iCIMS Hire Expectations™

As we reflect back at last year’s hiring data, iCIMS wanted to provide a glimpse at where our clients were finding their most qualified applicants across the different sourcing tools available today. In order to provide the most current and comprehensive data, we analyzed our 1,500+ clients’ source effectiveness reports. These reports assess recruitment advertising sources and the volume of candidates coming from each. Additionally, the report highlights the quality of such sources by displaying where candidates were in the recruitment process by source (ie: Did a lot of candidates come from a given source, but all were automatically disqualified?). On the flip side, the reports show if certain sources produce candidates who move farther along in the hiring process. We took the calendar year of 2012, and compared that to our previous study done in of 2011.  The results were accurately tracked by leveraging the automated source tracking feature of the iCIMS Talent Platform. This feature takes away the risk of candidates falsely identifying their source by automatically locking in the true origin of a candidate to ensure accurate reporting. The organization’s that benefit from the iCIMS platform range in size from companies of 10 employees, to global corporations well over 100,000; ensuring our report was applicable for a full range of organizations. In total, the data provided insight from over 1.5 million job postings, 30 million applicants, and 400,000 hires.

Of the 400,000 hires, 25% came from external sources (highlighted in the graph below) ; the other 75% came from referrals, internal hires, company career sites, and undefined sources. This data is very similar to the data collected last year (29% and 71% respectively), and confirms that iCIMS clients are better leveraging the tools at their disposal to make jobs visible via their corporate and in-house portals, as well as through employee referrals to bring in qualified applicants.

Though we are thrilled to see a high number of new hires coming in from these types of sources, the data also reveals the impact of external sources in the hiring process. Of the identified external sources of hire, Indeed.com, CareerBuilder, Monster, Craigslist, Linkedin, and Simply Hired, emerged as the top branded external sources of hire with sources such 3rd party recruiting agencies,  job fairs, and campus recruiting also making the list. Indeed alone accounted for more hires than all other branded sources combined and stood far out from the pack, delivering 27% of all external hires. Career Fairs also saw substantial uptick from last year leading us to believe that the economic climate is beginning to look up, and more recent graduates are finding jobs from these sources.

As we look back at where new hires came from in 2012, a few things are clear. The first is that our clients have continued to utilize the tools that are available through the iCIMS Talent Platform to effectively source out and recruit the best candidates. The second is that the external sources that were being used last year are still being used today, but in higher volumes, and lastly the sources may be the same, but the number of new hires has increased by over 25% leading us to even further suspect that many companies are starting to expand their recruitment strategies.

Talent acquisition is a top priority for all companies, no matter what their size. To get the job done, you need the right person to do it. End of story. But with so many options now available for sourcing talent, where should employers focus their time and energy?

In the recruiting world, there has been a lot of talk about social recruiting--i.e. utilizing social media outlets like Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter--to find active and passive candidates. Additionally, the nature of employee referrals is evolving, as these social channels allow current employees to post vacancies on their own personal social profiles.
As a result, the recruiting world is changing rapidly. Whereas sourcing and hiring was once under the exclusive, almost despotic, purview of the HR department--the experts who held the keys to the metaphorical employment castle--social channels have democratized the entire process. Everyone now has a voice. But determining which voices should be heeded, and which forums garner the most appropriate candidates for the job, is becoming more difficult as recruiters are overwhelmed with options.

To help navigate the evolving recruiting landscape, you need to know where you should focus your efforts. Are job boards still your best bet? Or does your company’s career page funnel excellent resumes into your inbox? Should you focus more time and energy scouring through profiles on LinkedIn? On Facebook? There are so many questions recruiters must now ask themselves to stay on top of their game.

In order to help HR departments and recruiting agencies prepare for a future that will undoubtedly be affected even more by technological innovation, Software Advice has prepared a survey to help determine which recruiting channels deliver the greatest bang for their buck, as well as provide employers with a clearer picture of the recruiting landscape as it stands now--and where it’s going.

However, we can’t answer these questions no our own. We need your help. And to make it worth your while, not only will we email you the results, but if you take the short seven-question survey, you can enter to win an iPad Mini!

The customer is always right – especially when it comes to what they want to see in the product they use every day. In this case that product is the iCIMS Talent Platform, and iCIMS has always been committed to taking our clients ideas and feedback, and turning them into our newest features. While our annual surveys, client user groups, Product Experience Panel, and daily interactions with clients help us garner an idea of our clients are looking for, iCIMS has also created the Customer Advisory Council (CAC) – a two day conference held each year where an elite group of clients get together with the iCIMS team to discuss ideas and improvements for the system as well as upcoming trends in HR.

