Does Your Company Still Just Focus On LinkedIn?

by Sirona

Change is a big word, and for some it is represents pain and discomfort - especially in recruitment. But why change when you can take the easy route every time, knowing that you won't get questioned too often - even if that the chosen route doesn't deliver? This is also call the path of least resistance, and it is a common direction for way too many recruiters!

Well for 2014 change is going to be necessary if you are involved in recruitment. [And that includes me as well - watch this space for my changes for 2014!] The staple social diet of recruiters (both corporates and agencies) - LinkedIn - is the primary professional network that we all utilise for sourcing, networking and business development. However, there are many, many more prospective candidates in other social networks, as demonstrated in the graphic I have put together above. (These latest stats are directly from each of the networks at the end of last year)

The change I refer to is the need to change your mindset. You as a recruiterneed to accept that your precious candidates ARE DEFINITELY NOT all just on LinkedIn, and that they will be elsewhere online. They might well be on one of the other huge social networks (like the ones above), or they might be on some niche networks like Stackoverflow, Github, MeetUp etc. So what are you going to do about it?

LinkedIn is a fantastic network, there is no question in that. But you have to change your thinking this year and start to consider other options as to where your prospective candidates are going to be. This is of course going to take a little brain power and some detective work to find this out. There are plenty of tools that can help you do this - Google and Bing would be a good place to start!

Let's take the biggest social network - Facebook. How many of you have tried the truly awesome Facebook Graph search yet? Most recruiters don't even know it exists, and yet this is a tool that searches the whole Facebook Graph -well........ it only has a billion+ people on there, so it probably wouldn't be worth it now, would it!!!
If you still need convincing check out how it works courtesy of Johnny Cambell from Social Talent:

Then we have YouTube - again over a billion monthly users. We all watch videos on there every day, but have you ever used it for sourcing candidates? Why not? It is owned by Google and is in fact the 2nd biggest search engine in the world (behind Google), and it is FULL of searchable data.
Why not sit down with a coffee and do some searching on YouTube - you may just be surprised. The bonus is that YouTube have integrated Google Plus into their comment engine, so it makes getting hold of people easier (via G+ of course!)

Google Plus is the social network that for many seems to have immediate negative vibes the moment it's name gets mentioned. Crazy stuff, because it is a fantastic tool for recruiters. My next post is going to cover Google Plus in more detail so for now, if you haven't looked into G+ yet here is a slide deck on G+ I did last year (some of the graphics have now changed on G+ since then):

How to use Google Plus and Pinterest for Recruiting from Sirona Consulting Ltd

There has been much written and posted about using Twitter for recruiting, so by now you should have realised that Twitter should be in your recruiting toolbox. Still not sure - here is a post I wrote for TotalJobs on using Twitter for recruiting.

The point of the post is not to tell you which social networks to use, but to encourage you to change your recruiting mindset and approach to how and where you find candidates from. Just think - your competitors could well be reading this and make the decision to make changes for 2014, use new networks and channels and find the candidates you can only dream of finding!The question is, will you make changes and get there first?

I work with recruitment agencies and corporates to help them understand and leverage the different social media networks to improve their recruitment strategy, recruitment process, candidate attraction, employer branding and content marketing strategy. If you require guidance, advice or social recruiting training, get in touch today.

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Does this mean we are awaiting the first #HashtagGuru Job Title on LinkedIn?

Does this mean we are awaiting the first #HashtagGuru Job Title on LinkedIn? by Sirona Consulting

Well now that Facebook has introduced #hashtags we have the #HashtagQuartet - Twitter, Facebook (with some privacy limitations) Google Plus and Instagram now all use #hashtags. Woopee!! All we need now is LinkedIn to join the party (late as usual) to give us a full hand ;-)
The question will be, will it be better or worse for recruitment? Let me see (with a 'little' dose of sarcasm thrown in along the way!) ......

1. It will certainly annoy some people on Facebook when they start getting all those #hashtags appearing in their streams. With no character limit, there will recruiters (and autoposting tools) that will be 'playing the field' with them as happens on Instagram, like this.
   
