They’re born at a seemingly nonstop pace: Web start-ups offering new ways for businesses to connect with people. Facebook, YouTube and StumbleUpon are just some of the most recognizable. Blogs like Techcrunch offer ongoing insight into the Next Big Thing. Companies large and small are furiously developing MySpace pages and Facebook applications, and hoping that the masses will beat paths straight to their doors.
Some companies have leveraged the parade of Internet hot shots to their advantage, and many are still trying to find a way. They understand the value of connecting with people as customers, even if their marketing efforts often miss the mark. But when it comes to using the Internet to connect with people as potential recruits, it’s a different story. Why are recruiting departments at corporations missing the boat when it comes to realizing the potential of the Internet to find the best people?
February 15th, 2008 at 7:31 pm
Could it be that corp recruiting hasn’t seen the ROI on these web 2.0ers? If they are successful in attracting consumers, then recruiters will flock to them for their audience… If they cannot offer meaningful audience demographics or show a critical mass, I don’t know what I’m attracting in potential candidates.
February 15th, 2008 at 8:30 pm
HR tends to be VERY conservative and politically correct at ALL costs. I know it’s hard for Web 2.0-savvy people to believe, but many still lump the entire social networking scene in with the bad MySpace publicity brought on by TV exposes like NBC’s Dateline investigations.
February 16th, 2008 at 2:26 am
You are right that journalists - including you - are buzzing madly about new ideas in online recruiting, especially social networking. Another recent article of the Wall Street Journal’s Sarah Needleman talks about how Microsoft’s Facebook fan page which “features a discussion board, videos and links to blogs about careers at the software company” attracted 400 users.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120240431785851141.html
I didn’t drop any zeros. That’s not a typo. It says 400 users. Compare that with the fact that job boards and search engines like ours are sending tens of thousands of applicants every month to jobs on Microsoft’s own website. Perhaps Microsoft was smart to give their Facebook fan page a try - after all, it got them a mention in the Journal - and maybe, just maybe, its user numbers will grow. But commentators should really put the impact of these kinds of Web 2 experiments into some kind of proper perspective.
February 16th, 2008 at 6:47 pm
Right on the money Joel.
Out of the 2.0 field, Paul and his team at Indeed have made some great strides, so much so that I think Indeed is the clear 2.0 champ, but as I am sure Paul will agree, HR is slow to respond, making monetization difficult in a PPC model, even with the strong traffic and demonstrable results. Paul, I think you have surpassed 3.5 million unique visitors per month? Close to 20% of Monster and Careerbuilder traffic levels give or take. I would venture a guess that you have not hit 20% of M or CB’s revenue:) It’s a shame, entrepreneurs like Paul put it all on the line to build a business that can help HR, but no love from HR. Sooner or later, HR must do something about their displeasure with the status quo and try new initiatives. This stuff is great to talk about, but it may all fade unless HR joins the party.