Recruitment: Are social networks useless?
28 January 2014
Read by 3607 persons
According to a Stepstone(1) study conducted online in March 2013 and published last December, social networks are still relatively ineffective as a recruitment channel. At least, at first glance...
The study's first finding confirms that both candidates and recruiters have increased their presence on social networks: 81% of job seekers use this channel to increase their chances of recruitment and favor Viadeo and LinkedIn. For their part, companies have increased their presence on social networks by 50%, and nearly 70% of them are active on these media. LinkedIn is the European leader, with 64% of companies using it to find new talent. Facebook comes in second, with 41% of companies integrating it into their recruitment strategy. Finally, 29% of companies use Twitter to find their future employees. In 29% of cases, the management of these media is handled by an employee responsible for recruitment via social networks.
Weak direct results
However, the study shows that social networks only fill 2% of vacancies, compared to 24% for internal sources and 21% for job sites. Only 24% of employers are satisfied with the number of applications received after posting their job offers there. And according to the StepStone survey, only 10% of job seekers who apply via social networks are actually hired, with 44% indicating they have never been contacted for a job.
Influence on hiring decisions
This does not mean that social networks are useless in recruitment. 73% of companies use them to assess candidates' profiles. In half of the cases, the information published on these media "would indeed have positively influenced the hiring decision", while in a quarter of cases, a significant percentage, they represented a "reason for rejecting applications". Social networks thus appear as an additional channel to be used alongside other recruitment methods. The survey reveals that recruiters focus on the description of qualifications, third-party recommendations, and communication skills. The publication of inappropriate comments or images is the main reason for rejecting applications. Similarly, contradictions between the information in the candidate's CV and that published on their social profiles appear to be insurmountable, as is the demonstration of poor communication skills.
Candidates still need to improve
In this respect, two-thirds of job seekers are aware that the information found on their online profiles can impact their applications, and one-third of them adapt the information accordingly. However, they admit that they do not know how to adapt their communication on these new media. More worrying, 23% of them do not know how to change their privacy settings on social networks. Finally, the survey shows that 37% of job seekers have never worried about controlling their online reputation. Yet, to check their public information, all they have to do is type their name into the search bar...
Frédérique Guénot
www.focusrh.com
(1) The survey was conducted online in March 2013 with 672 companies and 8,265 job seekers on StepStone sites in 7 European countries: Germany, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Netherlands, Sweden.
Posted online January 28, 2014
The ReKrute.com Team
The study's first finding confirms that both candidates and recruiters have increased their presence on social networks: 81% of job seekers use this channel to increase their chances of recruitment and favor Viadeo and LinkedIn. For their part, companies have increased their presence on social networks by 50%, and nearly 70% of them are active on these media. LinkedIn is the European leader, with 64% of companies using it to find new talent. Facebook comes in second, with 41% of companies integrating it into their recruitment strategy. Finally, 29% of companies use Twitter to find their future employees. In 29% of cases, the management of these media is handled by an employee responsible for recruitment via social networks.
Weak direct results
However, the study shows that social networks only fill 2% of vacancies, compared to 24% for internal sources and 21% for job sites. Only 24% of employers are satisfied with the number of applications received after posting their job offers there. And according to the StepStone survey, only 10% of job seekers who apply via social networks are actually hired, with 44% indicating they have never been contacted for a job.
Influence on hiring decisions
This does not mean that social networks are useless in recruitment. 73% of companies use them to assess candidates' profiles. In half of the cases, the information published on these media "would indeed have positively influenced the hiring decision", while in a quarter of cases, a significant percentage, they represented a "reason for rejecting applications". Social networks thus appear as an additional channel to be used alongside other recruitment methods. The survey reveals that recruiters focus on the description of qualifications, third-party recommendations, and communication skills. The publication of inappropriate comments or images is the main reason for rejecting applications. Similarly, contradictions between the information in the candidate's CV and that published on their social profiles appear to be insurmountable, as is the demonstration of poor communication skills.
Candidates still need to improve
In this respect, two-thirds of job seekers are aware that the information found on their online profiles can impact their applications, and one-third of them adapt the information accordingly. However, they admit that they do not know how to adapt their communication on these new media. More worrying, 23% of them do not know how to change their privacy settings on social networks. Finally, the survey shows that 37% of job seekers have never worried about controlling their online reputation. Yet, to check their public information, all they have to do is type their name into the search bar...
Frédérique Guénot
www.focusrh.com
(1) The survey was conducted online in March 2013 with 672 companies and 8,265 job seekers on StepStone sites in 7 European countries: Germany, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Netherlands, Sweden.
Posted online January 28, 2014
The ReKrute.com Team