2. We will start (I'm sure) to see unilateral cross platform #hashtags across different media online and offline (TV and Mags) - which is great if you are monitoring them properly with the relevant software, to track engagement and ensure no interactions are missed. Unfortunately many people won't have the resources, systems or people to to this effectively, in my opinion. ---> Cue dvertising agency opportunity as an outsourcer! 
3. Confusion will reign over where #hashtags have been seen and used. This will be really interesting to see how this one pans out from a tracking perspective.
4. Many people (including people in the industry) still have no idea what a #hashtag is and how to make effective use of them. This is still going to be a hurdle for many companies. Are we going to see the first #Hashtag Guru Job Title appear on LinkedIn soon?
5.  All that said above, it will make searching for things like jobs and industry words easier across the social networks........... if people have even used them in the first place, that is! ;-) It has to be a good idea to have consistency across the networks doesn't it?
6. #Hashtags do drive traffic and interest, there is no question of that. You only have to look at #Instagram to see the big difference putting them on your photos make with regards to views and 'likes'.  Will they have the same effect on Facebook I wonder?
7. Properly used I actually think this is just the next evolution in the short life of social recruiting (to-date) and social media. I see more positives than negatives.

There will certainly be some extensive #hashtag posts out there over the next few days and weeks. Many will no doubt be #preaching and #spouting much about them. The reality is Facebook is just a late addition to Twitter, Instagram and Google Plus.  A game changer no, and added dimension, a resounding yes!

What do you think? #Lovethem or #Hatethem ?

Doing what you have always done is a recipe for recruitment disaster by Sirona Says

Doing what you have always done is a recipe for recruitment disaster

Posted: 13 Dec 2012 01:43 AM PST

Once upon a time there was a company that everyone used. Everyone knew them and they were very very successful indeed! People used them every day, new companies built their business around them and they made lots of money as well. They were synonymous with the industry they represented, and still have a wealth of patents and innovations that the likes of Google, Apple and Facebook are trying to get their hands on. 

They had it all. A great brand, products and a large market share. 

Then things changed.  

The mobile phone arrived, and with it so did the rise of the social networks. No problem they said, 'we have a great product, great brand, market share and people love us'. So they carried on doing what they always did. Sure they thought about changes, but why change what already works well - from their own perspective anyway. 

All around them innovation was happening, technological advances seemingly every week. New products and services were eroding market share week in week out, as new generations of people were now bypassing these 'great products' completely. 

New methods, tools, networks and delivery mechanisms were everywhere. Change was here, with no turning back.

The death was quick - too quick for such a great brand. Kodak were bankrupt.

Failure to recognise change, market demand, users changing methods of use, lower pricing models, widely adopted technological advances and peoples attitudes to the old ways of doing things brought the demise if such a great company. 

Now just think a minute……

Recruitment agencies, ATS providers, recruiters, job boards, advertising agencies, recruitment software providers, interim consultants and other suppliers to the recruitment industry. 

Many big brands. Many long established brands. Many good products.

Isn't that what Kodak had?

Recruiters: Are you negligent if you don't have a large LinkedIn network? by Sirona Says

Recruiters: Are you negligent if you don't have a large LinkedIn network?

I haven't been too contentious recently, (well, other than a recent conversation regarding a poor career site with a client), so I wanted to share a discussion that I have challenged several recruitment (agency) clients with recently. It usually provokes an interesting debate! Here goes.

First some LinkedIn recruitment 'facts':

1. It is 'accepted' that for most recruiters who recruit in the white collar industries , LinkedIn is THE professional social network to be using, right?  

2. As a recruiter (researchers and resourcers included here as well), LinkedIn should be an incredibly important tool to use e-v-e-r-y single day - in fact aside from your own database - it should be the go-to network for your research,sourcing, recruiting, referencing, targeting etc. [ yes, there are other networks, but the size of dataset and excellent search engine make it so easy to use]. 

3. LinkedIn not only has a large database of professional contacts, it is likely to be more up to date than people's CV's. 

4. The search functionality is excellent which means that you can find the exact people that you need relatively quickly. This only applies if you know how to use it properly, of course.

5. When posting content through status updates, the bigger your network, the more people will possibly see it, share it with their networks therefore exposing your content to a much wider audience.

6. The wider your network the more opportunities you have of grabbing those all important referrals and introduction links through to people you are trying to reach out to.

7.You join 50 groups in your niche/sector/vertical and add all the members to your network (for search and connection purposes) - further growing your base of relevant potential candidates for your clients, as well as sector insigjhts and knowledge.