This Monday, September 10th marks the start of iCIMS’ 9th Annual Customer Advisory Council . The CAC gives us the ability to work face to face with both everyday users in the system and their executives to not only hear what new features they would like to see, but also things that they feel might not be working to their full potential. It’s a simple, proactive way to keep a pulse on how clients are using the system, ways that we can better the user and candidate experience, and share with our clients where iCIMS is headed as a company.

This year’s CAC is slated to allow for even more free flowing conversation between clients and iCIMS employees. With the largest CAC head count to date, new conference tracks, smaller break-out sessions, and one-on-one meetings all being hosted at iCIMS’ brand new HQ in Matawan NJ, we can’t wait to see the feedback we gain!

As a Marketing professional at a company that produces technology for Human Resources professionals, I’m coming to realize that Marketing and HR have a lot in common. At the end of the day, we’re both selling something – Marketing is selling a product or service, while HR is selling an employment opportunity. There are certain techniques that are revolutionizing the field of Marketing, and I believe that HR can embrace some of these tools to gain an advantage when it comes to recruiting.

To begin, let’s take a look at the foundation of marketing: the marketing mix, also known as the 4 Ps.

1.Product: An item that satisfies a consumer want or need; either a good or service.
2.Price: The amount the consumer pays for the product.
3.Promotion: The methods of communication used to provide information about the    product.
4.Place: The distribution channels through which the product is provided for    consumers to access.

Now let’s translate this to HR:

1.Product (Opportunity): The position, culture, and employment brand you offer to    candidates.
2.Price (Value): The compensation package you’re extending to the right candidate.
3.Promotion (Communication): The communication you use to recruit and source    candidates.
4.Place (Recruitment Channel): The channels through which you broadcast your    opportunities.

Cover the Basics with Product & Price

You may not have an abundance of control over your “product” and your “price,” since the job descriptions and salaries will be dictated in large part by Hiring Managers and budgets. However, you do have control over your company culture, your employment brand, and some of the peripheral benefits of working at your organization (the “perks” of the job – game rooms, free food, etc.).

Build a strong company culture predicated upon shared values and a strong mission, and clearly articulate it to potential candidates on your corporate career site and social media accounts. Take advantage of images and video to brand these properties, and give candidates a glimpse inside your organization. Show candidates what it’s like to work for your company, and how they’d fit in.

Stand out from the Crowd with Promotion & Place

Marketing has developed a wide variety of tools to promote products. HR has adopted some of these methods, but in my opinion, they can expand upon these tactics by taking advantage of the channels and techniques that are currently revolutionizing Marketing: social, mobile, search, and automation.

Social: By now, it should go without saying that HR should take advantage of social networks for recruitment. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter are all prime locations for finding candidates for jobs, and there are tools available that make it easy to get the word out about your opportunities. Make sure your job postings are social-optimized to allow for easy sharing, and make it easy for candidates to follow you and receive updates from your company.

Mobile: It’s estimated that by 2015 more people will access the internet via a mobile device than via a desktop computer. It’s important to mobile-optimize your career site to provide a seamless experience for job-seekers searching on mobile devices. Make it easy for candidates to find relevant jobs, regardless of how they’re accessing your career site.

Search: There is so much information out there; it’s hard to make sense of it all. Do your candidates a favor, and make it easy for them to find your opportunities. Search engines index millions of pages of job-related data, so you need to make sure your candidates can find your jobs easily. Make sure your jobs and career sites are search engine optimized so they show up on page one search results, allowing candidates to come straight to your career site (thus cutting out the job board middleman).

Automation: Nurture your candidates through automated communication campaigns that target them when the time is right. If you’re using a robust sourcing solution, you can build Talent Pools that you can enter directly into “drip” email campaigns that use logic to send communications at a determined interval. You can also set logic to send communications to certain pools when a relevant opportunity opens up.

More and more companies are turning to social media to drive their HR program. From job postings to passive recruitment the world of Social Talent Acquisition is changing and evolving.

On Thursday, March 29th at 1pm, Madeline Laurano, Aberdeen Group’s Research Director for Talent Acquisition Solutions will be presenting on research findings from Aberdeen’s  2012 talent acquisition study. Register for this FREE webinar here! Key findings include:

• Key pressures facing organizations in social talent acquisition 
• Top uses of social media in talent acquisition
• The role social media plays in improving the efficiency and effectiveness of talent acquisition efforts 
• The future impact of social media on talent acquisition efforts

Registration Link: Click Here

Date: Thursday, March 29th, 2012

Time: 1:00pm EST

Cost: Free

Look forward to having you there!

