We are the first mover in Germany concerning Social Media Recruiting since 2006 (Yes, I know we were a little late in Germany). The first time that we realized that there are Social Media Recruiting competitors on the German market was 2010!
Since then things changed dramatically…
Today almost every single HR person that has to recruit (at least a little bit) calls himself a Social Media Recruiter. But is that the truth? -> I don’t think so
Only because you have a XING/LinkedIn profile and you know how to search for candidates (I’m not using the term qualified candidates on purpose) it doesn’t make you a good Social Media Recruiter.
In my opinion there are some key skills for a Social Media Recruiter:
- Social Media Recruiting is often used for technical positions (e.g. IT / Engineering etc.). If you don’t have a least a basic understanding of the technologies (obviously not everyone has a master’s degree in IT) that are required then it is better not to call yourself a (Social Media) Recruiter.
- Be a networker! If you don’t know what you are looking for, ask the right people! I made the experience that colleagues out of technical departments (e.g. IT) are actually very happy to talk about their job and the technologies they are using. And yes, they are willing to talk to you (even if it is 1-2 hours!!)
- Treat your colleagues (technical departments) as customers. You are not recruiting for yourself – but for other departments! Understand their preferences regarding applicants – therefore it makes sense to have an ongoing Feedback conversation.
- Sales is responsible for attracting new customers, R&D e.g. is responsible for technical innovations, HR (Recruiting) is responsible for attracting the best talents. Sometimes you have to have difficult conversations with your internal customers because there are discrepancies between what your customers want and what the market offers. Be an expert and act like one.
- Know the right platforms. Not all applicants are on one social media platform. Sometimes you have to dig in and find the right ones for your specific target group.
-> Social Media Recruiting is primarily not about fast recruiting but is recruiting on a high quality level. This is definitely nothing everyone can do!
Foto: Flazingo Photos (CC-BY-SA-2.0)
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