8. The inbound bonus. The bigger your LinkedIn network, then the more chance you have of being found (in search results) by people looking for your skills. And if you are in their network it means they then can then contact you easily.

That's enough for the moment, you get my point - LinkedIn is the essential online tool for recruiters, researchers and resourcers (depending on industry of course). No argument there then I hope!.

Here comes the challenge.........

If you agree with all the above, wouldn't it be reasonable to expect recruiters to be power users with superb developed networks in their niche/sector/industry? And if they aren't, does that make them negligent in their in their role as recruiters, providing their service for their clients?

1. Clients expect the the best candidates available from the recruiters that work with them. Fact. [When was the last time a client asked you for a 2nd or 3rd choice candidate?]

2. Clients expect you to be a specialist in your niche/sector/industry - that is after all how you probably won the chance to supply candidates to them in the first place, isn't it? [Do you remember? Wasn't that how you justified your 15-20% fee in the sales process?]

3. Considering points 1 & 2 you HAVE TO find the best candidates you can and quickly. I would argue you are letting your client down if you don't. If LinkedIn is such an important network (as established above), then surely you have an obligation to your client to make sure you have found and spoken to the best candidates in your network? That network has to include LinkedIn.

Here we have a FREE tool will help you make more placements, keep more clients happy, develop your own expert/thoughtleader/top recruiter brand and connect and help develop your career AND STILL many recruiters out there are failing to grasp the power of LinkedIn for recruiters. That to me is professional negligence.

The responses I get............

Corporates I talk to DO EXPECT recruiters to be all over LinkedIn. They are always surprised when they are not.

Some recruitment business owners/managers think I am mad, and tell me that that all their recruiters use LinkedIn well already. No they do not and it is easy to prove when I am with them. Then the answer turns around to 'fair point!'

Some recruitment business owners/managers (and recruiters) agree, recognising they are not using the platform the the best ability.

Some recruiters I challenge with this, immediately go on the defensive, as if I have questioned their whole existence on this planet!! 

Some recruiters agree that they completely under use LinkedIn because they don't know how to get the best out of it or have never been shown.

Some recruiters tell me they don't need LinkedIn, as they have superb little black books. Fools. 

What do you think? If you are a client and use agencies to supply you with talent or are a recruiter - what is your take on this?

Caveats: 1. I know for all the super sourcers out there who regularly use the power of the x-ray to open up LinkedIn, they would argue you don't need a big network because you can search for anyone. Agreed, I use it myself. What you don't get though, is some of the other benefits I mention above associated with a large network. 2. A LinkedIn recruiter licence does negate this as well - but it should not stop you building your own network - you will change jobs one day and will still need your own LinkedIn network for the future.

Great talent isn't necessarily the right talent - is it? by Sirona Says

Great talent isn't necessarily the right talent - is it? by Sirona Says

There are some really good presentations out there, that use real life experiences to explain talent selection and talent management. There is no better than this brilliant video from Rasmus Ankersen told in a way we can all understand - a picture storyboard.
I have now watched it a few times and I simply find myself nodding my head every time I watch it, in agreement with his observations and insights.
There are three messages throughout this excellent video:

1. Great talent is not necessarily the right talent (for your company).
2. What you see (at first) is not necessarily what you get.
3. Never over-rate certificates and never under-rate character

As he does so often in the video, the pictures are very 'accurate'!



 So go grab a tea or coffee, sit down for 12 minutes and enjoy this presentation.

Social Recruiting Is Mainstream: You Have The Tools Now Time To Use Them by Sirona Says

