As the war for talent rages on, employers have to leverage all sorts of techniques to reframe their employee value proposition and entice candidates to sign with them. Likewise standing out as a candidate is not so easy either and herein lies an opportunity…
Used by many daily, for many they have amassed quite the following or number of “likes", while for others it has become their life’s work: I am referring to a small thing called social media. You might have heard about it! In all seriousness, social media’s interactive ability to share information, ideas, career insights, and other expressions via virtual community outlets and networks creates a new medium of talent and organization attraction.
There is value both as a prospective employee and as a recruiting organization to evolve our tactics, from the traditional CV submission and review process to instead tap into the likes of Tik Tok, Instagram, or LinkedIn. Granted not all industries are cut out (yet) for this level of exposure; the reality is, however, that some are and many more will.
Remote work forced us to reassess our total rewards approach and, as our profession evolves, so shall we reassess our techniques towards talent management. This is especially true knowing that the workforce will be predominantly millennials in a few short years with generations thereafter rising to employment level quickly. Gen Z’ers have not seen anything other than interactive-based technologies.
Knowing what lies ahead and the predictable reality of technologies' influence on work-life, employers should consider the following benefits of social media and how to integrate it into the hiring strategy:
- For starters, be receptive and open-minded. Accepting different modes of “resumes”, whether a video or a personal website, creates a personable and interactive experience. As an employer it gives you a direct line of sight to the candidate's ability to be creative, their ability to market, be innovative, and to some extent their risk tolerance – it is not easy to put yourself out there. How a candidate “submits themselves” is an indication of the key characteristics a traditional paper CV will not be able to profile.
- Candidates are not the only ones interviewing. Who we are as employers and our appetite to do things differently and evolve with the marketplace is in the spotlight. Investing in our online presence creates opportunities and increases our breadth to attract from a diverse talent pool.
- Breaking down the biases. Systemic biases often exist in our HR practices and processes towards hiring, developing, and promoting talent. Often our recruitment approaches are institutionally deep routed and unconsciously we may overlook a potential candidate. Integrating social media presents an opportuning to re-write the playbook and reset the standards and guidelines of how it will impact our recruitment strategies, giving employers a fresh perspective in addressing issues around diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Only time will tell as to whether social media will become a feasible recruitment option, but knowing the trajectory of technology and its influence, I can only imagine that soon enough there will be "an app" for that!
Reena Paul (CCP, GRP) is a Senior Compensation Consultant. She is passionate about all things “total rewards” and has experience in dealing with all stakeholders of an organization and strategizing optimum client-focused solutions. A lover of data and the story it tells, Reena enjoys the exploration of presenting and discussing compensation with a fresh perspective. Connect and contact Reena directly on LinkedIn
Photo by Alexander Shatov by Unsplash
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