrealistic expectations for an employee that creates employee relation problems later. The recruiter thinks it all the way through and supports the efforts that happen after the offer is accepted.
• From an HR perspective, the generalist coaches the manager to separate management and hiring issues. They don’t allow the recruiter to be surprised by sudden staff changes or a change in the urgency of the need. They sound a warning when the manager is about to make a decision without involving the recruiting department that impacts how talent is brought on board.

Both functions working together can be a powerful engine to move an organization toward their performance goals. Being frienemies is a handicap, and undermines both efforts. It can unknowingly encourage operations to dismiss or even ignore all of recruiting and HR’s efforts.

It’s a choice you must also make. Have you chosen to be  “frienemies” with your recruiting or HR colleague — or true business partners?

SPECIAL GIVEAWAY: See how you can get a free copy of one of two best-selling leadership books! See contest details below!

GUEST CONTRIBUTOR: Authored by Lisa Orrell. Orrell is known globally as The Generation Relations Expert. She is the author of the top-selling books Millennials Incorporated and Millennials into Leadership. In the final part of this three-part series, Orrell further explains the importance of training your Millennial employees for leadership roles – and shares practical tips for teaching your employees that crucial leadership skill: problem-solving.

As a consultant, I often hear employers tell me that one of their main challenges – and one they feel their Millennials struggle with – is problem solving. With that in mind, I’d like to share the following tips for problem solving, which you can share with your Millennial team members as you continue to groom them for leadership.

12 Problem-Solving Tips to Teach Your Gen Y Future Leaders:

1. Leaders First Envision Success: Leaders know that every problem has an answer; it just needs to be found. Worrying about the problem gets you nowhere, while working towards the answer will get you everywhere. Leaders control their attitude and focus on results.
2. Leaders Clarify the Problem: Leaders determine what’s wrong by cutting through clutter and noise, and by focusing on the issues that are at the core of the problem.
3. Leaders Get the Facts: Leaders collect all the facts about the problem because they know that some problems are not as big as they seem. Fact-finding is an analytical, rather than an emotional task, so it is useful in other ways, too. When a follower comes to a leader with a problem, a good leader will start asking questions and gather the facts, rather than engage in an emotional discussion.  Fact-finding is a process and you may have to dig deep to get to the real problem. Leaders are great at asking the right fact-finding questions. They’re also adept at listening to the answers and “hearing” any sub-text that could illuminate the situation.
4. Leaders Start By Looking to Themselves for Possible Solutions: If the problem does need attention quickly, leaders first look to themselves for answers. They ponder what actions they might take personally that could resolve the problem. They brainstorm all ideas and write them down. If the problem was developed by someone else, they ask that person how they think it should be resolved. And if the issue is significant, the leader will go to their team, or trusted advisors, for idea sharing. Being able to get a variety of solutions to choose from, from people with different perspectives and experience, is powerful.
5. Leaders Continually Self-Evaluate: Leaders constantly assess whether the process is going well, if the solutions being discussed make sense, and if they are doing everything they can to solve the issue.
6. Leaders Do Research: Leaders consider what research would be valuable to their problem-solving efforts (like searching the Internet, asking other people, reading books, etc.). Leaders do not think of themselves as all-knowing and understand that the first instinct for an answer is not necessarily the best. Sometimes when you are too knowledgeable about a subject, you can overlook something obvious.
7. Leaders Make Decisions: Leaders pick a solution and implement it. They may start with a quick-fix solution and follow up with a more long-lasting fix, but they decide what needs to be done…and they do it.
8. Leaders Follow Through: Effective leaders don’t just implement the solution and turn away. They follow through with making sure necessary team members are also doing their part (if required). And they ask everyone involved how they think the “solution” is working out now that it’s actually being used.
9. Leaders Create Achievable Markers: Leaders break the problem-solving process into small steps, and then focus on the most immediate steps. They know how to break problems down into their component tasks and then track the progress of each one over measure.
10. Leaders Aren’t Too Proud to Say “I’m Wrong”: Be ready to undo whatever (ineffective) solution you implemented without shame. A respected leader is never embarrassed to correct mistakes. Without mistakes no progress would ever be made!
11. Leaders Don’t Just Know How to Solve Problems; They Know How to Find Them: Great leaders can detect smoke, rather than simply trying to fight raging fires. That’s the type of leader you should groom your Millennials to be. And it’s critical they have a good rapport with their team to encourage them to share bad news, red flags, or concerns with them quickly!
12. Leaders Take Ownership: Ineffective leaders try to pass-the-buck by placing the blame on their peers or employees. They act like small children on a playground when confronted by an adult after a toy is broken; all of them point fingers at each other. But when you’re a boss and something in your department or team is “broken,” and your supervisor asks you how or why it happened, you must own it as the team leader.