Social Recruiting Is Mainstream: You Have The Tools Now Time To Use Them by Sirona Says Using social media for recruiting - aka social recruiting - has now been around for a good few years. For many recruiters (though, not enough though in my opinion), the use of the different social media channels as part of their everyday recruiting has become second nature to them. For them it is no longer social recruiting, just recruiting using a few more tools and channels.They use social networks in a wide variety of ways: Sourcing Engaging Communicating Referencing (unofficially of course) Posting jobs Sharing jobs Sharing great content Demonstrating expertise and knowledge Building their brand Creating interest groups (call them talent communities if you want) Building their networks Being transparent Mobile = time friendly for candidates Showing a personal side Please note that I have not included the word recruiting here - they still have to make sure they do that bit themselves .........by actually meeting and talking to their candidates! These are the enlightened recruiters. Do you know any? From my experiences over the last few months, working with both in-house recruiters and recruitment agencies, these social media enlightened recruiters are a small number. Why? Fear Lack of understanding Cost Employee Empowerment Control Brand Scare stories Control of data Time worries Confusion Apathy Believing social media is still a fad! << You are nutters if you still think this!!! To any recruiters and recruitment business owners out there, still not using social media - don't fear it. embrace it. It has become part of the recruitment industry and integrated into recruitment practices because it works. And the great thing is it can work any way you want it to! If you only want to use it to help promote your brand, then that is great; if you want to use the social channels to source new candidates, then that is also great too. But please understand that social is now here, it is not going away and the longer you wait to integrate it in to your business, the bigger advantage your competitors and clients are going to have. There are now many tools that make using social media effective for recruiting. Here are just a few that can be effectively used from a recruiting perspective: Time management Hootsuite Tweetdeck Buffer Brand and Content Facebook Page Google+ Page LinkedIn (individual & Company) Twitter YouTube Pinterest Instagram Slideshare Blogs Sourcing LinkedIn Twitter Followerwonk Google Talentbin FindPeopleOnPlus Job Posting & Sharing LinkedIn updates Twitterfeed Dlvr.it Work4labs Broadbean Hootsuite Availability PC & Mac All mobiles Tablets Communication Email everywhere (mobiles) SMS MMS RSS Twitter DM's Facebook Messages InMails Push messages (mobile apps) Time Saving Meetings (FREE) FaceTime (Facebook) Skype Hangouts (Google) And you have a huge audience to engage with >> there are 100's of millions of people on the different social networks - and that WILL INCLUDE YOUR CANDIDATES AND YOUR CLIENTS. This is no longer about doing social recruiting as a separate channel, it is now about integrating social media into your existing recruiting strategy and processes. There as many social media platforms, networks, tools and applications as you would need - there is now no excuse whatsoever! Social recruiting IS mainstream: You have the tools now time to use them. And remember, every day that goes by another of your competitors and clients will start using social media. How can you not finally embrace it?

Does your LinkedIn headline 'do what it says on the tin'? by Sirona Says

Does your LinkedIn headline 'do what it says on the tin'?  by Sirona Says Why do people make it so damn hard for themselves in the online (social) world of recruitment? After my last post on LinkedIn that explained why your LinkedIn profile doesn't appear in people's LinkedIn searches, I just want to add ONE more CRITICAL simple piece of LinkedIn advice. But first - do you know what job you do, who your intended audience is and what they search for to find people like you? For many people on LinkedIn the answer is no to all three!! If you are a recruiter (internal or agency side) then tell people that. Be proud and loud to be a recruiter. Don't hide behind stupid meaningless (to candidates) job titles and job descriptions, that give you a false sense of importance and boost your ego (or your companies for that matter). A person checking you out is not interested in spurious job titles or 'airy fairy' headlines and descriptions, they don't have time - in fact you probably only have 3-4 seconds to get their attention! When they land on your LinkedIn profile they want to know if you are the right person for them to make contact with / reach out to / find them a job in their industry / help recruit relevant talent for their company. Here is mine for example: I tell people what I do - Consult, Train and Advise; to who - Companies; and what about - Recruitment Strategy, Social Recruiting and Recruitment Process. AND remember the keywords of your sector/industry/marketplace - I have made sure the three main keywords I want to use currently - Recruitment Strategy, Social Recruiting and Recruitment Process - are right there in the headline. Are your main keywords in your headline? So, just take a look at your profile - how fluffy is it? If I landed on your profile, could I tell what you do within 3-4 seconds? Why not ask someone to take that test - show them your profile and ask them if they understand what you do. Words like executive consultant, director, consultant, manager, talent scout, innovator, thought leader, talent acquisition (candidates don't ever refer to themselves as talent, do they), talent solutions executive, human resource professional, account manager, managing partner etc etc. MEAN DIDDLY SQUAT to candidates UNLESS you add in some of the keywords they associate with and search for when looking for recruitment people. These words are quite simple - recruitment, recruiter or recruiting. TIP A candidate will not necessarily associate researcher or resourcer with the recruitment function. So if that it your role, ensure you have recruitment in the headline somewhere, otherwise you might be brushed into the market research corner! The Ronseal strapline in the advert above to SO PERFECT for this - does your LinkedIn headline do what it says on the tin? Make sure you have an honest look at your own profile. And if you want a second opinion connect with me on LinkedIn and ask me - I will tell you!

