Social Recruiting Use-The-Force
Ah Star Wars, how I love thee. Three amazing films, well ahead of their time with ideas and special effects, and then 3 movies that left a little bit to be desired, but I’m not going to go into that today. The Star Wars story, the original 3, centered around Luke Skywalker and his father Darth Vader, Jedi Knights with abilities that mere mortals can only dream of.
They can convince people to do what they wish, move items at will, fight with a light sabre like its a chopstick and essentially are the keepers of peace, and the instigator of evil. One wants to rule the Universe, while the other is there to keep things in harmony. “The Force” which gives these Jedi Knights their powers is EVERYTHING. It is the living organisms, the buildings, people, anything you can imagine has some element of The Force surrounding it. The Jediss use this to their advantage (or for Evil for Mr Vadar) and extract what they can out of every situation.
The most famous line for me, and one that we all use on a regular basis is “Use the Force”. When I want something done, or someone else to do something, “Use The Force” is always thrown in there. Maybe I haven’t grown up, but that’s not the point and I have to eventually relate this to Social Recruiting.
So what is “The Force” for recruiters and companies trying to find the best talent in the market? Your Network!
Call it a community, a tribe, a bunch of people, call it what you will, but a recruiters “Force” is the breadth and extensiveness of your professional network. You see the more you are networking, be it via Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Blogs, Events (yes something offline, it still exists) the list goes on, the better access you have to finding what you are looking for. If you are not using Social Media to assist with this, I have nothing to say other then YOU ARE MAD!!!!! Never before have you been able to network so EASILY…..
It may not always be a candidate for that open position, you could need some specific industry information, a recommendation on your work or help with just about anything and your network will be there for you, Use the “Force”.
So next time as a recruiter you are sitting there wondering where your next candidate or client is going to come from, or you need that specific piece of information that will win you a deal, or best yet you are seeking a new position, double check how much time and effort you have spent building your network of contacts across the various social media channels and how you can leverage “Your Force”…..or are you mad?
PS. George Lucas has no copyright on this blog post at all.
I agree completely, networking and building relationships both online and off is really important to being successful anywhere but more so in recruitment. Whenever I am putting sourcing strategies together I always look at ways that we can make real connections with people, whether that be with potential candidates or groups and associations within the industries that we cover. Using social media is a great way to open communication lines that you may not have had before, and to go out to people where they are.
I think you have missed another analogy from the awesome films to add to your post.
That famous line from Obi Wan Kenobi – “May the force be with you”
With everything in the social recruiting world going mobile, then take this “force” (in your words, your network) and make sure you can acceess the force whenever you need it – from your mobile etc. Make sure you have the relevent apps on your phone, PDA, iPhone or Blackberry to enable you to do this.
Then the force will be with you at all times!!
Andy