Sirona Says

The social recruiting battlegrounds in 2010

The last decade has, in my opinion, seen one of the biggest seed changes the recruitment industry has seen for many years. While I am referring to social media, I also combine that with the evolution (it took it's time but now has real momentum) that has  been online recruitment.

The primary change is that we're no longer just regarding them as recruitment experiements, they are now primary recruitment channels. Online recruitment systems (ATS's), job boards and social media sites like LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube and even Facebook have quickly become established candidate recruitment channels. And for me, this has led to the biggest change of all - increased candidate expectation!

The companies that have not yet embraced social recruiting, via the sites such as LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube (not forgetting blogs), will need to take a long hard look at themselves, as these platforms will become the recruiting battlegrounds of 2010.
Companies and recruiters that have been sitting at the head of the curve, have already created successful communities on specific platforms - like the already very successful Mya4e Community site, based on the Tribepad platform - and will they definitely yield recruitment success from these recruitment communities (the caveat being that whatever the platform, they need to be maintained and effectively managed to yield desired results).
Some companies and recruiters are already actively building effective communities, on the likes of LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. Many companies towards the end of 2009, finally realised that they need to be in the social recruiting space, and have started to explore it further.

Building your online community - whether it be via Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook or a blog - will be absolutely crucial to success in social recruiting. Recruiting is all about relationships - with clients and candidates alike - and using social media tools are fantastic ways to initiate and develop relationships with them. So, by building your own communities (on individual or multiple social channels) with interesting, compelling and relevent content, companies and recruiters will both start to create a social recruiting brand that they will certainly need in the years ahead.

Battlegrounds inevitably have casualties scattered around them. So, if candidate expectation (around using social media in recruiting), continues to increase the way it has in 2009, then be prepared for the consequences, because, if as a company or a recruiter, you choose to ignore social recruiting as a channel for 2010, then you will be watching your competitors take control of the recruiting battleground for good!

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Has social media turned you into a workaholic? Well, according to this test I am, what about you?

Christmas is a time of reflection  - I guess primarily because most of us take the time off. But for me, time off just causes me problems! Let me explain....

You see, I am continually thinking about new business ideas, new social media tools, website changes, new ventures, new books to read etc etc etc (and yes this drives my wife absolutely nuts!!). When I am really busy at work, I just don't have the brain bandwidth to allow these 'ideas' to flourish, because I am so focused on the client's project I am working on.
But, come the downtime, when my brain has time to 'breathe' and it goes into overdrive with new ideas :-)  And with the fast moving world of social media, keeping up with it all is a real challenge (albeit, one that I really do enjoy!)

While this is great for creativity, it just creates MORE work for me on my return, because I just HAVE to explore my ideas! (Is this sounding familiar with you.......I bet it is!)

So when I was reading a blog today that directed me to the site Workaholics Anonymous (yes it is real!) I initially started to laugh loudly................................then I worryingly began to tick off the list of 20 questions one by one!!

But what about you? Are you a workaholic? According to the rules of the site, you only have to answer 'yes' to three of these questions below, to be defined as a workaholic. My problem is that I struggle to answer three that I can't tick!!! (Don't you laugh just yet, you go down the list and score yourself!)

So go on then, don't be scared, just answer away..........

See if you are a workaholic by answering these questions:

   1. Do you get more excited about your work than about family or anything else?
   2. Are there times when you can charge through your work and other times when you can't?
   3. Do you take work with you to bed? Do you Tweet, Facebook or go on Linkedin on weekends or on holiday?
   4. Is work the activity you like to do best and talk about most on Twitter or Facebook?
   5. Do you work more than 40 hours a week - has Twitter extended your working week?
   6. Do you turn your hobbies into money-making ventures?
   7. Do you take complete responsibility for the outcome of your work efforts?
   8. Have your family or friends given up expecting you on time? is it "...just one more tweet"?
   9. Do you take on extra work because you are concerned that it won't otherwise get done?
  10. Do you underestimate how long a project will take and then rush to complete it?
  11. Do you believe that it is okay to work long hours if you love what you are doing?
  12. Do you get impatient with people who have other priorities besides work?
  13. Are you afraid that if you don't work hard you will lose your job or be a failure?
  14. Is the future a constant worry for you even when things are going very well?
  15. Do you do things energetically and competitively including play?
  16. Do you get irritated when people ask you to stop doing your work in order to do something else?
  17. Have your long hours in front of the computer screen hurt your family or other relationships?
  18. Do you think about your work while driving, falling asleep or when others are talking?
  19. Do you work, read or tweet during meals?
  20. Do you believe that more money will solve the other problems in your life?