10 Ways to Use Twitter More Effectively for Social Recruiting by Sirona Says

10 Ways to Use Twitter More Effectively for Social Recruiting by Sirona Says

Having a successful Twitter strategy is essential to making your social recruiting a success. People will tell you it is easy to get loads of followers. Well it is if you just want followers. But if you want real followers with a real interest in your sector/industry and maybe a real interest in what you say/do, then you have to work that bit harder.
Here are 10 questions that you should be asking yourself to help you use Twitter more effectively for your social recruiting:
1. What is your Twitter objective? You can't measure your level of success on Twitter without first setting out what you want to achieve from your Twitter account(s).

• Build a following of active job seekers in your particular sector/vertical
• Use Twitter as a pure customer services channel
• Using Twitter to help build your brand in your industry
• Use Twitter just to post jobs [there is nothing wrong with a separate jobs channel on Twitter - it can work if you are transparent with it]

Make sure you set your objectives before you start, it will really help you tune your content.
2. Who is your audience? Such a simple question, but one that many people on Twitter just can't even answer! Who are you trying to reach with your tweets?

• Job seekers
• Clients
• Industry commentatotrs
• Influencers
• Passive job seekers

3. What is in it for them? Why should people follow you on Twitter?

• What are they going to get out of following you? Great content? Latest jobs?
• Have you told them? Managing expectations is key.
• Is your bio succinct and descriptive? Has is got the relevant keywords from your industry in it so people can understand really quickly?
• Does your Tweet stream (timeline) back up your bio?

4. Is your content on topic? Is, it really?

• Are you sharing content specific to your intended audience?
• Is it interesting content or boring press releases and company updates?
• Are you Tweeing hardcore industry content or just Mashable or Techcrunch posts (they are good quality but everyone shares them!)
• Are people reading, sharing, RT'ing and commenting on the content you are Tweeting?

5. You are measuring and monitoring your Twitter account, right?

• Do you reply to every @mention?
• Are you using Google Alerts / Social Mention or Topsy to track any mentions of your @twittername?
• Are you joing in the debate when people comment on your Tweets?
• Do you use Hootsuite / SocialBro / Crowdbooster to monitor your Tweets weekly to understand which types of content get the most reach and visibility? (So you can change / improve accordingly)
• Are your Follower numbers increasing? If so, are you monitoring the types of the Followers using SocialBro, to ensure they are in line with your audience objectives? Wrong content = wrong followers.

6. Are you posting content regularly EVERY day?

• How many times a day are you posting content? Considering a Tweet has a half-life of 2.8 hours, you need to be posting regularly to ensure your content remains visible.
• Are you using tools like Hootsuite or Buffer to help manage your time, by scheduling Tweets?
• Do you know when the best time to Tweet is for your audience? Easy, use Tweriod.
• Did you know Tweeting between 7am - 8pm will give you a 30% better level of engagement?

7. How long are your Tweets?

• You know you only have 140 characters - how many are you using?
• Are you allowing space for people to Retweet your content with the addition of their own @twittername?
• Did you know that Tweets that have less than 100 characters in them have a 17% higher rate of engagement than ones with more characters in them?

8. Are your Tweets engaging your audience with #hashtags?

• Are you using #hashtags to engage your audience in specific conversation?
• Do you join Twitter conversations on subject/industry/keyword #hashtags?
• Did you know that Tweets with one or two hashtags (no more) have a 21% increase in engagement?

9. Do you encourage people to share your content?

• How many people share your content with their Twitter networks? Is the content good enough to be shared?
• Do you reach out to influencers on Twitter to help 'spread the word' about your content?
• Did you know that asking specifically for a 'Retweet' on your tweets increases your Twitter Retweet rate 23 times (a RT increases rate 10 times)?

10. Have you now realised that Twitter needs a little work to make it work for you?

• Have you got the right strategy in place to ensure you maximise your Twitter activity?
• Do you have the right people managing Twitter for your company?
• Have you given up on Twitter already? Don't - it is a brilliant tool for recruiting, it really is!