Finally, if nothing else, remember that great leaders view problems as opportunities. They recognize that problems happen, even in very successful organizations, despite the best leadership talent and most sophisticated management techniques. They actually embrace problems, because they see them as opportunities to learn and improve. Therefore, they seek out problems rather than sweep them under the rug. Tell your Millennials not be sweepers!

If you missed the first two parts of this series on preparing your Millennial employees for leadership, you can read about “6 Ways to Retain Your Gen Y Future Leaders” and “9 Ways to Teach Gen Y Employees a Leadership Mindset” now.

Want to win a free copy of Millennials into Leadership or Millennials Incorporated?

WHAT TIPS DO YOU HAVE FOR WORKING WITH MILLENNIALS? Whether you work with Millennials, or are one yourself, chances are you have some nuggets of wisdom to offer. Give us your thoughts, and you could win one of Lisa Orrell’s best-selling leadership books.

HOW TO ENTER:
In the comments section below, simply submit a one- or two-sentence answer to this question: “What advice do you have for working with Millennials?” Ten (10) lucky winners will be drawn at random to receive a copy of one of the books of their choosing: Millennials into Leadership or Millennials Incorporated. See contest rules for details.

SPECIAL GIVEAWAY: See how you can get a free copy of one of two best-selling leadership books! See contest details below!

GUEST CONTRIBUTOR: Authored by Lisa Orrell. Orrell is known globally as The Generation Relations Expert. She is the author of the top-selling books Millennials Incorporated and Millennials into Leadership. In the second part of this series, Orrell shares nine ways to teach your Millennial employees how to adopt a leadership mindset now – regardless of their current position within your organization.

In the leadership workshops I conduct for Millennials, one of the key points I emphasize is that even an entry-level management position IS a leadership role. I also explain to them the need to understand the difference between a leadership mindset and a manager mindset from Day One of their first professional job. After all, they are judged on everything they do and say – and everything they don’t do and don’t say – from the very beginning of their career.

As their supervisor or employer, your goal should be to help your employees understand this concept; however, I know many upper managers who still struggle with it themselves, so it’s important to remember the following (which you can then pass on to your employees):

Even if you just manage one person, you are also a leader. Yes, you may be considered a “manager” on paper, but you are leading, too. And even though your current position may not be one that “sets direction for the entire company or a department,” you are still a leader. Furthermore, even if you currently don’t manage anyone, you can take on leadership roles (e.g. heading up a project, volunteering to plan a company event, etc.).

Regardless of the type of management roles your Millennials assume, cultivating a leadership mindset is critical to their success early on. Successful managers are also successful leaders, and successful leaders experience employee retention and loyalty.

I realize not every Millennial in your company wants to be a senior executive or “lead” the whole business. But to not embrace some fundamental, effective leadership qualities – which will make their employees happier and more productive – is to BE LAZY, in my opinion.

You’ve probably heard the saying, “People don’t leave companies; they leave managers.” Be sure to share that with your Millennial employees and emphasize that your goal is to help them avoid being a young leader employees choose to leave.

To further illustrate this point, consider the following key differences between a manager mindset and a leader mindset. Share these with your Millennial employees as well, as you work with them to adopt leadership into their personal management styles:

1.       Leaders seek employee commitment – Managers seek employee compliance

2.       Leaders are proactive – Managers are reactive

3.       Leaders create change – Managers maintain the status quo

4.       Leaders take risks – Managers are risk-averse

5.       Leaders are passionate – Managers are controlling

6.       Leaders create loyal followers – Managers have subordinates

7.       Leaders use personal charisma – Managers rely on bestowed authority

8.       Leaders give credit – Managers take credit

9.       Leaders understand what motivates each employee – Managers stick to a one-size-fits-all approach

Managers who choose not to embody important leadership qualities suffer – as do their employees and their companies as a whole. Shortsighted managers tend to focus on process and procedures, not people and vision, whereas leaders focus on the latter first.

Groom your Millennial employees to blend solid management skills with strong leadership qualities, and they will have a much better chance of succeeding in any role, at any level, within your organization.