Well, how did you get on then?

Now join me by reading these words........" I have a problem....I am a workaholic"  Feel better now?

Right off to plan for 2010 now, in my sleep, while driving, in the shower etc etc Ha ha ha ha!! I will never learn :-)

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When was the last time you read a newspaper in the loo?

Isn't YouTube just brilliant for it's endless library of superb videos? This image above is a very real question posed by one of the video's below. Well, can you answer the question then? (Isn't that what Blackberries and iPhones were invented for? LOL)

Here are couple of video's I like that really does make you realise the scale of the internet, social media and the implications for people in the workplace - or how some people refer to it as human capital.

So grab a coffee and enjoy these two short video's simply titled Did You Know?

Did you know 4.0?

Did you know? Human Capital

Go on, YOU can do it in 2010, just don't be boring in the process!!

I have just read a recent e-book by Seth Godin on his blog called What Matters Now (you can download it for free at the bottom of this post ). In it he assembled a whole load of thought leaders across many industries and asked them the question, what matters to them now going into 2010? The book is full of the responses from these 70 thought leaders.

This is a great idea of putting together a very valuable (in terms of information) book, and sharing it for free across the web.

While there is some really great stuff in there, I just wanted to highlight two pages that are really worth taking note of and definately applicable to our industry - I think you will see why:

How true is this? Are you listening all you presentation bores out there?

This is SO TRUE in the world of social media and social recruiting.

Remember there are no rules - only the ones that you choose to make happen. And with social media there is NO EXCUSE for a boring presentation any more!!

To download this excellent FREE ebook click here Download What-matters-now-1

So what does a Director of Social Media Job look like then?

Some of the 'big brands' are now accepting that the world of social media needs to be taken seriously. While there are already senior social media positions in some companies, I think 2010 will see a proliferation of new social media jobs within the corporate world (my first prediction for the New Year!), as many companies play social media catch-up.

So I was interested to see how one of the worlds biggest brands - McDonalds - classify a job title such as Director of Social Media.

The advert was placed on Careerbuilder, and the content of the role is as follows:

Director of Social Media

McDonalds is the largest and best-known global foodservice retailer with more than 30,000 restaurants, serving 46 million customers each day in 121 countries. Our outstanding brand recognition, experienced management, high-quality food, site development expertise, advanced operational systems and unique global infrastructure position us to capitalize on global opportunities. We plan to expand our leadership position through great tasting food, superior service, everyday value & convenience. Visit our web site to learn more about us.

Reporting to the Director of External Communications, the Director of Social Media will be responsible for developing and leading the social media strategy to support the McDonald's U.S. business both at the national and local level.

In this role, the Director will develop and proactively counsel business partners on the strategy that guides McDonald's USA program activation, as well as in crisis and issues management within social media, effectively reaching and engaging defined audiences in addition to driving awareness and trial of new food news/promotions and protecting/enhancing the overall brand.

Specifically, the Director will develop and execute the social media strategy for the U.S. Business inclusive of social networking, blogger relations, micro-blogging, crisis/issues management, brand engagement, etc.

The Director will also align the social media strategy with supported U.S. Business and global departments (e.g., Marketing, HR, corporate communications, corporate social responsibility, etc.) and with other U.S. Communication departmental areas (e.g., media relations, third parties/public affairs, external, internal and management communications).