Twitter is and will be an essential part of any social recruiting strategy. Whether it is used for sharing content, building a brand presence, customer services, posting the latest jobs or as an engagement channel Twitter is a tool that you need to be investing some time in to make it work for you.

The Social Recruiting Iceberg by Sirona Consulting

The Social Recruiting Iceberg

Why do people still think social recruiting is just about having a Facebook page.......... and then saying 'No' because they don't like the idea of Facebook for their company? Worse still, they continue to block access to Facebook and social media in the workplace!! (Have you not heard of smart phones?!]
Social recruiting is about understanding that your 'little recruiting world' is changing. The world is moving on, whether you like it or not. Keep on doing what you have always done is fine as long as you understand the diminishing returns on those activities. The volumes can still be high (especially with job boards) but the number of quality candidates are declining (according to every single one of my clients!)
If you think you are confused where to place job adverts - spare a thought for the candidates you seek. They have job boards, online networks, friend referrals, Facebook adverts, search results and loads more channels trying to get their attention every day. Where does your recruitment brand fit into that for them? It is worth thinking about......
Successful social recruiting is all about knowing what you are actually recruiting for and (hugely) importantly where these people are. Then and only then can you start worrying about the tactics you are going to use to atract and recruiting them.
The Social Media Iceberg by Mark Smiciklas above, sums this up perfectly. The tip of the iceberg -the social networks - would not even be showing above the water without the various parts of the strategy needed to support it.
What is interesting is that from my experiences this year, is that the corporates (most of the time) are getting this point EVERY time, and they understand it. However, the vast majority of recruitment companies are not (sadly).
Strategy is needed to underpin the move to social recruitment, and it should be integrated into your existing recruitment processes to make it sustainable for your company.
The fax machine was an essential recruitment tool ..... once .... then change happened. Email didn't happen overnight, it evolved into something we all use every day. Social media is in the same place. We all use it every day (well most of us!) to communicate, like, share, engage and comment. The next stage is it becoming part of everyone's working day....... whether you like it or not!
But before you shape your iceberg tip, make sure you have the base to support it first. If the base of an iceberg is too small it won't last - it will simple melt and disappear into the ocean. An ill-prepared social recruiting strategy will sink the same way.
And we haven't even talked mobile yet - an even bigger change for you to get your head around! ;-)

When is a visible tattoo too visible for a hiring manager?

When is a visible tattoo too visible for a hiring manager? A while ago I wrote a post titled 'Would you hire someone with a visible tattoo?' - and (unsurprisingly I guess) it still gets a load of traffic every single week. This is a question that comes up regularly with companies as they try to deal with the more and more people that now have tattoos. Now I am a fan of good ink, and while I do have a couple myself, you would never know it. And for me I guess that is the point for an employer. Tattoos hidden under normal clothing are one thing, but tattoos visible to their customers and clients take a little more acceptance. Yesterday I was doing some work on career sites and came across this disclaimer/question on the Center Parcs application form: Now the magic question is this: what happens if someone ticks one or all of the boxes? Do they fail to get the job? What do you think? The problem here of course is context. Obviously a big facial tattoo is probably not going to get you the job! But they don't ask what the tattoo is, how big it is or even ask for a photo (ok, probably not easy to manage!), but even if a candidate has a tiny wrist tattoo, they have to admit it, for fear of not getting a job (don't they?) Is there a difference below for you? They are both wrist tattoos, but is one more acceptable for companies than the other? Or are they both treated the same way? What do you think? Would these be acceptable for your company? Alternatively as a recruiter, would you even bat an eyelid with these types of tattoos? It is the first time I have seen this type of question, posed in this way on an application process. I am just wondering now if this will become more normal over the years to come? Image links here and here. If you like reading this blog, then click on the orange RSS icon here and get the latest Sirona Says posts delivered to your RSS reader or your inbox the moment they come out.

5 Things you absolutely, definitely and positively must not put on your LinkedIn profile

5 Things you absolutely, definitely and positively must not put on your LinkedIn profile

Today has just tipped my blogging scales to trigger this mini rant (although it has been building for a couple of days!) I am a fairly heavy LinkedIn user, as I use it every day for work - heck I even train people in using it for social recruiting!
The point is, I probably look at more LinkedIn profiles that the average person (outside recruitment that is!), so I get more opportunities to see, well, some of the stranger things people put in their profiles.
LinkedIn is known a professional networking site - jobs, business, networking, recruiting, marketing etc etc etc >> Agree?