If you missed the first part of this three-part series on preparing your Millennial employees for leadership, you can read about 6 Ways to Retain Your Gen Y Future Leaders now.  Soon to come: “12 Problem Solving Tips to Teach Your Gen Y Future Leaders,” ths final part of this series.

Want to win a free copy of Millennials into Leadership or Millennials Incorporated?

WHAT DO YOU BELIEVE IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A LEADER AND A MANAGER?  Answer this question for the chance to win one of Lisa Orrell’s best-selling leadership books.

HOW TO ENTER: In the comments section below, simply submit a one- or two-sentence answer to this question: “What’s the difference between a leader and manager?” Ten (10) lucky winners will be drawn at random to receive a copy of one of the books of their choosing: Millennials into Leadership or Millennials Incorporated.

Update: The time period for this giveaway has expired.

GUEST CONTRIBUTOR: Authored by Lisa Orrell. Orrell is known globally as The Generation Relations Expert. She is the author of the top-selling books Millennials Incorporated and Millennials into Leadership. In the first of a three-part series, Orrell discusses not only how to better manage and retain your Millennial talent, but also how to groom them to be effective leaders.

Why do companies – large and small – spend so much time worrying about how to retain Millennials (a.k.a. Gen Y)?  It’s basically a matter of math.

According to the Employment Policy Foundation (EPF), our country is at the beginning of a labor shortage of approximately 35 million skilled and educated workers, which is estimated to continue over the next two decades – especially now that Baby Boomers are starting to retire at an estimated rate of 1 every 8 seconds.

Out of necessity, Millennials – many of whom may only have one to three years of career experience – are moving into management roles much sooner (and younger!) than the generations before them did – and are expected to perform in these roles successfully.

While it’s entirely possible to groom this next generation of professionals to be effective leaders, you must first be able to retain them (otherwise, grooming them for leadership won’t even matter!). For the first of this three-part series, I’d like to share six effective tips to help employers and managers effectively retain Millennial talent.

6 Ways to Retain Your Gen Y Employees:

1. Constant Contact: A recent survey of over 1,000 Millennials showed that over 60 percent of them want to hear from their managers at least once a day. That message is pretty clear: They want to communicate with you often so make it happen or they will leave! Unfortunately many older generations tend to operate differently. Oftentimes, they have a hands-off approach to management, but this style clearly does not work well with Millennials.
2. Praise Culture: We all need praise from our employers, but Millennials tend to need it more often than older generations. If they are not feeling “valued” on a regular basis, they will leave. So many well-known companies are shifting to a “praise culture” to retain them…and it improves retention of their older employees, too! Get creative and have fun with this. I know of one company that actually appointed a “celebrations assistant” in their office and one of her tasks is to throw confetti on employees (in their cubes or offices) whenever a manager tells her an employee had done something exceptional. I realize this strategy may sound a bit extreme to you, but this company is obviously seeing an ROI (or the confetti wouldn’t be happening).
3. Rapid Advancement Alternatives: Millennials feel that “paying their dues” is just occupying space for no good reason. So if a Millennial employee is truly qualified for a promotion, many companies now offer it to them versus giving the position to someone who has simply been at the company longer. But what if they’re not qualified to move up the ladder yet and getting antsy? Find creative ways to give them more responsibility, such as letting them do one or more of the following:
   1. Start, or write for, the company blog
   2. Set-up, or participate in, your company Fan Page on Facebook or other social media presence
   3. Contribute to the company e-newsletter
   4. Research and set-up a new software solution that improves productivity for your company (or department).

   You don’t always have to give them a raise or promotion to keep them happy; being creative with increased responsibility can work great! Millennials have fast minds and get bored quickly, but it’s your job as their employer to help eliminate the “boredom” factor.

4. Cubicle Shackles: Millennials have a very hard time understanding why they need to sit in a cubicle 8-10 hours a day. They want the flexibility to work anytime, from anywhere, and many companies are revamping their policies to provide more flexibility, using flex time as a “perk” to attract Millennials to their workforce. The upside? Employees from all generations respond favorably to this flexibility and employers actually find that most employees become more productive…and tend to put in longer hours!
5. Mentor Programs: This is key! Millennials have grown up with a lot of guidance from their parents, society and teachers. Now, they expect this type of handholding at work. So, heed this advice! If your company, large or small, doesn’t offer a formal (or informal) mentorship program, create one. I recently spoke with three Millennials who actually quit their jobs within one year because their employers had promised mentorship, but never delivered. Mentorship truly means that much to them.
6. Leadership Training: There is a resurgence of Leadership & Management training programs happening because the Millennials want it, need it and are demanding it. In the past year, my Millennial Business Boot Camp and Get a Grip on Leadership workshops have become, hands down, my most requested presentations – that’s how important leadership training has become. Unfortunately, MANY companies still do not offer these types of programs, much to their own detriment. It’s only a matter of time before their Millennial employees leave to pursue organizations that do offer these programs.