Requirements include:

    * BA degree in communications, marketing or public relations
    *  At least 5-8 years total communications experience required. At least 2-3 years of that experience must be in social media - i.e., developing, implementing and measuring social media strategy and programming for consumer brands and at least 3-5 years of that experience must be in public relations and/or marketing.
    * Strong leadership, communication and relationship-building/collaboration skills
    * Strong written and verbal communication skills
    * Strong working knowledge of social networking, blogs, microblogs, mobile, user-generated sites, etc.
    * Demonstrated experience in applying new technologies and trends to brand's social media strategy and activation

What do you think? Is this reasonable expectation of experience? Do they want someone who has just got the 'time served' approach to experience ( ie 2-3 years of social media experience)? Do many of those exist? I think we know the answer to that one! I think they are looking for a 'golden nugget' there!!

I think Ronald should apply for the job!!

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Should work-life balance be replaced with a new word - 'Weisure'?

Over the last week there has been much talk in the recruitment blogging community of work life balance, and what the reality actually is.

Ever one to have an idea, Bill Boorman, started the whole thing off with a video he posted on You Tube, aptly titled 'The work life balance'. in which he believes there are four areas of balance that are needed in todays busy and hectic lives; Work; Life; Life/Work; Me time. When you listen to it, he will confuse you by inverting work and life, but he has raised an interesting point around a hugely important subject.

If you spoke to my wife (feel free to do so on Twitter -@saraheadworth - by the way!), then she would tell you that my work - life balance is firmly entrenched on the work side! My Blackberry is always at my side, and while I do try to manage my time, it has become part of everyday life.
This means that my 'work brain' is very rarely turned off (much to the disgust of Sara!), and that I am continually considering something to do with work, both consciously and subconsciously. (Yes I know this isn't overly healthy!)
Now you may call this a little sad, especially if you are in a 9-5 job (do they actually exist anymore?) and go home at night, completely detached from work. But, the difference is that I run my own business - my business, by default, then becomes my life. If you then factor in the fact that I really enjoy what I do, then it really doesn't bode well for a solid demarcation line between work and play, does it?

The crux for me is that I enjoy what I do, and for me the social aspect of the web that has 'exploded' over the last couple of years has really added to this. Just in case you think I am a complete addict, I do know where the 'OFF' button is on my Blackberry - I just don't use it often enough!!

I was recently sent some information regarding a forum of 10 HR experts entitled Raging Debates in HR, and some key HR conversations they discussed between them. While reading through it, the subject of 'weisure' was covered by these HR guru's. It makes interesting reading, so I thought I would share some of the responses with you. The question they were asked was:

Is "weisure" good for business or do we need to maintain boundaries between work and leisure?

Peter Capelli: I think the idea that we have a new generation of workers that doesn’t care about boundaries between work and life outside of work is wrong.  It is probably true that many younger workers are willing to have most of their life absorbed by interesting career opportunities, especially when they are living in a new location and have no other ties there. That’s not particularly new.  Once people grow a little older, acquire families and other non-work interests and responsibilities, the intrusion of work into those spaces is an annoyance at best.
David Creelman: Too late.  Weisure is here. Personally I interweave business and pleasure—was that trip to Paris really just to maximize my net present value? But each individual has to find their own way of being.
Kris Dunn (Founder of Fistful of Talent): Unless you are an hourly worker in America, boundaries between work and leisure are dead. Work bleeds into life, and life bleeds into work. People have the smart phone, aka the "digital leash". Work will never be the same. It's already gone.
Richard Hadden: I don’t know if “weisure” is necessarily good for business or not, but I am reasonably convinced that it’s a part of life as we know it in the first decade of the 21st century. If a “weisure” lifestyle is here to stay, there should be limits within which both the employee and the employer should work. It takes organization, skill, discipline, and a measure of assertion, but I believe that the purposes of work and of leisure can be met simultaneously.
Lance Haun: I've fortunately never heard of this term but I don't think it is bad for business. Now it might be bad for the employee but a good employer should recognize the boundary issues and seek to define it for people that have trouble with the concept.
Sharlyn Lauby (President of ITM Group): I’m cool with the idea of weisure. Hate the name…maybe we can call it something else? Reminds me of the band Weezer. Businesses need to deal with work time, productivity and results in the high tech world.