There is something about a new year that is very intriguing to me, maybe it’s the idea of getting to start fresh or maybe it’s the concept of not knowing what is coming next. Either way, I assume this is why year after year we make resolutions to improve, change, or alter what currently is. According to a poll on http://www.usa.gov/index.shtml, the top three (3) most popular New Year’s Resolutions for 2012 are to get fit (1), to save more money (2), and to find a better job. Here are some ways to tackle these resolutions and make 2012 a year of success, personally and professionally.

Resolution #1: Get fit.  Now, I’m no fitness expert; however, what I have noticed is the more you exercise, the better you look, and ultimately, the better you feel.  I only started going to the gym a couple of weeks ago, and I have already noticed a huge boost of energy to my daily routine. Unfortunately, I understand how the gym isn’t right for everyone, so why not start small and use your lunch break as an opportunity to become more active by walking around the nearby department store?  After all, it is the little steps taken that go a long way. In the workspace, more and more HR departments are becoming “socially fit”. What does this mean? Leverage social recruiting tools to attract top candidates. The more visibility your job postings have, the more candidates you will reach. Here’s a secret: Streamlining your HR processes is much easier than streamlining your fitness schedule. Start in the workplace and hope to see results fast!

Resolution #2: Save more money. If your resolution this year is to save money, here is a great tip that I received from a coworker. I was told to automatically divide my direct deposit into two separate bank accounts, the “primary pay the bills” checking and the “build a house, a home, and a family someday” checking. By using this innovative idea, I was able to save money without too much effort at all.  Similarly, an onboarding solution allows HR to get online documentation from new employees prior to their first day of work. This allows companies to save on time, paper, and money during the onboarding process and helps get employees started faster!

Resolution #3: Find a better job. Well if this isn’t right up a recruiter’s ally, I’m not sure what is!  If you are looking for a new job, leverage your past experiences to get noticed. Optimize your Linked In, Facebook, and Twitter accounts by updating job information and specialties that can allow you to shine.  If you’re looking for a great growing company to work for, check out the iCIMS career portal (Note: they didn’t tell me to put this in, I did it all on my own!).  If you are happy with your current job (which I hope you are), meet this resolution from the other end of the spectrum and optimize the opportunity presented by adding talented employees to your own staff! What should you do? Positively influence the candidate experience by creating a company-branded and user-friendly career site. It is important to find the most qualified candidates, but also ones who understand the company’s mission and culture.

Today could be the day you make the decision to change your life and/or your HR processes. Only you can decide! Feel empowered by the New Year so much that you make the change to create a more fantastic YOU and a more fabulous HR!  When change is for the better, how can you choose not to?

The other day, I set aside some time to listen to HRHappyHour Episode 128, titled The Consumerization of HR. Having a background that has little to do with technology, I have found myself taking roles in companies that are very much technology driven. What I’ve consistently found in each of these roles is that you do not have to be an expert in technology to work in technology. In some cases, being a consumer with a passion for detail is just enough. While it takes the work of experts from various areas to build a successful product, I like to believe that consumers also play a big role on how technology evolves.  So, as soon as I saw this title, I thought it might be right up my alley.

As a consumer, we all know that there are certain things that just catch on and spread like wildfire. Over the course of the last 10 years, social media is one of them, and I know we’ve only hit the surface. According to Constellation Research, 75% of the workforce is mobile – with 45% of that workforce retiring in 10 years. Those retirees are making room for a new wave of workers; most, who I’m sure, choose to make social media a part of their daily lives. With more than 800 million active users, the average Facebook user is connected to 80 community pages, groups and events.

A few years ago I was tasked with working on a project that defined employee policies associated with social media usage. Those guidelines seemed more like restrictions. Shortly after, the company reversed its position, largely due to the fact that the Marketing Team jumped on board and began to create a social media team, with the goal of increasing the brand’s social presence. The guidelines that once stood as restrictions were refreshed and we were on a new task to actually build the organizations’ social media presence from within the company – starting with the employee base - our brand ambassadors. Designated brand ambassadors were identified and asked to lead the way and set an example for the rest of the organization to follow suit. While some thought this might open an area of risk for the organization based on what employees may post while on the job, the majority of employees took this as an opportunity to spread a good word about the organization.

