Privacy, legal, and discrimination are a few of the concerns that have been discussed at length when considering using social media for recruiting. However, the biggest fear that most recruiters have at the back of their mind but don’t want to express publicly is the challenge of managing public interactions with aggressive, unqualified candidates.
With the increased transparency that social media affords, how you deal with these candidates will impact how those within your target audience view opportunities at your organization.
Recruiters are well aware of prospective candidate’s ability to link insignificant parts of their experience to the responsibilities and requirements of the job opening. Candidates are hoping that somehow, someway they will hit the job lottery and be rewarded with an interview despite a clear lack of qualifications.
When using social media for recruiting, members of the team give depth to the organization by sharing images, videos, names, background, and contact information. For the aggressive, unqualified candidate this wealth of information is a gold mine. Now, they don’t have to try and track down the name of the recruiter to avoid “the black hole”; the information they need to present their candidacy is readily accessible.
They can tweet on Twitter, Facebook friend, connect on LinkedIn with the recruiter who has job openings (I’ll leave out the potential of Foursquare for now). Given current economic conditions, the shifting employment landscape, and the opportunity to finally present their candidacy to a real person; it is hard to fault their effort.
Recruiters, who have been largely protected by technological anonymity, will now have to find creative ways to tell these applicants that they are not a good fit while simultaneously maintaining the strengths of their carefully cultivated employment brand to target candidates. This is no easy task.
Recruiters, how do you plan to respond to aggressive, unqualified candidates who seek to take advantage of the increased accessibility that social media affords?
–Omowale Casselle (@mysensay)
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About the Author: Omowale Casselle is the co-founder and CEO of mySenSay. We help top employers and next generation leaders connect.
As a Corporate Recruiting Manager, my team and I have already begun to see this happen. Our strategy – be honest and blunt. 99% of the candidate pool doesn’t like to hear the truth, but each time we are open and up front with our unqualified candidates they truly appreciate it.
Case in point, my boss refers a referral to me. I conduct the phone screen and know that the personality, skill sets, and accomplishments do not fit what the actual position we were hiring for. I let the candidate know at the end of our initial conversation that he is not a match. The candidate continually follows up with me on phone calls and emails (copying my boss) when he sees new positions. On our last call, I went full disclosure letting him know that our sales skills require “X industry experience” which is completely 100% true. When I had put it to him with more detail and specifics, he understood and appreciated my candor.
The candidates are more aggressive with unemployment hovering at 9.6% and will do anything to get in the door. Staying honest and direct will help you avoid legal pitfalls that social media has opened up.
Great post Omowale!
Michael,
Thanks for the comment. No one likes to be disappointed, but when you frame the decision in the proper context; it makes all the difference. I think your team is taking the correct approach by being honest and blunt. Prospective candidates will appreciate your candor even if they aren’t ultimately selected for a position.
Omowale
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Love the post, Omowale. I completely agree with your point of view here. Our most recent blog post covers this exact problem from another angle. We agree, social media and recruiting can be a worrisome combination, and there are other legal pitfalls (like Title VII violations, and more) that are equally as concerning. It’s good to see other bloggers getting the word out on this topic.
Heather,
Thanks for the comment. There are definitely lots of things to consider when using social media for recruiting. By identifying challenges early, employers can develop effective strategies for proactively addressing these issues.
Omowale