And the last word goes to the lady of Punk Rock HR blog fame……


Laurie Ruettimann: Weisure is an offensive term. Boundaries are healthy and important to maintain. I'm more than just an extension of the company's brand. So are you. Take the day off.

So what do you think? Do you have set rules in place? Do you let you iPhone or Blackberry govern your social activities?

Ultimately Laurie is quite right when she tells us to 'take the day off', and it is a sentiment that my wife would definately echo, but come-on, it doesn't happen anymore does it?

Are recruiters apathetic, confused or have they got their heads stuck in the sand when it comes to social recruiting?

Over the last few weeks I have presented at two different REC events - the Executive Recruiters Autumn Congress and yesterday at REC's first ever Annual Conference, as well as the cleverly titled Recruiting Unconference. The audiences have therefore been a good selection of the recruitment industry.

I have been very surprised at the very small numbers of them that say they are using the different types of social media to help them in their recruitment jobs.
Yes, the majority have a Facebook account, but that is solely for their friends and family networks. Many have LinkedIn accounts, but very few are using them properly to help them with their day job. I met with a recruitment industry salesperson yesterday at REC, who didn't even realise that they could source target companies (recruitment agencies) via LinkedIn. And when it came to Twitter, I might just as well have been talking about the anti-christ!

One of my slides when I have been presenting, includes the images below. For me recruiters fall into one of the three categories:

Total Apathy.

Confused about which way to go.

Simply sticking their head in the sand.

I actually think it is a bit of all three!!

I guess what I have learnt is that the majority of people in the recruitment industry just don't get social recruiting yet!!

I have already had feedback via Twitter (yesterday when I posed a similar question), that we should equate this whole social recruiting thing to job boards and the time it took for them to be accepted. Well that may be the case, but I think things are changing at a much faster rate! I was around in recruitment when job boards first arrived on the scene, to fanfares and ticker tape parades. It took years for recruiters and companies for the online penny to drop (and some still don't believe it works now!!), so we know it will take time.

But, and it a very big but, social recruiting is no respecter of time. The companies and recruiters that have 'got it' are already reaping the benefits. They are accessing and engaging with candidates like they have never done before, and are finding it to be truly revolutionary for recruitment.

And do you know what?

Candidate expectation of companies and recruiters using different social media channels to communicate and engage with them, rises every single day. It is they who will be the drivers. They will dictate how recruiters and companies will succeed or fail within social recruiting.
Why? Because social media has no respect of reputations. Big or small - it doesn't matter who you are; by not getting involved sends a bigger message out than getting involved and making some mistakes. Candidates will be attracted to companies and recruiters that they can engage, communicate and build a relationship with via social media, not the ones don't even try!

Now you may be thinking that it doesn't matter at the moment, because of the recession. Yes, there are loads of candidates out there at the moment, but that will start to change....and it will start to very soon. If as a recruiter you have been 'toughing' it out, waiting for the good times to roll again, think again.
The recruitment landscape has now changed for ever.

Social Recruiting IS HERE TO STAY. The quicker you get started the less ground you are going to have to make up with your competitors!

So if you need  help in 2010 with understanding the benefits of social recruiting just ask - I will be happy to oblige!

Why cowboy recruiters will end up in the Boot Hill Cemetery

I think by now, we all agree that the recruitment landscape has changed. For better or worse, depends on which side of the recruitment fence you sit on, however!
I am hoping that the recruitment landscape has has really changed, because I for one ( and I am sure you feel the same way!) hope that the 'cowboy recruiters' are slowly being pushed out of the industry (even off a high cliff if we are lucky!)
They are the bain of any good recruiters life, by continually deceiving clients that they actually know what they are talking about and forever lying to both clients and candidates alike. They really have lowered the reputation of our industry. Let's be honest, they are only interested in one thing.............money.
In all the years I have been recruiting they still don't get it. How does p***ing off a client and screwing them over, make for good business practice?

