In his Personal Branding Blog post Your Network is Your Only Insurance Policy, Dan Schawbel says that job boards will soon be obsolete and people searching will dominate the job search landscape.
He backs this up by citing data from a recent Jobvite survey (5/20/09) of about 440 human resources and recruitment professionals in a variety of industries, whose responses provide compelling data on the present state and future of recruitment:
◊ 76% plan to invest more in employee referrals (68% in 2008)
◊ 72% plan to invest more in recruiting through social networks
◊ 75%+ plan to invest less in more costly sources (job boards, third-party recruitment and campus recruitment)
◊ 80% of companies use or are planning to use social networking to find and attract candidates this year:
◊ 95% will use LinkedIn (80% in 2008), 59% will use Facebook (36% in 2008), and 42% will use Twitter
◊ 77% of respondents said they use social networks to reach passive candidates
◊ 15% of respondents tapped employees’ social networks for hiring
◊ HR people use social networks to research candidates:
76% use LinkedIn, 67% use search engines (Google), 44% use Facebook, 21% use Twitter
◊ 24% of candidates disclose their social networking presence when applying for a job
Based on the survey results, Schawbel suggests focusing right now on these 3 critical tactics:
1. Protect your brand
Because most hiring managers are researching social networks and using search engines to conduct background checks, you have to claim your brand name on social networks. And you need to ensure that you’re painting a positive portrait of yourself on your profiles.
2. Promote your brand
If you’re invisible online, you don’t exist to the very people looking for candidates like you. Because only about 1 in 4 candidates has a website or blog, this is the way to go to really stand out.
3. Partner your brand
Work hard to connect with lots of people – people at companies you want to work for or who have skills that can help you – and build meaningful relationships. If you don’t, it will take you longer to land your next great gig. “Your brand won’t have the support system it needs to rise to the top.”
Related posts:
How to Target and Network into Hidden C-Level Executive Jobs
6 Essential Strategies To Land Your Next Great C-Level Executive Job
It is all about online presence. Blogging, Professional Profiles, Social Networking in addition to the traditional resumes and references are all being used by recruiters to locate and dismiss potential leaders for their company. Having a bad online presence is as bad as having no online presence at all. Only having a positive professional profile on the web is leading recruiters to hire in today’s environment. I have found a site at http://www.pzhone.com that ties all these together in one location.
Thanks for commenting, Christine.
You’re right – it’s all about what people searching for candidates like you are finding out about you online. No online presence, or one that discredits you, can kill your chances.
-Meg
Thanks for commenting, Chris.
I urge my c-level clients to get involved with social networking, just to keep pace with their competition in the job market. Employers are looking for people like them on LinkedIn (and elsewhere). If they have no presence on social networks, they’re invisible to the people they need to be squarely in front of.
Once you claim your Twitter handle, follow me and I’ll follow you back 😉
-Meg
I have watched my laid-off friends who have embraced social networking get multiple interviews. The rest, not so much. Thanks for the tip on claiming your brand. I have done that for LI, FB and for my business, but need to do that for personal on Twitter In case I ever need it.