Finally, it’s important to remember that Millennials’ wants and needs aren’t much different from those of older generations; they just have a lower tolerance threshold than generations before them. A Boomer may put up with a job for five years even if he or she is bored or doesn’t feel valued, but a Millennial may only tolerate it for five months…or until the current job market improves.

In the next few weeks, I’ll be posting parts two and three of this series, to address tips and best practices for preparing Millennials to be successful leaders in your organization.

For more information about Lisa Orrell, visit: www.TheOrrellGroup.com.

GUEST CONTRIBUTOR: Authored by John Thedford. Thedford is CEO of La Familia Pawn and Jewelry, a chain of high-end pawnbroker shops with locations throughout Central and South Florida, and he is the author of Smart Moves Management: Cultivating World-Class People and Profits. For more information, visit www.lafamiliapawn.com.

A company without good employees is like a shark without teeth … very ineffective and bound for extinction. Here are some strategies that can help you hire and promote the best people for your business.

Being a business owner requires a strong commitment to success and attention to detail. Tasked with many responsibilities, entrepreneurs have to maintain a vigilant focus on the key processes that drive their operations. Based on my own experiences, I believe the trickiest part of running a company is the hiring process. Why? Because people are complex creatures with unique attributes, and hiring the right employees is imperative to the success of your endeavor. In other words, when it comes to hiring, the stakes are high.

The “right” people are the core of your strength. Inversely, the “wrong” people will make you weaker and less effective. In the end, you’ve worked hard to start your business, and you need to create an environment where everyone functions on the same page and works toward the same goals. How do you accomplish this? Take hiring — and the development of superior talent — very seriously, and have a process in place that gives you the best chance of hiring and retaining employees who will help you realize success.

A Strategic Path to Success

Through trial and error, I’ve learned that business success isn’t a model; it’s an equation of compatibility and chemistry among employees, customers and investors. Creating a strategic path based on this philosophy will pay major dividends because an engaged employee will provide exceptional customer service and make so much money for themselves and for the company that your shareholders will marvel at the outcome.

Ask yourself a simple question. Who do you want representing your business? Remember that you’re looking for specific attributes, and you need someone who fits comfortably into your company culture. An Ivy League graduate with the wrong skill sets for your particular venture brings little value to the table, no matter how well-educated that person might be. And a bad hire can be costly; the industry rule of thumb suggests that hiring the wrong person costs you three times his or her annual salary. A $50,000 employee costs you $150,000; a $150,000 employee costs $450,000. That’s for starters. There’s also lost opportunity cost … plus lost business, potential customers and momentum. And now you’re back to square one, looking for a replacement.

In order to avoid these setbacks, it’s important to understand that a successful hiring process begins with a clear understanding of the critical traits that are required to get the job done. Those who seek to complete the type of work required to operate your business possess a set of core competencies that define and highlight their thoughts, feelings and behaviors. Once you determine which specific attributes best suit your needs, you need to learn how to identify them when selecting new hires or promotable candidates.

Identifying Core Competencies

Each business requires its own set of core competencies that management feels will help maximize growth and profitability. The key is that everyone involved in the hiring process understands the selected competences, asks the right questions to gain better insight into the thoughts and tendencies possessed by candidates (both new hire and promotable), and makes the right hiring decisions that will ultimately strengthen the overall staff.

At La Familia Pawn & Jewelry, we’ve developed our own set of core competencies that fall into the following categories: intellectual, personal, interpersonal, management and motivational. Based on a comprehensive interview and a temperament questionnaire that we require every candidate to complete, we feel confident determining if a person possesses the right mix of desired traits. When analyzing motivational competencies, for example, we want to consider the following factors:

• Energy — Exhibits energy, strong desire to achieve and appropriately high dedication level.
• Passion — Exhibits dynamism, charisma, excitement and positive “can-do” attitude.
• Tenacity — Demonstrates consistent reward of passionately striving to achieve results.

