The question: does a social networking component weaved into a traditional job board have value?
The answer is not so easy. There’s been much discussion lately around this topic, and some pretty interesting M&A transactions in the space. We all know that networking is still very high on the list of ways that the people find jobs. Through friends or family, at church or synagogue, at the gym or in the office – networking can give the jobseeker the inside introduction to the hiring manager. Figuring out ways to implement and monetize this networking sub-channel has become the goal of many leaders in the online recruitment market. Several attempts have been made (and are still underway) to try and bottle the mystery of online social networking for the purposes of job search. Does online social networking have viability when it comes to online job search, or is it just a passing fad?
The negatives: who wants to join a network of unemployed people, talking with other unemployed people, about how this company sucks and that company is laying off, etc., etc., etc.? Nobody. Why would I want to befriend (and potentially assist) competitors who are vying for the same job I am, or some “nut” who’s been out of work for 2 years? If I want to make some online friends, I’ll go join Myspace or Facebook. Do I want recruiters judging me by my mug shot and the fact that I’ve got 12 people in my faves and I like to eat sushi? Probably not.
However, an intriguing synergy exists between all humans for the need to find employment and the need to interact with others. Could it just be that the web sites that have gone before us simply didn’t get it right? What is the special sauce of employment networking?
Building a viable online community begins by investigating the commonality of the participating individuals.
First, we know that if two people are applying for the same job, they probably have similar skillsets and career path. Would they be interested getting to know each other? It would probably be useful to see what their industry peers had also applied to – maybe they’ll find a few jobs that they didn’t know about. It might also be interesting to see where they worked, or what will happen to their position once they leave. Could there be an opportunity to fill the vacancy? Secondly, we know that as humans find people that have more in common with themselves, the better chance they have to build a sustainable relationship with that person.
So, let’s walk this through. We’ve applied to the same job, and we live 10 miles apart, and we both have degrees in accounting and are focusing on ‘Corporate Controller’ jobs within a 30 mile radius of Philadelphia. Cool. I join a network with this person, and now I’m part of a group of 22 people (a job circle?) that are either actively or passively researching Corporate Controller jobs in the Philadelphia area. Hmm…more interesting. Are there others in this circle that have interviewed with the company I’ve applied to? Did they find that by having a certain certification or experience, it seemed to generate more interviews and interest? Did I just go on an interview that wasn’t a fit for me, but may seem interesting to a contact in my circle? Now, I’ve got 22 other folks in my Controller Circle who have ears to the ground and, while they’re conducting their job search, can communicate with others looking for the same thing. These relationships in my circle don’t start by inviting my friends to join a job board – it starts by two strangers who were both looking for the same thing.
OK, let’s say that by joining this circle of peers, I am now not only visible to other jobseekers, but other recruiters as well? Now I’m really connected. A hiring manager views my “associate’s” resume\profile on the job board – sees that he has 22 other associates in similar occupations and with similar skillsets who are interested the same type of work - and then decides to taps into this network of 22 other folks? So now, a recruiter who was browsing the resume of another member finds me, and I get hired. Awesome. And, guess where I’m gonna go when my company needs people similar to me? My circle! With email, blogging, texting, discussion databases, IM, SMS, and more, jobseekers are given a tool to keep tabs on who’s going where and what’s going on out there.
I know, I know. LinkedIn already does this, right? True, but people don’t join LinkedIn to find a job. Many people complain that LinkedIn is nothing more than a sales lead generation tool. Sure, they’ve got a jobs section out there, compliments of Simply hired. What about Jobster, you say? Jobster was an innovative tool that attempted the job-board-meets-social-networking model, but went at it the wrong way. They started as a social networking site morphing into a career site, versus layering a social networking component on top of an already proven business model. Job boards are different. Job boards already have the traffic, the members, the recruiters, and the jobs. They may just have the seeds to really make it grow if it is implemented in the right way.
Sounds cool…but how do job boards make money with this stuff? The answer is: they probably don’t. They simply use it as a marketing tool that differentiates them from the big national boards. They use it as a tool to create value and increase the multiplier. They market it to jobseekers as an additional reason to join; they market it to recruiters as another value-add reason to sign up for a membership or to buy a classified ad.
If the costs to implement professional networking into a successful traditional job board are not too high, and it is done with respect to jobseeker privacy, and is implemented with an intuitive and easy-to-use UI…it just might work!
Oh, and the next time you’re on Myspace, be sure to say hi to my friend Tom for me – I hear he’s looking for work.
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