Dan Finnigan is CEO of Jobvite, an SaaS platform for the social web that companies use to find and hire people. You can follow him on Twitter at @DanFinnigan and read his Jobvite Blog.
Here in the Bay Area, hundreds of lesser-known startups have plans for massive hiring growth this year. That’s always a challenge, but even greater when hiring for positions that didn’t exist three years ago. How do you find experienced employees for a completely new industry?
Many fast growing companies in emerging industries, such as social gaming, green tech, cloud technologies, and mobile development are experiencing the same thing. It’s a problem created by successful innovators. By 2015, 60% of new jobs being created will require skills only held by 20% of the population, according to a reportfrom the American Society for Training and Development.
So how do you hire hundreds of community managers, super moderators, gaming producers and social media marketing specialists when there just aren’t enough qualified people looking for work?
“We Need Another You”
Traditional methods such as posting a job listing on your company website or on a job board will get you a wide variety and large quantity of applicants with varying qualifications. Frankly, it can be a crapshoot.
The alternative approach boils down to an executive or manager speaking with one of their most valued employees and saying, “We just created this new position and there aren’t a lot of people out there with the qualifications for it. We need someone with your skill set and qualities; we need another you! Do you know anyone?”
This type of conversation has been going on for years because employee referrals generate hires who frequently become productive more quickly, stay with a company longer and perform better. And employees tend to refer those contacts who they believe can do the job and do it well. In fact, among our customers, one in 12 referral applicants is hired compared with one in 100 general applicants.
Beyond the Resume
When you approach an employee and say, “We need someone like you,” you’re not just referring to experience and expertise, you’re also referring to important intangible factors, such as work ethic, motivation and potential. These are hard qualities to ascertain by simply reading someone’s resume and interviewing them once or twice. And they become even more important when you have to take a flexible approach to qualifications in a new industry.
Scott Thomas, head of talent acquisition at Kabam, says “we focus on the sharps, the attitude and the work ethic. And engagement counts – we’re impressed by people who make an effort.” Company interviewers look for indications that candidates have that “It” factor that will help them thrive in the new industry. Does this candidate make the most of their opportunities? Are they consistently overachieving? Are they doing things outside the scope of their role?
The New Social Supply Chain
Fortunately, the social technologies that create the demand for talent are also helping to supply it. Social media offers ways for companies to amplify job referrals, create awareness among prospects and interact with candidates. Here are a few strategies that companies are employing to engage with talented people who aren’t actively looking for a job.
- Expand your reach. Use multiple social media channels to communicate your company to the kind of people who would be interested in your jobs — on the company blog, Facebook Page and dedicated “Jobs” accounts on Twitter.
- Raise awareness about your company and jobs. Social media offers an inexpensive way to grow brand awareness in target communities in a more personal and genuine way.
- Encourage employee involvement. Encourage employees to spread the word about current openings via LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and other communities. Social media can help the company grow social referrals beyond employees’ first-degree connections.
- Engage in more conversations. Quick exchanges on social networks are low overhead for prospects and recruiters, but they eventually lead to applications from people who would not have responded otherwise.
- Take it offline. Send invites via social media to Friday happy hours and other events. Use social media in creative ways to drive the conversation to an in-person space.
Got “It?”
As the economic turnaround picks up steam, more companies will face shortages of talented, experienced workers who have “It.” And don’t forget, employees want to work for an “It” company. Social outreach and engagement helps position employers favorably with target candidates. A newly hired engineer recently told us that when a recruiter contacted him through Twitter, he immediately knew this company was a better fit than those whose recruiters were calling and emailing him.
Companies now growing at extraordinary rates are figuring out how use social media to compete for talent and proving that you don’t need to be big to build a strong employment brand in your target market.
Sourced from Mashable: http://mashable.com/2011/03/29/hiring-emerging-industries/