Then why do some people seem to think that it is OK to put some of the things below on their LinkedIn profiles?

1. Use a picture of themselves as a child for their profile picture << so wrong on many levels!
2. a) Use an overly personal email address e.g. smudgykins@hotmail.com; AND worse b) display it at the top of your summary for all to see! << what's wrong with your real name?
3. Choose the summary as the place to vent anger at a previous employer by calling them liars and cheats!! << remember it's a small world!!

4. Add a web link to the Playboy Channel! << I kid you not - I do hope someone got hold of their LinkedIn profile and was pranking them!!

5. Use a cartoon character to describe yourself in your headline such as Superman or Batman!<< ignorance is no excuse in LinkedIn land - act your age :)

If you are now frantically logging in to LinkedIn to see if you are the guilty ones, don't worry, I made the individuals aware with some subtle advice (well all apart from the baby picture culprit - that was just plain stupid in my book!)
That was just five I found - have you seen worse on LinkedIn?



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7 ways to differentiate your recruitment business with your clients

7 ways to differentiate your recruitment business with your clients Posted: 22 Sep 2011 02:15 AM PDT Most people that read this blog will have experienced recruitment agencies professionally at some point in their career to date (as well as a healthy number of actual recruiters reading it!). You will have sat on either side of the recruitment fence, so I hope you appreciate where I am coming from here in this post. Recruiters sometimes do themselves no favours with clients. Their reputation does go (well) before them in some cases, with the good and the bad being accentuated by their actions (or lack of them!) A post I read on ERE.net today was the reason for today's post, and I have added my experiences to what the author of the article wrote about from his experience on the client side of the recruitment process. As a recruitment company here are 7 ways to ensure you can differentiate yourselves the next time you make that sales call, have a client meeting or (if you are lucky) when you pitch for 'that' really big deal: 1. You are recruitment experts, tell them about your process: a client isn't engaging a recruitment company to do something they can’t do internally.Posting jobs on job boards is not a value-add - clients can do that (and they are more frequently). What clients don't have alot of, is the depth of recruiting process knowledge and experience a good recruiter will have. After all recruiters do it every day, whereas clients may well only recruit several times a year. Your recruitment process should be the nuts! If it isn't what makes you different to all the other recruitment hopefuls out there? 2. What is your business elevator pitch'? How do you differentiate yourself in a sentence? How are you different from the 3 sales calls the client has had that morning from other recruiters? What is going to make them give the business to you? 3. Give them honesty not b*llsh*t; This sounds such an obvious statement but to be honest WE ALL KNOW the 'wild' sales pitches that come out of the mouths of many recruiters, don't we? Fear of losing (or getting) a requirement or a contract seems to do strange things to a recruiters brain. Honesty will prevail - especially with the growing transparency of social media channels. 4. Do what you say NOT say what you do; an old adage but so true. This could be aligned to all of the above but to be honest, it is always a big criticism levied at recruiters. Too much talk - "I can do this", "I can do that" without any intention of actually doing it (or rather knowing they haven't got a cats hell chance of doing it, but it sounded good at the time!) Just practice what you preach - it's not rocket science is it? 5. Relationships not relationship; relationships are key in the recruitment industry aren't they? Clients like to build relationships with people - in fact the better the relationship, the more chance there is of securing business or solving a problem. Every time you introduce new people to accounts, or consultants leave and new ones come along, you potentially put the important client relationships at risk. Good recruitment companies will have an openness around their team and structure from the start. They don't work on an insular client approach, they look at relationships NOT relationship. 6. Knowledge is king; do you take the time to understand what your clients are trying to achieve? Have you even asked them about strategy or vision aside from 'how many people will you be recruiting this year?' Do you even do any homework, aside from looking at a website just before the meeting? When working with recruiters for clients, I always ask then what they know about the company, projects, people, etc Could you answer those questions? Do you even give a damn? 7. Actually give a sh*t about your clients; I have left my favourite quote until last. This was said to me recently by an HR Director, when describing the level of service they were receiving from 3 out of 4 companies on their PSL, "the three agencies are household names, but quite frankly they don't give a sh*t about our business, all they worry about is how many CV's they sent me last month, whether they were relevant or not !" Do you take the time to give a sh*t about your clients? I work with both clients and recruitment agencies and am able to see this from the two different sides. I would like to make the point that there are obviously 'poor' clients as well as 'poor' recruitment agencies, and I am certainly not trying to say otherwise. The article by Matt Lowney on ERE that provided me with the starting point for this post is really worth reading. If you are in-house recruiter I just know you are just going to be saying 'yes' to most of the post! Have I missed anything here? Is there anything you would add? If you like reading this blog, then click on the orange RSS icon here and get the latest Sirona Says posts delivered to your RSS reader or your inbox the moment they come out.