With everything that is new, there is always an associated or perceived risk. However, as time marches on some of these items that were once risky, become the norm. I’m sure there were few people in 1903 who expected the Wright Brother’s invention of the first successful airplane to evolve into full fledged fleets of 747s with Direct TV access. While it’s hard to compare the airline industry to the infiltration of social media, it’s safe to say that social media is here to stay and will continue to expand our options for driving actionable plans in various sectors.    

As organizations continue to find useful ways to put these personal and professional networks to work, I look forward to seeing how the landscape continues to evolve within HR. How does your organization utilize social media to build your employee brand and employee engagement levels? What successes have you seen by incorporating social media into your recruitment plans?

Just two weeks ago, I attended a conference in Philadelphia regarding social media’s influence on the business world as we know it. It’s amazing to see how different departments are leveraging social media in their day-to-day tasks. In fact it’s great. However, for those of you who haven’t jumped on board the social media train, you are missing out. Let’s take HR for example. Recruiters know that they should get involved, so what’s stopping them? Simple. Those professionals have forgotten why they should get involved and thus, have delayed setting up their company profiles. Perhaps if we can remember the end goals of using social media in HR, recruiters won’t delay any longer.

Reason # 1 – It’s where your candidates are. In this day and age, top talent is moving around and in order to stay in touch with this talent you need to know where they are and where they are going. Social media sites also allow recruiters to engage and spread their talent net. Bottom line: recruiters have access to a much larger talent pool than they had before.

Reason # 2 – Everyone else is doing it. Your competitors are perusing their talent pool freely on LinkedIn and Facebook looking for their next game changer. What if you could find them first? Beats the heck out of passive recruiting via cold calling.

Reason # 3 – To improve your company image/brand. Top talent is pickier than ever. They want to know more about the company they are applying for. Make it easy for your candidates by providing this information on the social media sites they are already on. Give them a sneak peek into your company and what a great place it is. You can reel top talent in without even lifting a finger (well except for when you had to set up your profile).

Reason # 4 – Cutting down time-to-fill and cost-per-hire. Social media is free. Yes, I know what you are thinking. Social media is not free - it takes time and personnel resources. Which is very true. But, I promise that making the case for allocating time to social recruiting will be much easier (especially with finance) than using a sourcing firm that costs $x/month. Not that I have anything against sourcing firms. Social media is immediate and updated instantly, which allows you to find the appropriate candidates faster and cheaper. Further, if you are already using an applicant tracking system, even better. Some ATS allow you to post jobs out instantly to all of your social media sites – connecting the job seeker and open requisition faster.

Reason # 5 – And, so on. There are a ton of reasons why you should be on social media. Research a bit more if you don’t believe me.

So you know the reasons why you should do it…now on to the how. The conference provided some great tips on driving your social recruitment campaigns. Here are three starter tips to implement (I, of course, take zero credit for these tips).

1. Leverage only what you can handle. As a newbie to social media, optimize one platform at a time. Start with LinkedIn. Make sure your company’s profile is up to date. Have employees share their experiences in the group. Write up a quick snapshot of your benefits. Once you feel comfortable with your LinkedIn efforts, move on to another platform making sure to keep up with your LinkedIn as well.
2. Get your employees involved. Employee referral is one of the best ways to win new top talent. Why not have your employees participate and share news about your company via social media? Not only will their network see the news but your credibility as a good company to work for will increase. If you are shaking your head at this idea because you are concerned with what your employees will say, then maybe you have a bigger problem surrounding the culture and positive work environment of your company.
3. Create a social media policy. While getting your employees involved does open a lot of doors (if you are a good company you shouldn’t be afraid of that), you should take the necessary precautions. Lindsay Lebresco from Lilly Pulitzer made a great point in saying, make a simple social media policy and make it part of your new hire packet. By having employees see your social media policy from day one, you are encouraging them to think that employee involvement in social media is the norm.

Social recruiting is here to stay, so stop pushing it off and get started today. Hey, that rhymed. Good luck!!

I’m afraid to say that the rising internet technology has spoiled us into thinking all we have to do is ‘Google it’ to get the answer to our questions. While this may be true for finding out where to get the best cheesecake or how to lose 10 pounds in 2 weeks, there are still some answers that cannot be found so simply. Every day, HR professionals are trying to learn more about HR software, but unfortunately, they just don’t know where to look. And, while many of these people are aware of what HR software is, there are still too many other questions left unanswered.

‘Why should I implement HR technology when I haven’t in the past?’
‘Which features are most important in an applicant tracking system?’
‘What is a reasonable price for my size company to spend on HR software?’ and most importantly…
‘Which vendor is right for me?’

