Introduction
Increase in popularity of the social networks such as Facebook and MySpace has led to people using the site to advertise and recruit new talents. Despite social networks helping recruiters who urgently require recruits, it may at times be not effective in helping employers get the right recruits for specific jobs. This paper will discuss some of the drawbacks of using social networks as a channel for recruitment. It will also give recommendations on other channels of recruitment that employers can use to get the right employees.
Drawbacks in recruiting from social networking sites
According to Gatewood, Gowan& Lautenschlager (1993), Social networking sites have some drawbacks. For example when recruiting, many job seekers may cheat the employer about their personal credentials. They might also attach fake certificates thus leading to employers picking unqualified staff at the expense of the qualified ones. Through social networks, it is hard for recruiters to gather all information relating to the recruit. Employee qualities such as demonstration of how one responds to varied situations can not be effectively conveyed through social networks. As a result, employers may end up recruiting people with limited experience jut because they posted superior curriculum vitae on the social networks.
Most of the experienced employees spend little time on social networks. Hence, using social networks during employee recruitment may disadvantage organizations as they may not be able to access experienced staffs. Increased publicity of social networks has led to most of the job seekers uploading their profiles in the networks. As a result, for recruiters to get the most appropriate recruit, they ought to go through many profiles. This would consume a lot of time as they try to compare the different applicants to identify the most relevant.
Hiring from abroad
Social networks can effectively facilitate recruiting talents from abroad. Due to geographical barrier, it is difficult for organizations to deal direct with the potential recruits. With social networks gaining popularity, recruiters can use them in hiring new talents from abroad. The sites offers a pool of potential recruits thus giving organizations a variety of talents to chose from. A good example is where Indian companies used LinkedIn to hire recruits from Singapore.
Recommendations
Apart from social networks, there are numerous databases that have been established where people upload their curriculum vitas and profiles. Information recorded in these sites clearly states one’s qualifications and experience. These databases are good sources of applicants where recruiters can turn to in search for recruits. From the database, recruiters can identify the relevant recruits and communicate to them on the day to avail them for interview.
Today, there are numerous recruiting agencies that offer recruitment services to organizations. The agencies collect applications from different applicants, compile them and try to secure jobs for the applicants (Gatewood, Gowan & Lautenschlager 1993). Accordingly, organizations wishing to hire new recruits can turn to these agencies. Here they can be furnished with information regarding the different applicants who are seeking employment.
Conclusion
Social networks are increasingly being used by organizations in hiring employees. This recruitment method has at times helped in enhancing recruitment efficiency. Nevertheless, if not well utilized, recruiters may end up not getting the right recruits. As most of the experienced staffs rarely use social networks, organizations using it for recruitment may not have a chance to get them.
Reference
Gatewood, R. D., Gowan, M. A. & Lautenschlager, D. J. (1993).Corporate image, recruitment image and initial job choice decisions. Academy of management Journal, 36, pp. 414-427.