Social media constitutes a reliable and attractive tool for company promotion. Businesses increasingly reach their customers and build brand awareness through social networks. But can we also use them to find good employees? Of course! Here are some effective ways to find ideal candidates through social media.
LinkedIn is one of many social media platforms used by people with significant positions, primarily in such industries as accounting, marketing, finance, management, outsourcing, HR and IT. The unique functions it offers enables companies to acquire customers and to check the references of prospective business partners. As such, it is a popular way of making contacts when we are interested in recruitment. By including LinkedIn as part of the process, it helps us to maximise the opportunities of finding an employee that meets all the company’s needs, while minimising the time required to achieve this[1].
HOW DO WE FIND POTENTIAL EMPLOYEES ON LINKEDIN?
The number of people on LinkedIn and the links they establish with other members continues to grow, making it the most popular social media tool for recruitment purposes. In 2017 it was being used by as many as 87% of recruiters[2].
We can observe six trends in recruitment, allowing more effective use of this open-access database of professionals:
- Creating an inquiry: Publishing a status with a description of the type of candidate we are seeking is certainly the simplest solution. The members of our contact network already understand our company’s needs, and may help in searches. In order to increase the visibility of the post, it may be shared by our co-workers who also have a LinkedIn account. Their likes also increase the reach of the published status, allowing it to reach a wider range of recipients. We can improve on the results by republishing the inquiry several times a week, at different times of the day[3].
- Update the company’s status: We can also include a description of a potential candidate on the company profile. That allows us to share it with anyone who follows the company. If we have configured the company profile well, this will include people interested in working with us. They can then respond to the inquiry we publish[4].
- Check who is following your company: If you are serious about filling a position, it is worth checking out who is following the company’s account. It may include someone with excellent qualifications, and as a follower they have already demonstrated an interest in the company’s activities[5].
- LinkedIn Recruiter: Using the LinkedIn Recruiter service is one of the most proactive methods of finding candidates. It is a paid service, but very effective. It allows us to narrow down the search results to a specific area, industry or keywords.[6] A useful feature is the ability to create a search based on relevant indicators of the ideal candidate. After entering the first and last name of someone who would be an excellent employee, LinkedIn then displays the profiles most similar in terms of qualifications and experience to the indicated person’s profile[7].
- Search alert: The LinkedIn Recruiter tool offers the option of saving searches with the filter settings and keywords used. Thanks to this, we can use LinkedIn to perform a new search for potential candidates every 24 hours, and we will then be automatically notified when any new, interesting results appear. Such regular alerts minimises the risk of missing out on the perfect candidate[8].
- Job Board: The last and yet most obvious method – publishing a job offer on LinkedIn Job Board. Once published, it remains available to potential candidates based on their search preferences. Use this paid tool to edit the company profile, organise recruitment tasks, review sent applications and answer them. Analytical data is also available to us, showing who has been viewing the offer in real time. In this way we can quickly find their profile and check the relevance and accuracy of their information[9].
IT IS WORTH VERIFYING THE CANDIDATE’S COMPETENCES!
LinkedIn, combined with the classic recruitment process, opens up new opportunities for finding the right person. However, regardless of the recruitment method, checking that the candidate’s skills and competences are actual is important. Depending on the job, this may involve conducting interviews, sending recruitment tasks or verifying the accuracy of the references[10].
For recruiters and employers who need to verify a candidate’s language skills, the Skrivanek language school has prepared the Focus Audit Tool. This allows online, independent and reliable assessment of their ability to use foreign language. Our tool checks each of the basic language competences:
- grammar structures knowledge,
- vocabulary use,
- reading,
- writing,
Language audits can be conducted for over 30 languages. Thanks to Focus, you can be sure that the person you intend to hire meets your expectations in terms of foreign language proficiency, with everything done remotely and quickly – and the results are delivered within 24 or 48 hours. Visit our website to review the available functions and contact us!
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[1] https://blogs.constantcontact.com/how-linkedin-can-help-you-find-your-next-great-employee/
[2] https://www.researchgate.net/publication/331022707_Use_of_Social_Networking_Sites_for_Recruiting_and_Selecting_in_the_Hiring_Process
[3] https://blogs.constantcontact.com/how-linkedin-can-help-you-find-your-next-great-employee/
[4] https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20140327211006-22839074-how-to-use-linkedin-to-find-your-next-great-employee
[5] as above
[6] https://blogs.constantcontact.com/how-linkedin-can-help-you-find-your-next-great-employee/
[7] https://www.linkedin.com/help/recruiter/topics/1003/1015/68099
[8] https://www.linkedin.cn/help/recruiter/answer/1758
[9] https://www.salesforce.com/ca/blog/2016/06/find-great-employee-on-linkedIn.html
[10] https://www.salesforce.com/ca/blog/2016/06/find-great-employee-on-linkedIn.html