How Milkround used social media to engage with generation Y graduates [guest post]

How Milkround used social media to engage with generation Y graduates [guest post] Posted: 06 Sep 2011 02:21 AM PDT Graduate recruitment has seen considerable change over the last few years, and was one of the big casualties of the recent recession, as companies cut budgets and hired less. To survive in this space companies have had to embrace change and be prepared to do things differently. Today's guest post is by Anne-Lise H. Johnsen, from the No.1 graduate recruiting site Milkround. They have had to really look at the way they engaged with companies and graduates, and chose social media as a way to do this. Anne-Lise explains what they have done at Milkround to use social media to aid their graduate recruiting strategies: "Our mission at Milkround has always been to assist students and graduates looking for internships, placements & graduate jobs. Throughout the last year we have realised social media has a place in recruiting, and even as a job board we can provide a valuable service through this channel. Over the last year we have introduced successful social media initiatives, however we are also realising our candidates need to be informed about how to make the most of social media when job hunting. In April we created a survey to investigate our candidates’ social media knowledge and how they use the constantly-evolving tool. Less than a third said they use social media tools to promote themselves to new employers, while four out of five said they would be more pro-active if they had more guidance in how to use social media tools when searching for jobs. As a result we introduced a new tool to our own communications mix: presentations direct to students. Throughout the spring and summer term, I presented on the topic of ‘How to use Social Media in a job hunt’ at several universities and fairs in the UK. Students and graduates were intrigued when they realised Facebook and Twitter were actually tools they could use when searching for a job, but they seemed confused. They did not know how to start using these tools for something else then updating their statuses, befriending old classmates or tagging themselves in pictures. This confusion reached a new level when I mentioned LinkedIn. Every session I asked, ‘Who has heard of LinkedIn?’. Usually 1/10 raised their hands. This was a scary finding. In a tough jobs market, many young job seekers don’t understand how to use social media tools to their advantage, and are not making the most of one designed specifically for job hunting. In a bid to help teach students and graduates how to find work through social networking and move away from just how many likes, followers and connections we’ve made, Milkround places an emphasis on engaging with our social community. We now have a better understanding of what our community needs and seeks from us. We want to give students and graduates career confidence, and one way of achieving that is through focusing on engagement to prevent them from feeling more confused and lost in a competitive market. We have seen more companies use social media as a way of promoting their opportunities. New career-focused Facebook Pages pop up, Twitter jobs feeds are created and some look for graduates on LinkedIn. However, at the pace this is evolving, candidates are struggling to keep track. Because the current students and graduates are of the ‘Generation Y’ they are assumed to know and understand every aspect of social media. The reality is that the ‘Generation Y’ can also feel lost in the circus of technology: many of the ‘Generation Y’, and also possibly future ‘Generation Z’, have not been taught the elements of social recruiting. It means many of the efforts from companies, job board and agencies are going unnoticed. We’re doing what we can to ensure they are rising in prominence and graduates don’t miss out on their dream job." Thanks to Anne-Lise for sharing what they they are doing at Milkround, to help graduates make sense of the world of work and social media. It is clear that there are several key factors they have focused on at Milkround - those being engagement, building a better sense of community and communication. These are all intrinsic to being successful when looking to use social media effectively in recruitment (aka social recruiting). If your organisation has embraced social media as a way of differentiating your market position, then (as long as it is recruitment focused of course) email me with your story and I can feature it here on the blog. Don't be shy - others won't even have started using social media yet, and these stories help people on many different levels. If you like reading this blog, then click on the orange RSS icon here and get the latest Sirona Says posts delivered to your RSS reader or your inbox the moment they come out.