Specific interview questions we include to help determine if a candidate possesses these motivational competencies include:

Energy

1.     How many hours per day have you worked, on the average, in the past year?

2.     What motivates you?

Passion

1.     How would you rate yourself (and why) in enthusiasm and charisma?

2.     Describe the pace at which you work – fast, slow, moderate – and the circumstances under which it varies.

Tenacity

1.     What are the challenges you have faced and overcome?

2.     What will references say is your general level of urgency?

By developing your own set of core competencies, you can begin to incorporate hiring strategies that give you the best chance to hire the people you need in order to succeed. And once you get these individuals into the fold, you need to hold it all together with strong leadership and a positive, motivational work culture.

GUEST CONTIBUTOR: Co-Authored by Carisa Miklusak and Keshet Lemberg
This post originally appeared on Carissa’s Blog – Making Sense of the Social Media Jungle. An inquisitive problem solver by nature, Carisa Miklusak is an entrepreneur, consultant and speaker by trade. Connect with Carisa’s social media profiles, on Twitter and Facebook or join her LinkedIn Resource Community.

When it comes to finding the best employee for a position, many organizations are now turning to alternate routes. Our complex and competitive business landscape has created an imperative need for a well positioned employment brand. Businesses traditionally relied upon industry contacts, expertise, job boards, and third-party recruiters to uncover the best match, but today the majority of corporations are also embracing social media as a leading recruiting tool.

In order to successfully utilize social media as part of a recruiting strategy, it is first necessary to understand how your target audience is using LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and other sites to land jobs. The most obvious reason job seekers use social media is to source companies for open positions. For example, TwitJobSearch is a social media job search engine that candidates rely upon as a resource to find open positions that are not always posted on job boards or company sites. Moreover, job seekers use online media to verse themselves in the culture of a target company. Job seekers study company pages on social media sites to gather insight about the company’s culture via photos, videos, and information provided by the corporation. Companies such as MTV Networks have successfully built their presence on social media sites by encouraging users to ask questions, offer info, and seek advice. Through its Facebook page – MTV Networks Careers – the entertainment leader sparks engagement with users, responds to questions, and posts open positions.

Lured by news, rumors, and trends, people are drawn to online media sites by the appeal of industry chatter. Professionals with social media know-how realize that industry chatter is an extremely valuable resource for gaining new and important information that can make them better candidates in the interview process. Job seekers in search of firsthand user-to-user information can easily connect with current and ex-employees through social media outlets. A directory of people organized by area of expertise, profession, and hundreds of other categories is available to the public on Twellow, the yellow pages for Twitter. LinkedIn provides similar information. Candidates also use social media sites to scope out recruiters and hiring managers to determine if they are a compatible match, and to gain helpful information for potential interviews and conversations. To find excellent advice that is pertinent to a specific situation, job seekers follow and connect with job search experts in the social media sphere. Many such experts exist offering daily advice. Ideas, tips, leads, news, informative articles and best practices can be accessed at the touch of a finger by using Twellow’s job search to find people to follow who send out helpful information. The vast array of social media tools now makes it possible for bold job seekers to attempt to engineer their own opportunities instead of waiting to be uncovered by recruiters and hiring managers. Some follow employees at their target company until news of a fitting open position arises while others network their way into new positions by engaging in strategic conversations with potential leads.

By understanding why job seekers use social media to land jobs, companies can leverage their activity to more effectively and efficiently recruit new employees. When using social media as part of a recruiting strategy, it is important to create a consistent and automated method for uncovering the social identity of job seekers. Sites like TiVo makes job opportunities accessible across major social media platforms so that anyone can post, direct message or update their status. Corporations can benefit from the opportunity to build relationships with candidates in their target audiences by maintaining an official company presence on social media sites. By following relevant people and igniting conversations, organizations can begin to create a healthy level of influence over their brand – a clear best practices in the social media sphere. Moreover, companies can determine what type of information fuels the jobseekers’ interest by listening to the candidates and then provide that content on their social media platforms. In order to avoid an influx of irrelevant offers to their job posts, however, it is necessary for businesses to refine their searches by specifically targeting candidates by location, career interests, and other top candidate profile credentials.

Through social media platforms, companies can connect to talent anywhere in the world and access personal information about top industry leaders. Social media is as valuable resource for organizations of all kinds and sizes to build employment brands and make the right candidate connections. It is equally as productive for job seekers, creating a platform where companies and talent alike can connect directly with multiple stakeholders in their target audience.