These are a just a few of the many questions that come to mind when inquiring about HR technology, but where do you go to find these answers? Sure, you can call different vendors and inquire about each one separately, but how do you know you are getting bias-free answers with your company’s best interest in mind?

Many HR Professionals are taking this matter into their own hands and using various social media websites to find their answers. Websites such as LinkedIn and Recruiter.com that have boards for questions and answers are great for neutral answers. Most people are leveraging the answer boards to receive feedback and suggestions from other users who have HR needs similar to your own. Most people who have had either an excellent or horrific experience using HR technology are eager to share their opinions and advice with others. By doing this, recruiters and hiring managers are gaining bias-free answers and also networking and contacting these people for any other HR software questions.

Another advantage of using social media outlets to ask questions is that they generally provide quick turnaround. With LinkedIn having over 100 million members, Facebook having over 150 million active members and Twitter having about 2.5 million members, there is a good chance that your question will get noticed by someone who has the experience to give you a valuable answer.  Here’s an example of someone on LinkedIn who was looking for feedback on the iCIMS Talent platform and received 8 responses from iCIMS clients who had experience implementing and using the system.

Joining recruiting websites is another way to get your HR answers. Recruiters and hiring managers alike are joining websites such as ERE.net in order to stay informed on top HR technology news and join community groups with topics that interest you. For example, one informative community group on ERE.net is ‘ATS Implementation’. In this group, contributors “discuss all aspects [of ATS implementation] from vendor selection to ‘Going Live,’ best practices, and all the issues associated with adding an ATS to recruiting function.” Even without writing questions or posts of your own, simply reading through other questions can give you insight and answer questions you hadn’t thought of.
    
Although these social media sites can facilitate the evaluation process, it is also essential to identify your own specific needs. What sort of processes do you need to incorporate into your ATS? Make sure the vendor you choose is configurable enough to meet those needs. Need more help? Check out this ATS Handbook Whitepaper that can help you find the perfect HR solution for your company!

What is Recruitment Marketing?

According to good old ERE:

Recruitment marketing used to mean writing job ads and placing them in newspapers. Today, it covers a wide range of disciplines that includes creative, copywriting, SEO, web analytics, pay per click, video, blogging, and social media marketing.

For now, let’s skip to the last part…Social Media, or in HR terms: Social Recruiting. Do you currently have a social recruiting program? If you don’t, maybe you should… In a recent CNN video, these social media sites are said to be “taking the teeth out of job search websites”. Essentially, more money is being pumped into these social media sites, while many of these job search websites are suffering losses. If this is any indication of the way the recruitment industry is going, I’d say social recruiting is here to stay (at least for the next decade).

However, the major problem with social recruiting is the comprehensive nature of these sites. Navigating through Linkedin or Facebook for recruiting purposes can quickly consume a recruiter’s time. So while this recruitment marketing piece is very desirable, it is not easily attainable (manually speaking).

So, the big question is how do you make social recruiting not only desirable but also attainable. Take a step back and ask yourself:

1. What tasks do you need to complete in order to get top talent to submit an application via social recruiting efforts?
   • Choose social media sites to leverage.
   • Post jobs to all social media sites, career sites, etc. 
   • Build branded email campaigns to connect with your social media contacts.
   • Reach out to candidates proactively via email/phone.
   • Analyze source effectiveness of each social media site.
   • What else?
2. Which of those do you feasibly have time for without working outside of the 8-6 work day? – Keep in mind social recruiting is only one aspect of recruitment marketing.
3. Which tasks can you automate?
   • Send mass emails using a communication tool – don’t waste time emailing one person at a time.
   • Post jobs to all social media and career sites at the same time – don’t waste time going to each site to post jobs. 
   • Copy job templates – don’t waste time reinventing the wheel.
   • Store data electronically with an ATS – don’t waste time manually accumulating data to report on. Leverage an applicant tracking system so you can visualize source effectiveness in a matter of seconds.
   • What else?

Choosing Automation

While automation through technology solutions is not meant to replace HR professionals it will facilitate the process and automate essential tasks that recruiters just don’t have time for. For example, recruitment marketing solutions would probably be your best bet as they can help you automate your social recruiting so you don’t have to spend hours navigating your Linkedin account. Now, social recruiting is much more attainable.

P.S. Did you know that Linkedin recently announced their 100 million member mark? Crazy right? And that’s only one piece of social recruiting and recruitment marketing…

What about you? Do you have any other tips to share on improving a social recruiting program?