In my (hopeful) opinion, they will need to change or die, in an industry that has now become more aware than ever of what value a good recruiter can really add.

So out must go the brash, fast talking, unscrupulous and arrogant recruiters who make lying and bull***t look like child's play. In must come much improved recruitment skills. Successful recruiters in the 'new world' will need to be more team-based and have real listening skills. They must put themselves in the clients's shoes and develop long term relationships across the organisations they work with.

To cope with this shift in the recruitment marketplace, recruitment firms will really need to change. They will need to:

1. Think like the customer. Empathy and understanding of the client's business objectives will be at the heart of future recruiting.

2. Focus on relationship building. Creating a long term partnership across the client organisation rather than the traditional transactional based relationship.

3. Work as a team. Recruiters will need to collaborate openly with colleagues across their own organisation to ensure the best possible service to their clients.

4. Gain more knowledge. Successful recruiters will have an in-depth knowledge of their clients's business and overall market that allows them to find opportunities to deliver value.

5. Deliver impeccable customer service. Providing consistently excellent customer service is critical to retaining business. Therefore recruiters will need to be closely involved with ensuring ongoing client satisfaction.

The rise of the internet and the proliferation of the many social media sites, has armed clients with unparalleled access to candidates. Many clients will have used the recession times to implement robust direct recruiting strategies. The majority, however will not have been this forward thinking.

But they will expect something different. The words 'adding value' springs to mind!

Of course there are many great recruiters, that have been doing all these things for years, and will continue to prosper, recession or not. For the recruiters that recognise change is needed, good luck.

For the recruiters that just ignore all this and continue to wear the '10 gallon hats', then I hope that you end up where all the dead cowboys go - the Boot Hill Cemetery!

Do these two iPhone Apps represent the future of recruiting?

This week I have seen two apps for the iPhone for the job marketplace that are very clever. One is for the job seeker and one is for the employer, and in my opinion they are both worth exploring, but for different reasons.

The job seeker iPhone app is free and is called Real-Time Jobs, and it is by the same company  that produced the 'best by far' job search tool for Twitter Twitterjobsearch (I dare you to show me one better!)

TwitterJobSearch's QuickPitch tech platform allows job seekers to find and apply for these jobs with a single tap on their iPhone. Job seekers can attach a linkedIn profile, Visual CV, social media profile, and/or a video CV to job offers that have been posted to Twitter with a single click. 

So is this the way forward? Well it is if you have an iPhone!  But this fully grasps the concept of cloud recruiting and shows exactly the potential of what can be done going forward. If you have an iPhone, give it a try, it really is clever stuff!

The employer iPhone app is equally clever, and it is called The Interviewer and is priced at £8.99 . It is designed to make the process of interviewing job candidates easier and more effective. It splits the process up for the employer into three stages: 1) Before the Interview 2) During the Interview 3) After the Interview and even provides an interview tutorial. Here is the video demo:

For me there is one big reservation with this product. If you are a candidate sitting in an interview, how would you feel with the interviewer conducting the interview, by reading the questions from an iPhone?

Maybe the gen Y'ers will find this totally acceptable, but for the older generations, I would imagine they would struggle to accept this, and maybe even find it rude from the interviewers part.
That aside, this app is another great way that technology is fast creeping into the job marketplace, and I for one think it is very exciting for the future.

Are there any other iPhone apps for job seekers out there, that are worth knowing about?

My guest post for one of America's top HR bloggers

A few weeks ago, I was asked by one of the brilliant HR bloggers in the US - Michael VanDervort, if I would like to write a guest post on his excellent blog The Human Race Horses. He has a growing section on his blog entitled Over There, in which he has guest bloggers from the HR/Recruitment industry around the world provide insights into different parts of the industry in our relevent countries.

I wrote an article entitled:

Is the Recession just going to be another Groundhog Day for Recruitment and HR

Click on the link to read it - it is my opinion into where recruitment will be post recession.....back where it started - so it is definately worth checking out!